The proposed VineRidge Community housing development at Inkerman and Nery avenues in the area known as Picton Heights still has a way to go before it’ll be accepted by much of the public.
Tuesday night the county hosted a virtual public information session to detail the third iteration of the housing development near Picton.
The new proposal features 525 total units including a mixture of different types of town houses, single detached, semi detached and apartment units.
The big addition in this iteration of the submission is the addition of 84 apartment units which were not included in the previous submissions.
At the public information session much concern was raised over the 28 dwellings that are currently inhabited on the property that the development will be built on.
The homes are planned to be torn down and many wanted to know what would be done to accommodate the families that live there.
Planner Kelly Graham of SPN Planning and Design explained how they would support existing tenants.
“This project represents a significant contribution to the range of housing types available in the county with an affordable price point. At least one third of the condominium units will be priced at at least 10% below the average price for a resale unit in the county, thus meeting the official plan definition of affordable. An additional 15% of the project will be rental apartments and one rental building will be built in each phase to retain a balance of rental and ownership housing. The developer has engaged with the county’s affordable housing corporation as well as Prince Edward and Lennox and Addington Social Services regarding the provision of rent supplements to assist lower income families. Conversations with these agencies are still ongoing. The phased demolition and construction of the project will allow for existing tenants to be accommodated in the new rental buildings and existing tenants will be given first right of preference. Five percent of eligible condominium purchasers will receive down payment assistance from the developer to give middle and lower income families the opportunity to purchase a home.”
The proposed schedule is such that in the first phase the houses being demolished are already vacant, therefore not displacing any current tenants, along with the construction of one 18-apartment unit. In the second phase if there are people displaced they will have the first opportunity at the apartment units that were built in the first phase and those that are built in the second phase, when the total will increase to 30 units.
Fred Heller of FLC Group specified that there will be a 300% rate of replacement for affordable units in the development.
Price points for the dwellings in the development, including the apartments, have not been worked out as they are early in the process of design and application.
When asked about whether or not the rental units were designed to stay rental units and not eventually become condominiums, Graham said that the plan was for the rental units to remain rental units.
The development will also feature green space including a central park, a variety of gardens pedestrian paths and trails and eventual connection to the nearby Macaulay Mountain Conservation Area that will be publicly available, which is nearby, to the east of the proposed development site.
Three of the existing houses in the area are slated for preservation, one to be used as a community space and the other two for refurbishing and renting, according to Graham.
She said the decision behind which houses were selected were those that were in the best shape and location to be preserved as many of the existing houses are in disrepair and would be costly to fix.
When asked about whether or not the rental units would be accessible, Prince Edward County Planner James Griffin specified that the final designs, if approved to that point, would need to also be reviewed by the county’s accessibility committee.
Questions were also raised about the capacity of the apartment units as far as larger families who may be displaced and Heller assured that there are plans for two and three bedroom rental units in the apartment buildings.
The recurring question and concern during the information session was surrounding the families that currently live in the area.
One man, who said he is a resident of the area, gave insight to what the people in the community are feeling.
“It is causing stress up here in the community already. A lot of it has… it hurts. It feels like we’re all just being pushed to the side. We’re very strong people up here, we work very hard for our homes and our lives and we all love the county out here. I can tell you for one, the stress is very high up here.”
Consequently, another man applauded the developers for the changes that they’ve enacted since the last iteration was presented in February.
“I’ve had some experience opposing developments. I applaud the developers in this case. I think adding the rental units, having two and three bedroom apartments and the three storey buildings and the densification. I’m generally pleased with what I’m seeing. Let me just extend a thank you to the developers for trying to build something that will be beneficial for the overall Picton community.”
There are many next steps for the application to go through before it can even be brought back before council for reconsideration.
The comments collected at Tuesday’s session, as well as those received by the county’s partners who have now received the third submission, will be compiled and reviewed by staff before eventually being brought to council for a public statutory meeting regarding the proposal.
For more information on the development you can visit the VineRidge Community website.
