The dubious value of forecasted start dates
Much ink has been spilled the past few years chronicling the saga of The Hole in Port Dalhousie’s commercial core.
Given the soap-opera elements of the condo-tower tale, the blanket coverage has been understandable.
Still, despite the lack of progress in filling the empty landscape, Port businesses have soldiered on. Indeed, there’s been a renaissance of sorts lately.
Another area of St. Catharines that features a major development in-waiting hasn’t received the same amount of attention, nor is it coping particularly well with its version of The Hole.
The neighbourhood in question is Queenston St.; The Hole is the sprawling, former St. Catharines General Hospital property.
Unlike the situation in Port where a community remains divided on how its core should be redeveloped, the Queenston neighbourhood is anxious for the proposed retrofitting of the old hospital buildings into residential apartment units to proceed.
That restlessness has turned into frustration, at least judged by a motion passed earlier this month by St. Catharines city council.
Merritton Coun. Jennie Stevens, the mover of the motion, says the buildings have become a “derelict eyesore” and asserts there have been no noticeable efforts the past three years to begin work on the residential project.
As such, the motion asks that the developer meet on site with staff and the ward councillors in September “with the objective of determining a definite date for both the beginning and the end of the redevelopment.”
This is a somewhat ridiculous objective.
After all, we’re talking private ownership here. The developer, Panoramic Properties Inc.-Butera Group, will make its construction decisions based on market conditions and financing concerns rather than real or imagined pressure from municipal politicians.
Fact is, this is far from the first proposed development in St. Catharines to have trouble getting off the ground.
Look no further than the General’s former Niagara Health System sibling, the Hotel Dieu property. Yes, a $145-million retirement community development was announced for the site early this past February. But signs of activity on the project are still being awaited.
Then there’s the housing tract — 44-unit condo apartment building, 16 townhouses, and four single-detached homes — across from Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School, which received approval to proceed from the Ontario Municipal Board in late 2011. Although this seemed a fairly attractive development site, residential construction of a couple of units has only just begun.
But I don’t want to defend Panoramic/Butera. As is often the case in these situations, it’s the developer who created expectations for the neighbourhood. So, when the expectations aren’t met, frustrations are unleashed.
Panoramic/Butera reached a deal with the NHS in early 2012 to buy the property, with the announced intention of redeveloping it for residential use.
It took possession in the spring of 2013, reaffirming its residential plans and elaborating that the retrofit would be for rental apartments.
At a public meeting held a year later, a company representative added details to the proposal and suggested the redevelopment could start by the end of 2014.
A year passed with no activity. That led to the developer suggesting in the spring of 2015 that construction would start later that year or in early 2016.
Obviously, that didn’t happen. In April of this year, a company spokesman said a site plan had been submitted to the city and the developer was reviewing the feedback it had received from municipal planners.
It was now a matter of working back and forth with the city on the site plan agreement before submitting a building permit, explained project architect Michael Allen.
“It’s still a little ways away, but we’re still optimistic that it’s going to be this year that things are going to rock and roll,” said Allen.
So, go ahead and get a start and completion date for the project in September.
Mind you, I’m not sure what good it will do.
Just ask Port Dalhousie residents.