Two 48-unit apartment buildings could now go up in North Ridge after council moved to make some minor changes to the land use bylaw.
The proposed buildings will be located just south of Nevis Close just off Giroux Road near fire station No. 3.
The four-storey buildings would be rental units, very few of which have been built in St. Albert in many years.
Mission Ventures, a company from Kelowna, B.C., wants to build the structures and asked council to change some of the proposed rules around higher-density building.
The total 96 units are slightly above the density for the area, but council took no issue with that change.
Three other changes did lead to some debate. The company asked for up to a 16-metre tall building, to accommodate both four storeys and a pitched roof, an idea council endorsed. Officials wanted to lower the city’s visitor parking requirements and shorten the distance between the building and any sidewalks or parking lots to three metres from the city’s proposed six metres.
The applicant said the existing rules made the project uneconomical and they needed the changes to go ahead.
Scott Butler, who spoke on behalf of Mission Ventures, said St. Albert needs the rental accommodations.
“We identified the St. Albert market as the market we wanted to be in,” he said. “This area has one of the lowest vacancy rates in the Capital region. That is why we identified it.”
Councillor Len Bracko moved changes allowing a 4.5-metre setback on the property as well as allowing the reduced visitor car parking requirements.
Bracko’s suggestion would allow the company to have a one: five ratio for visitor parking, with many of the stalls listed as small car parking spots.
Administration had proposed allowing the reduced setback, but only if a fence was put up.
Bracko said removing the requirement for the fence and lowering the visitor parking standards made sense.
“We do have a shortage as we all know and the two amendments I have proposed are minor changes that will help the developments move forward.”
Coun. Carol Watamaniuk and Mayor Nolan Crouse were alone in opposing the changes. Watamaniuk said the city should not lower its standards.
“Why do we want to push this, because you are definitely going to be losing some of the aesthetic,” she said. “Why are we allowing a certain area of town to suddenly have lesser standards.”
Crouse said he voted it against it because he doesn’t believe the changes were necessary to keep rents affordable.
“I didn’t believe that if you change the aesthetics, the look, that you would change the rents,” he said. “They become more profitable at the expense of aesthetics and that is the reason that I voted against.”
Crouse said even though he voted against changes like the higher roof he is in favour of the overall project and believes it will make a good addition to the city.
He said he generally prefers to see home ownership rather than rental units, but is supportive of all types of housing.
“Council has given our staff and the region a message that we are going to make sure that we support a variety of housing options and we have continually demonstrated that.”
