City hall backs plan for condo despite opposition
Some residents of Nutana concerned project will lead to similar developments
Opponents of a controversial proposed condominium tower in the Nutana neighbourhood warn a dangerous precedent has been set after its first endorsement at Saskatoon city hall.
The municipal planning commission endorsed the proposed seven-storey, 45-unit development less than a block from the riverbank on Tuesday, despite opposition that included a petition with 183 names urging its rejection.
The planned project by Meridian Development would be built at the corner of University Drive and 13th Street East, where the Faith Alive Family Church is located.
Lisa Kaselnikoff, who lives on Saskatchewan Crescent East, just north of the proposed building site, said the concerns go beyond neighbours next to the building. She said the structure would alter the city’s skyline and lead to more projects of similar type.
“The riverbank belongs to all of us as Saskatonians,” Kaselnikoff told Tuesday’s meeting. “We ask that the city protect the Saskatoon skyline.”
The proposal now moves to city council, where it will be considered at a public hearing.
Karl Miller, a Meridian partner, defended the development, saying concerns over its height, parking and traffic were all addressed. A geotechnical study was also conducted to alleviate concerns the project could lead to riverbank slope failure.
The proposal was also scaled back from the original plan for a 10-storey building and features receding terraces to address concerns about privacy and shadows. Miller said he also lives in Nutana close to the proposed building site.
“This is my community and my neighbourhood as well, and I want to build something I can be proud of.”
Several speakers acknowledged the project would help achieve the city’s goals for increased infill development, although it might contradict the goal to maintain the Nutana neighbourhood’s character. Nutana features mainly singlefamily homes with a few three- or four-storey apartment buildings. A 12-storey apartment building is located on the same block as the proposed development, on the corner of Broadway Avenue.
Ron Clark, who identified himself as a former city planner in Ottawa and Saint John, N.B., called the proposed building “exquisite,” but said it does not belong in the Nutana neighbourhood. Clark suggested he had no personal interest in the project since he doesn’t live in the neighbourhood, but later admitted under questioning that his daughter owns property in Nutana.
He rejected the developer’s assertion that the building would be no taller than the existing church’s steeple as irrelevant. He also complained about the lack of options for the commission, which was tasked with either endorsing or rejecting the proposed development.
“That’s nonsense,” Clark said. “There’s lots of good options for that site that don’t ruin the neighbourhood. It’s not infill. It’s an insult.”
The city’s director of planning and development, Lesley Anderson, admitted the city faces a balancing act between its growth plan, which favours infill development, and local neighbourhood plans. She noted the Nutana neighbourhood plan is 20 years old.
The executive director of the Broadway Business Improvement District (BID), DeeAnn Mercier, and her counterpart from the Riversdale BID, Randy Pshebylo, both voiced support for the proposal.
Pshebylo said even though the building would not be located in his district, it would help with goals shared by all central neighbourhoods for more people. He called the church building “ugly” and said he is “very envious” of the development.
Of the 183 people whose names appear on the petition against the project, 129 live in the neighbourhood, the meeting heard. Neighbourhood residents sent 24 of the 33 emails received in support of the project.
Miller said he had more than 90 letters of support from people who live in the neighbourhood.
The meeting heard 43 people attended a June 28 meeting on the project. Miller said it would take about 18 months to demolish the church and build the tower.
Some of the cells in that forbidding and antiquated facility housed two inmates even though there is barely adequate space for one. IVAN ZINGER, correctional investigator