No rush to cut sprawl development
August 15, 2006

A proposed low density subdivision on Rymal Road sparked sharp debate in last week's planning committee and exposed the planning department's leisurely timetable for implementing the recently approved plans for intensification and transit-supportive development.

Brian McHattie questioned the wisdom of staff support for a Casablanca Properties plan to use a 1.13 hectare parcel near Upper Wentworth for 20 single family houses. "It seems like a lost opportunity to have such a low density development so close to a major corridor," noted the west end councillor. "It seems the antithesis of the GRIDS style of planning that we hope to undertake".

The GRIDS (Growth Related Integrated Development Strategy" adopted in May calls for residential intensification along Rymal and other major roads to ensure they have sufficient density to support public transit. Rymal is designated as one of only four "higher order transit corridor" defined as "transit that operates in own right-of-way". The other three corridors are King-Main in the lower city, Upper James and Centennial Parkway.

Tim McCabe, director of real estate and development, responded to McHattie that the proposed development "is just a continuation of the existing street pattern" and won quick support from Bill Kelly who called it "just an extension of something that was previously approved - a single family residential area in the inner part of the survey which is basically what we've been doing all along anyway."

Kelly argued that there is already some higher density development in the area. "A quarter-mile down the road on the other side of Rymal Road is a townhouse complex and two proposed high rise complexes that are in the planning stages at this stage."

But McHattie persisted in his questioning, asking staff how long planning committee would continue seeing "the old style of planning" rather than the higher densities approved in the GRIDS plan. "There's just a little bit of frustration that we're going to see this stuff . we have seen over the last three years that I've been here, no real change. Are we able to revisit some of these things that have already been put in place?"

Staff responded that McHattie would "have to wait for the balance of the Official Plan to roll out, and then the subsequent program of secondary plans to revisit the area."

McHattie's questions aggravated Terry Whitehead who sarcastically declared: "I always appreciate and welcome comments from councillors who represent the lower city where there's very limited opportunity for further development" and went on to say that he "look[s] forward to more high rises being built in Westdale as well."

McHattie called that "the kind of a comment that's going to scare everyone away from intensification - the kind of absolute comment that intensification means 12-storey, 20-storey apartment buildings." He contended that housing densities can be increased with "a very creative approach" using stacked townhouses and other designs "that can fit into the character of the neighbourhood."

Flamborough councillor Dave Braden pushed staff for more details on exactly how long the committee would have to wait "to get some decent development". He warned that even after the city completes additional studies and its new official plan, developers will argue that it's unfair to impose these on subdivision plans that they have been working on for years.

McCabe told him it will take two years to make the GRIDS changes enforceable. "When the Official Plan's done, that will have mandated intensification policies, certain locational criteria, certain land assembly type nature of properties, that when [developers] come in for rezoning, then the Official Plan can direct it, and require it, and we will have a policy basis that we can say no to."

Whitehead concluded the discussion with a call for the city "to do a better job in educating the positives of intensification" and asked what efforts were currently underway. McCabe candidly admitted that "we're really nowhere at this point. Until we have the intensification direction, and we have something to talk to people about, we haven't gone out, I mean, in terms of any public awareness program. So we have not started that."

The debate preceded one focused on the Nash Neighbourhood Plan where density of development is also an issue. However, unlike the subdivision proposal, the city is already required to plan for transit-supportive densities in neighbourhood and secondary planning documents.

The staff report on the Rymal Road development, which was approved by the committee, is on the city's website at http://www.myhamilton.ca/NR/rdonlyres/5CA3912C-916F-4BA1-9588-
BAAFFF7FADF6/0/Aug08PED06333.pdf.

The committee debate on this proposal has been transcribed by CATCH and is posted at http://www.hamiltoncatch.org/planning/plan_060808.htm.