Vaughan councillor says city 'can't by law' stop entertaining controversial highrise bids

'We have to accept these applications coming forward, regardless of how ridiculous the community may feel they are'

Yorkregion.com
May 25, 2021
Dina Al-Shibeeb

Some Vaughan residents have expressed frustration and feel exhausted from battling what they deem inappropriate and controversial development bids in already established neighbourhoods.

With the inability to stomach more traffic gridlock, some have urged council not to accept hearing any of these bids or even entertain them.

To explain how bids deemed “inappropriate” make their way to desks and emails of the City of Vaughan, Regional Coun. Linda Jackson told citizens, in a virtual meeting after a day of deputations May 13: “We have to accept them through the planning process.”

“We have to accept these applications coming forward, regardless of how ridiculous the community may feel they are,” Jackson said.

“I think this is really important for people to know. I think one of the people said to stop accepting them -- we can't by law. We have to face them on their merits, and go back and forth.”

As a regional councillor, that's the “challenging part,” she said.

“We do have to deal with them, and we do have to make a decision.”

For other residents, hearing these bids is hard to swallow.

“What a waste of taxpayers’ money,” said Gianna Di Iorio, a resident from Hawman Avenue, during a Zoom meeting.

For Di Iorio, the 12-storey development proposed on her street -- which is at a Highway 7 and Kipling intersection she and her neighbours described as “tight” -- is problematic.

But Jack Morelli, president of First Avenue Properties, which is behind the proposal, explained that Highway 7 is 45 metres in width and has the capacity to support a 15- to 16-floor building.

“It's not shallow at all,” he added.

When deputations from Hawman Avenue’s residents sprung into action on May 13, the debris of a recent car accident was still seen at the edges of the intersection.

Di Iorio and her neighbours say the proposal doesn’t meet the requirement for intensification, and wonder why the bid is entertained in the first place.

And that’s where the gap widens.

According to Morelli, “the provincial policy is to build intensification along transit routes. This is not Vaughan or York Region; this is mandated by the province.”

However, Highway 7 is still attractive for developers. After all, there are three more condos proposed in the area.

“The community of Kipling at Highway 7 has been constantly up against incredible aggressive development pressure,” said Nick Pinto, president of the West Woodbridge Homeowners Association.

“For many years, that's been an uphill battle; the three Ontario Municipal Board hearings desperately tried to intensify development within the community, and we all know that's a very costly and challenging process for the community members to engage in if they want to be full players in the process.”

In another deputation against a separate proposal to build a seven-storey condo building in an area not designated for intensification, Rob Salerno, vice-president of the Weston Downs Ratepayers Association, said the province provides guidance and shouldn’t be used as a scapegoat.

“Incorrectly citing policies, city planners have built a perfect system and are passing the blame. The city planners continue to cite the province to blame for their decision,” Salerno said.

“We are in a housing shortage,” he added, explaining that any intensification outside of its guidelines should have a “strong argument and adhere to the character of the community.”

“The VOP (Vaughan Official Plan) 2010 is an active robust and balanced plan that is in effect until 2031,” he added.