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Developers and big corporate landlords in Ward 2 are increasingly using “minor variances” to bypass Planning Committee – challenging the concept of what is minor in planning.
Hamilton’s Committee of Adjustment will conduct 23 hearings, here are the hearings that caught my attention.
This story was originally posted on The Public Record’s now-defunct blog Now on December 20, 2016. Ward 2 Councillor Jason Farr won two significant victories at Committee of Adjustment today, gaining two major exceptions to Downtown Zoning Bylaws as “minor variances”. Tall Buildings in The Downtown, Now Minor Variances
Farr came to the Committee of Adjustment in support of the Downtown Mosque’s request to operate their parking lot as a commercial surface lot to raise funds to cover their new building debt, and the approval of a 33-storey tall building for Vrancor’s final phase of their King/George/Caroline five tower development. The “minor” variance was to increase the allowed development height from the present 22 metres to 106 metres. The Committee of Adjustment, at the request of Farr, approved the 500% variance as a “minor variance”.
Don’t Be A Jerk is good advice in life in general, at Hamilton’s Committee of Adjustment, it’s important.
Hamilton’s Committee of Adjustment will hear 24 variance or severance applications during its first meeting of August. Here are some of the applications that drew the attention of The Public Record’s Joey Coleman.
Hamilton’s Committee of Adjustment will hear 23 variance applications during its first meeting of August. Here are some of the applications that drew the attention of The Public Record’s Joey Coleman.
The Committee of Adjustment will consider 24 applications during this meeting. A couple jump out for your editor for various reasons.
The City of Hamilton is applying for variances to construct the new Police Forensics Building at 100 Wilson Street in Downtown Hamilton, Greenwin is applying for variances to increase the number of units in its apartment buildings at 181 John Street North and 192 Hughson Street North, and across from McMaster, the owner of two houses at 43 and 55 Forsyth Avenue South is looking to increase the number of bedrooms in houses which are rented to McMaster University students.
The Committee meeting starts at 1:00pm on Thursday.
UPDATE: The Committee of Adjustment approved the application during their March 24, 2016 meeting
King Street between Victoria and Wentworth is expected to become a stronger commercial district in the coming years as residential intensification takes hold along the LRT corridor. However, in the meanwhile, there is a challenge wi
th storefront vacancies. The owner is 652 King Street East, on the south side just west of Wentworth, is asking for a minor variance to convert the existing storefront restaurant into two storefront apartments with the bedrooms and bathrooms in the basement, and kitchen/living room on the main level. The hearing will be held Thursday (March 24, 2016) at 2:10 p.m. (Page 69 of 132 in agenda)
On Barton Street, one of the challenges facing commercial revival is the lack of available storefronts due to conversions to residential storefront apartments. During the previous term (2010-2014) of the Committee of Adjustment, the CoA denied numerous storefront conversions.
While 646 Main Street East is just one of 23 hearings for Thursday’s meeting, it is an interesting file to illustrate the considerations the Committee must consider for each application.
24 Hearings, five of them I’m watching. (I’ve added one to the end because I find it interesting)