An 18-storey building with 186 units is next up on the building block at the Brewery District.
Wesgroup Properties requested an amendment to the master development permit for the Brewery District, which allows it to build a residential building before providing 125,000 square feet of health-related office space. The requirement to build the health-related office space before the residential was part of the original master development permit approved for the Sapperton site.
“They were looking for some lenience on the restriction on the health-care uses on the site. There is a requirement and there is about 45,000 square feet (of health-related office space) that still has not been reached. Under the original master plan what that would mean is no further residential development until that has been reached,” explained Mayor Jonathan Cote. “What the developer was hoping was we’d remove that clause altogether. Council wasn’t comfortable with that.”
Instead, city council agreed to tie that remaining 45,000-square-feet of office space in to a future rezoning at the site, and deal with it at that time.
“The clause will remain, but the second tower can go ahead,” Cote said. “We will discuss when that trigger would most appropriately fit in, given that the vast majority of the requirements – the grocery store, the office tower buildings they were building, and even a substantial part of the health care – has been met.”
Cote said council felt it was reasonable to readjust where that piece fits into the master plan agreement, given the successes that have already taken place at the Brewery District site.
The second residential building proposed for the Brewery District would be located at 228 Nelson’s Cres. It will contain 85 one-bedroom units, 77 two-bedroom units and 24 three-bedroom units.
“I think it’s definitely a positive thing,” Cote said about bringing more residents to the Brewery District. “Certainly when the development first came forward, the city was actually very worried that we would see all the residential come first and we’d not see any of the commercial or retail side of things - that’s why the agreement was set up the way it was, to really encourage that development. Having said that, our ultimate goal for that site is to be a mixed-use, transit-oriented development where you’ve got people living there, you’ve got people working there and you’ve got retail opportunities. The retail component is an important next step forward for the Brewery District, and is really going to start to see that neighbourhood come to life.”
Council approved issuance of the development permit application April 25.
