Summerside considering series of housing-related projects
SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. – City council has been presented with several housing-related projects for consideration, including one of its own that involves repurposing parkland.
All of the projects were presented for the first time at the March 20 monthly meeting.
127 EAST DRIVE
The city is looking to rezone a piece of parkland on East Drive to allow for the construction of an as-yetunannounced number of residential units.
The property is 127 East Drive, which is currently part of the Lions Club Park.
The city has proposed changing the zoning from parkland to the high-density residential (R4). The land slated for development is adjacent to an existing softball field which would be unaffected by this process.
The project, and the reason for making the change, involves the federal government's Rapid Housing Initiative. It would see the construction of at least one building with "20-plus" units, but not much else is known about it yet.
The city has been approved for funding under the initiative and it has partnered with a third party to build affordable housing on the land in question. But how much money is involved, the exact number of housing units and who the partner is won't be announced until a later date.
City staff also noted that Summerside is well above average in terms of the amount of parkland that it currently has and this property was identified as one that was underutilized for that purpose and could be used for development.
Summerside, and P.E.I. in general, is in the midst of a housing crisis. The current council, which was elected in November 2022, has made
contributing to a solution a priority for its mandate.
The rezoning request still needs to be approved by the planning board and then by a council vote before it can proceed.
480 CENTRAL STREET
A Summerside businessman is asking for the rezoning of a property to allow for the construction of a six-unit seniors-focused housing project.
The property is 480 Central Street and the proponent, Corey Arsenault, is asking for it to be changed from its
single-family home zoning to high-density residential.
Arsenault renovated an existing adjacent building into seniors housing last year and told council he is looking to essentially duplicate that building.
The proposal will still need to go before the planning board and a final vote from council before it can proceed.
690 WATER STREET
Council has also been asked to approve the rezoning of 690 Water Street from its current commercial zoning to high-density residential.
Not much is known yet about this project other than the proponent is Nathan Kember, who was not present at the March 20 meeting to answer questions from council or the public.
Two local residents did express concerns to council that the property is on a busy road where the speed limit is often ignored by motorists, making it a sometimes dangerous proposition to get in and out of driveways in the area.
City staff indicated that they would try to provide council with more information at the March 28 planning board meeting.