APPROVED 1314-1318 Wharf Street Uses: rental, commercial Address: 1314-1318 Wharf Street Municipality: Victoria Region: Downtown Victoria Storeys: 6 |
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[Downtown] 1314-1318 Wharf Street / Northern Junk | Rentals; retail | 6-storeys
#462
Posted 27 July 2021 - 06:23 PM
- DavidSchell likes this
#463
Posted 27 July 2021 - 06:28 PM
One of my failures as Chair of the DRA was not getting enough residents involved. It always seemed like the same half dozen people. I loved them and they were smart and did great work but I never felt we were even close to representing the will of the community at large unless it was an immediate hot-button topic that affected immediate neighbours.
- zoomer, Nparker and DavidSchell like this
#464
Posted 27 July 2021 - 06:48 PM
Now for the quote from Jon Stovell:
“Over the past 10-plus years, we drafted a dozen proposals — two in the past year alone — at a cost to us of more than $1 million.”
A significant amount of this time and cost falls at the feet of Reliance Properties. To be honest Jon, so many of those early proposals were awful; they looked like an ordinary apartment block dropped in a prime location. No matter the limitations, site challenges and conflicting city messaging it didn’t have to take 8 years for solid proposals to emerge.
That being said, I think Reliance has done a great job on this final proposal and I will be sending a letter in support. I wish you and Reliance nothing but the best with Northern Junk and for future proposals on the many other land holdings you have in Victoria.
- DavidSchell likes this
#465
Posted 27 July 2021 - 06:51 PM
Letter to City Hall
My name is Robert Randall, a Saanich resident. and I am speaking in a personal capacity. I am a former Downtown resident and current Downtown worker and I am writing in support of the current proposal for 1314 Wharf.
It was April of 2010, over 11 years ago, when I met with the developer in my former role with the Downtown Residents' Association and was shown their plans for the site. Since my term as Chair ended and I moved to Saanich I continued to follow the saga as various massings were presented and rejected. There have been at least seven or eight redesigns and if I recall correctly my favourites were two, four and six, while three was pretty good and five wasn't bad either and the current design seems to me to meet the needs the City and residents asked for. I hope I don't have to tell my yet-to-be-born grandchildren design thirty-seven was pretty good, too.
The current proposal is attractive and conforms to the OCP keeping in mind that document is somewhat dated and open to wide variations in interpretation. Keeping the buildings as is with no additional construction was never intended at the time this property was marketed with the blessing of the City.
It was always anticipated additional density would be built on the site in a way that respected the unique warehouses. Designs featuring adjacent new construction were proposed and rejected on several occasions.
I conclude the current proposal is the best compromise and responds favourably to the concerns expressed by the City and residents over the years. I urge Council to vote yes on this proposal.
Regards,
Robert Randall
Former Important Downtown Person
- Mike K., zoomer, Nparker and 4 others like this
#466
Posted 27 July 2021 - 06:58 PM
The DRA says the change in property was the developer's choice; Reliance says the adjacent land was taken off the table as an option to build on. Who's right.
#467
Posted 27 July 2021 - 07:43 PM
The average resident is either working 9-5 shifts or at/studying for school. Most of the rest gets spent on family, friends, church, sports and whatnot. Only a small amount of time is dedicated to active civic participations. Municipal affairs get less publicity than either provincial or federal politics by a long shot, and even within cities time is typically spent on activism or hot-button issues. There's simply no time left for the average resident to evaluate the myriads of building proposals that come through every year. And frankly, these decisions need to operate from the principle that it's private property that's being developed on - the onus should be on council and nay-sayers in community associations to provide compelling reasons as to why something can't get built, not for builders to move heaven and earth to cater to ridiculous and mercurial expectations.
- Mike K., zoomer, Nparker and 5 others like this
#468
Posted 27 July 2021 - 07:45 PM
^yup, that's good.
Know it all.
Citified.ca is Victoria's most comprehensive research resource for new-build homes and commercial spaces.
#469
Posted 28 July 2021 - 01:37 AM
The average resident is either working 9-5 shifts or at/studying for school. Most of the rest gets spent on family, friends, church, sports and whatnot. Only a small amount of time is dedicated to active civic participations. Municipal affairs get less publicity than either provincial or federal politics by a long shot, and even within cities time is typically spent on activism or hot-button issues. There's simply no time left for the average resident to evaluate the myriads of building proposals that come through every year. And frankly, these decisions need to operate from the principle that it's private property that's being developed on - the onus should be on council and nay-sayers in community associations to provide compelling reasons as to why something can't get built, not for builders to move heaven and earth to cater to ridiculous and mercurial expectations.
this is exactly right.
#470
Posted 28 July 2021 - 07:39 AM
At least in Fairfield and James Bay there's a strong movement to preserve single-family dwellings and fend off high-density condo invasions which drives membership. But Downtown residents don't really care; they're basically OK with development in general and certainly don't care whether the condo a few blocks away conforms to a vaguely-worded OCP or has a FSR of 4.8:1 versus 5.2:1. Unless they have a personal interest in urban planning issues and architecture they're just not interested.
- franticvike likes this
#471
Posted 28 July 2021 - 07:48 AM
Know it all.
Citified.ca is Victoria's most comprehensive research resource for new-build homes and commercial spaces.
#472
Posted 28 July 2021 - 08:06 AM
I assume most downtown residents want to live in a vibrant and safe downtown, and would like to see businesses which support residents (as opposed to mainly tourists) continue to grow. And more residents is the obvious path to that happening. That's why the DRA is so puzzling to me.
- Nparker, grantpalin and franticvike like this
#473
Posted 28 July 2021 - 08:10 AM
Could it be that a lot of older residents in downtown bought into that market because there have traditionally been so few options outside of that market? Now that the West Shore, Esquimalt and Saanich condo markets are growing quickly with wider spectrum of choice (entry level to high end) we might start to see the pressure on downtown ease as a melting pot for all condo buyers. It’s tough to manage the desires of a couple from small town Sask looking forward to retirement in Victoria with a young couple in the prime of their life who work and play downtown as next door neighbours on the 15th floor.
- franticvike likes this
Know it all.
Citified.ca is Victoria's most comprehensive research resource for new-build homes and commercial spaces.
#474
Posted 29 July 2021 - 08:15 PM
#476
Posted 29 July 2021 - 08:37 PM
A couple of people giving Stovell grief for not pulling the trigger on the previously approved design and instead trying to get permission for this new-atop-old design.
#477
Posted 29 July 2021 - 08:50 PM
Helps chastising the speakers for praising/criticizing the developer instead of the proposal.
Still time to call in.
- m3m likes this
#478
Posted 29 July 2021 - 08:53 PM
Resident accusing the DRA of editorializing and skewing the community meeting report against the project.
#479
Posted 29 July 2021 - 08:57 PM
Mary Doody Jones! That's a blast from the past.
- A Girl is No one likes this
#480
Posted 29 July 2021 - 08:58 PM
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