The City of Hamilton and Spallacci Construction Ltd still need to finalize the final print on a settlement to allow three 20-storey buildings at 299-307 John Street South and 97 St. Joseph’s Drive.
The Ontario Land Tribunal will conduct a second settlement hearing on June 8 to rubber-stamp the final version of Zoning Bylaw Amendment for the lands.
During Thursday’s settlement hearing, the OLT heard details of the agreement between Spallacci and neighbouring St. Joseph’s Hospital.
Spallacci agreed to ensure the construction of the towers does not interfere with hospital operations.
Spallacci will also inform any purchasers or renters of units the hospital “is anticipated to be redeveloped with a minimum building height of 12 storeys.”
Rental Replacement Plan and Tenant Assistance Agreement
The Zoning Bylaw Amendment will require 59 rental replacement units to ensure no loss of rental housing stock resulting from the demolition of the Terraces on John apartments.
The draft agreement presented to the OLT states the 59 units will be set to “average market rent” for Hamilton’s Downtown Core based upon the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation fall Rental Market Report.
Average Market Rent lags the listed market rent. The October 2022 AMR for a one-bedroom unit in Downtown Hamilton was $1,175 per month. Apartment listings start at $1,500 per month.
In practice, the new units will be below market rate.
The units shall remain rentals at this rate for a minimum of 15 years.
The draft states the City expects tenants to be provided with a move-out allowance of $1500 for one-bedroom and smaller units, and $2,500 for two-bedroom and larger units.
The City expects tenants to be compensated between two months’ rent and seven months’ rent, depending on their length of rental tenure.
The developer is expected to communicate with displaced tenants and the City when the new units are ready for occupancy.
Returning tenants will be charged their previous rental rate (plus provincially set annual rent increases) upon moving into new units.
Fifty-five units were occupied at 309 John Street South in January 2023.
More Details on the Buildings
There will be 196 residential units in each of the three towers and 135 units in the podium connecting them for a total of 723 units.
The unit mix will be 73 studio units, 213 one-bedroom units, 173 one-bedroom + den units, 194 two-bedroom units and 70 2-bedroom + den units.
There will be 708 vehicle parking spaces.
Final Settlement Hearing on June 8
The OLT will return on June 8 to formally rubber-stamp the final agreement in the form of the Zoning Bylaw Amendment.
Council meets on May 24 and June 7 and is expected to approve the final language during one of these meetings.
Production Details v. 1.0.0 Published: May 5, 2023 Last edited: May 5, 2023 Author: Joey Coleman Edit Record v. 1.0.0 original version OLT File Number: OLT-21-001723