Richmond Hill residents disappointed with councillors' support of highrise developer

Developer Nicholas Fidei and his family were big donors to Carmine Perrelli's election campaign in 2018

Yorkregion.com
October 6, 2020

The public meeting on a proposed 28-storey building didn’t quite go as Layla Rahbar expected.

Rahbar, a Richmond Hill resident, said she was disappointed at some of the responses from council that seemed to be “dismissive” of the concerns raised by 26 residents about the highrise proposal in their neighbourhood at the Sept. 23 public electronic meeting.

In the span of 90 minutes, Rahbar and her neighbours spoke out about numerous issues with the high-density development planned in their predominantly single-family neighbourhood at the southwest corner of Yonge Street and Elgin Mills Road, backed by a total of 65 written submissions.

Five council members responded to the delegation at the meeting, and Rahbar said only Coun. David West spoke against the application.

“They (the four councillors) didn’t really seem to have any empathy for the residents, and a lot of people expected them to be fighting for the community, to be supportive of the community, and it was the exact opposite,” Rahbar told the Liberal on Sept. 29.

Rahbar has been working with Together Against Overdevelopment, a residents' group of more than 100 people formed earlier this summer, to oppose the highrise application.

The proposal, put forward by landowner Treasure Hill Homes (which is also known as Sabella Ridge Estates Inc.), would see the 0.5-hectare lands at 10684 and 10692 Yonge Street turned into a 28-storey rental apartment building with 284 dwelling units and 273 parking spaces.

The Vaughan-based real estate developer and builder is seeking to amend the Richmond Hill official plan and zoning bylaw to allow for the development, which doubles the density and almost doubles the height that is currently permitted in the area.

“These applications are the poster child for overdevelopment and a complete lack of respect for the community within which they are asking city council to allow them to develop,” resident Bruno Colozza said at the meeting.

In his address to council, the resident pointed out 11 “egregious asks” by the developer and the potential impact on the community if they are approved.

The concerns shared by many included the density, safety and flood risks, as well as the planned emergency access from Yonge Street onto Arten Avenue, which residents said could worsen the traffic woes.

Regional councillor Carmine Perrelli went over his five-minute limit to address the concerns --which resident Robert Livingstone said struck him as “downplaying” the weight of the collective voices --and wrapped up by vouching for the developer, Treasure Hill.

“The applicant wants to do good planning. Not only do they build in Richmond Hill, they live in Richmond Hill. They have for a very, very long time and their entire family lives here. This is where they call home,” Perrelli said.

Nicholas Fidei, president of Treasure Hill, is a local resident in Richmond Hill, according to Perrelli’s disclosed donor list in the 2018 municipal election.

The records show that Nicholas, his wife Lia Fidei and two other family members were among the biggest contributors in the past election in Richmond Hill. They donated a total of $4,800 to Perrelli’s campaign --$1,200 each, which was the maximum an individual was allowed to contribute to any candidate.

The Fidei family also donated $2,400 to regional councillor Joe DiPaola, who held with the 28-storey proposal in his comment, noting more projects like this were going to happen in the city.

Acquainted with Richmond Hill politics as she was, Rahbar said she was still surprised that the two regional councillors, as well as two ward councillors, were “so openly supportive of the developer” at the meeting.

It was a good time and a good place, Coun. Greg Beros said of the proposed rental building.

Coun. Tom Muench, who said he was not going to advocate for the project, stressed the need to provide housing for prospective residents in areas destined for growth in order to prevent rooming houses and homelessness.

However, in a separate meeting with the residents at the end of August, Perrelli was recorded assuring the residents that the building would be “high-end rentals.”

“I can guarantee you there won't be anything in that building less than $2,000 a month,” he said.

That was also the only time the residents communicated with a city official about the project planned for their neighbourhood before the public meeting, Rahbar said, and the developer never actively reached out to them despite owning the lands for more than 10 years.

As the city staff is expected to review the proposal, taking into account the public input, Rahbar said the group would continue to be vocal about their opposition and demand for a revised application.

An online petition opposing the high-density project has received more than 1,300 signatures as of Sept. 30.

The 28-storey rental building is among more than 600 development applications currently in progress across the city.

If you want to find out what projects have been planned in your neighbourhood, go to the interactive map on yorkregion.com that tracks all developments in Richmond Hill.