Ottawa’s planning committee endorsed a 25-storey, mixed-use development near Westboro transit station, despite the ward councilor taking a hard line against the rezoning application.
The proposed development would see a public park, and two mixed-use buildings of 25 and four storeys built on a 1.3-acre property at the southwest corner of Scott Street and McRae Avenue. The site, currently home to a pair of two-storey single-detached buildings and an auto body shop, is 50 metres from the Westboro transit station.
While the spot is currently surrounded by buildings as high as eight storeys, just across Scott Street, recently amended zoning bylaws have allowed for a 25-storey development, which is currently being constructed by a team that includes local developer and property manager Colonnade Bridgeport.
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Currently, the site is zoned for heights of up to 18 metres. Applicant FoTenn Consulting, representing the Estate of Carson Unsworth, successfully argued for a zoning amendment to permit 25 storeys, or 78 metres in height.
The planned project, which still requires approval from full city council, would see nearly 300 residential units, 15,000 square feet of retail space and nearly 200 parking spaces in underground garages.
The large amount of available parking so close to a transit hub was a sticking point for Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper, who was the only committee member to vote against the proposed amendment.
“This building should not be approved this close to Westboro transit station with the amount of parking that it has. It is perverse. It is contrary to all of our plans. I would ask you to join me today in voting against this building,” he said during Tuesday’s committee meeting.
The project has been in the works since 2009, when a zoning amendment was first submitted, but the application was subsequently placed on hold prior to being reactivated in 2016.
Interested in the National Capital Region’s real estate market? Check out the most recent episode of the Ottawa Real Estate Show below, where Windmill Development’s Jeff Westeinde talks about the transformative potential of new developments coming to the western edge of downtown Ottawa.
