Fredericton will impose 3 new conditions if controversial development goes ahead

The City of Fredericton has imposed new conditions on a proposed housing development that generated more than 150 letters of objection when it was brought to city council last month.

Cedar Valley Investments would be required to limit the number of units it builds to 950 if council approves a proposal to construct seven apartment buildings, 11 townhouses and about two dozen single detached homes between Golf Club Road and Prospect Street. 

The developer would also be required to partner with the city on an anticipated federal housing grant to possibly see affordable units included in the complex.

Cedar Valley Investments would also need to make a plan to lessen the impact of construction on nearby side streets.

The new conditions were contained in a resolution that was put before councillors for first and second reading at Monday night's council meeting, in addition to earlier resolutions to rezone part of the 35-acre property at 464 Golf Club Rd. to allow the proposal.

First and second readings for the rezoning were originally to be done on Sept. 11 but were delayed after three hours of public hearings of objections and support from nearby residents. Instead, council asked staff to prepare another report addressing questions and concerns about the project.

On Monday, all councillors but one voted in favour of giving it first and second readings. Coun. Henri Mallet, whose ward includes the property, voted against it.

The proposal will be back before councillors in three weeks for a third and final reading.

Conditions based on feedback

Comments from concerned neighbours prompted the conditions staff newly imposed on the proposal.

That includes the condition that the number of units built be capped at 950, said planning director Ken Forrest.

"It was an attempt to try and address some of the concerns raised that there was some predictability to kind of the maximum densities that we would be looking at as subject to this application," Forrest said.

The staff planning report says the application called for creating 861 units in the areas to be zoned MR-5, but that zoning type would have allowed Cedar Valley Investments to create as many as 1,097 units.

Forrest said there would still be an opportunity for more units to be included in the proposal, but Cedar Valley Investments would have to make a new planning application.

Forrest said other concerns staff tried tackling were about affordability.

He said the city has applied to the federal government's housing accelerator fund, which offers money to municipalities that make efforts to encourage the creation of more housing units.

Forrest said another condition on Cedar Valley Investments would require it to partner with the city — if its application is accepted — to create affordable housing units using money from that fund.

"That creates a relationship with the city and the developer, ultimately if our housing accelerator application is successful, to work to achieve some affordable housing as part of the project."

The third condition was spurred by concerns from residents that construction vehicles might continue to access Angelique Court and Apeldoorn Lane as the property develops.

"We took a look at that and and saw it as a valid concern and have suggested a term and condition that would ensure that the developer work with the city to minimize those impacts on it just on adjacent residential developments," Forrest said.

Desire for more traffic calming measures

Before voting on first and second readings of the motion, Coun. Bruce Grandy asked staff about the most recent report they wrote.

Grandy said he hoped there would be more detail in it about how staff plan to calm traffic on Golf Club Road with the anticipated jump in the number of residents driving in the area.

"I'm very concerned that there wasn't more in detail about what might be suggested to be traffic calming on that street specifically when we have a golf course and a crossing on there, and we're adding up to 950 residents in there," he said.

In response, Dylan Gamble, director of engineering, pointed to a section of the report about a plan to narrow Golf Club Road between Appledoorn Lane and the intersection with Woodstock Road to accommodate bike lanes.

"It's not labelled out there as traffic calming, but it's about encouraging lower speeds," Gamble said.