Fredericton council hears opposition to more apartment buildings on College Hill

Residents expressed concern to Fredericton councillors Monday night that proposed zoning changes could increase traffic and decrease the appeal of the College Hill neighbourhood.

A handful of people spoke against a plan by city staff to allow more multi-unit buildings in the neighbourhood adjacent to the campuses of the University of New Brunswick and St. Thomas University.

"I think we need to be clear that we're not NIMBYs," said Joseph Pagé, one of the residents who spoke against the proposal.

"I think we're all for change, and we're all for increasing or sharing our neighbourhood with others," he said. "I think it's the process." Pagé said he felt residents like him weren't consulted early enough about the changes.

The College Hill area includes properties within the boundary of Beaverbrook, Windsor, Montgomery and Regent streets, and its development has been governed for the past 30 years by a municipal plan that city staff say has become outdated.

Adopted in 1994, the College Hill secondary municipal plan sought to address neighbourhood concerns about non-owner-occupied homes, and thus significantly restricted the permitted uses for properties in that area.

Despite the growth in student and non-student residents, housing options in the area have been primarily limited to single- and two-unit detached homes.

Under city hall's proposal, the College Hill plan would be repealed, and the zoning for dozens of properties would be changed to allow the construction of denser buildings.

The plan would see the largest buildings allowed on properties on Graham Avenue and Windsor Street between Beaverbrook Street and Kings College Road. There, properties would be rezoned to MR-4, which allows buildings of up to six storeys with a maximum of 100 units per hectare.

Properties on other streets, like the eastern sides of Regent and Windsor between Kings College Road and Montgomery Street, would be rezoned to MR-2, which allows for buildings up to four storeys with a maximum of 62 units per hectare.

Properties on the western side of Graham Avenue and Windsor Street, as well as the northern side of Montgomery Street, would be rezoned R-5, which allows semi-detached and townhouses.

Traffic concerns not addressed, says resident

Pagé said he's lived on Grandame Street since 2018, and is familiar with the raucous off-campus parties that are "not conducive to a nice quiet neighbourhood."

He said he went to a public engagement session the city held in May to offer staff feedback about the proposed changes.

He said he raised concerns about a potential increase in traffic, which he doesn't feel have been addressed.

"If we're going to increase density and there's going to be more traffic and more people wanting to avoid Regent [Street], there's going to be more, more cars travelling down [Grandame] Street," he said.

David Clark said he's lived on Kitchen Street for 35 years and is "deeply moved and deeply concerned" by the proposed changes.

"The College Hill rezoning proposal is problematic as it fosters larger buildings, overdensification and increased traffic, noise and risk to pedestrians and therefore diminishes the quality of life for College Hill and makes the area less attractive to prospective neighbourhood-minded homeowners," he said.

Woven into the concerns by Clark and other residents was the possibility the proposal could lead to more homes owned by absentee landlords in the neighbourhood.

Another concern was that UNB wasn't doing enough provide on-campus housing, prompting the need for off-campus options.

"From staff perspective, I don't think it would be fair to say the university is disinterested in this issue. There is interest," said Ken Forrest, Fredericton's director of planning, in response.

Forrest also told councillors the city plans to increase its bylaw enforcement capabilities next year, which should help with ensuring any new developments follow the city's rules.

Coun. Jason Lejeune introduced a motion asking city staff to prepare a report analyzing the impact of removing the amendments that would remove the changes to allow R-5 zoning.

That report is expected at the next meeting on June 23, when councillors are scheduled to take a final vote on the proposed changes.