Tribunal rejects ‘massive’ towers by Battlefield park
‘Sudden height, density, and scale’ would overwhelm area, ruling finds
The Ontario Land Tribunal has rejected a local developer’s bid to build 18- and 20-storey residential towers on a grassy lot across the road from Stoney Creek’s Battlefield park, ruling they would be a “jarring” change to the neighbourhood’s character.
In siding with the city, tribunal member Tee Fung Ng likened the “massive” twin towers to “the highest mountains in an area of small hills,” with the tallest building’s 65metre height more than four times the commercially zoned lot’s 14metre limit.
The proposed towers are too close to the property line and their “sudden height, density, and scale” would overwhelm Battlefield park, views of the escarpment and the area’s landscape of low- and midrise buildings, Fung wrote in a May 3 ruling.
Hamilton builder Kyle Camarro appealed to the tribunal in November 2022, citing the city’s failure to decide on the plan’s required zoning changes within the 120 days required by the Planning Act.
Proposed for a 0.58-hectare property at the southwest corner of King Street East and Centennial Parkway South, the plan called for 564 residential units in the two towers and a six-storey podium fronting onto Centennial.
It included 356 square metres of commercial space on the 20-storey tower’s ground floor and provided parking for 422 vehicles at the rear of the buildings and underground.
In dismissing the appeal, Fung agreed with the city that the plan is an overintensification of the site, providing a residential density of 969 units per hectare, compared to a goal of 100 to 200 in the area.
The development would be an “abrupt” and “jarring” change to surrounding land uses, including the Stoney Creek Municipal Cemetery to the west, future townhouses to the south, and Battlefield park to the east, Fung found, noting the proponent “neglected” to submit a visual impact study.
Planning consultant Matt Johnston, who represented Camarro at a nine-day online hearing in January, did not respond to a request for comment.
Area councillor Matt Francis, who had criticized the development as being too intensive for the busy intersection, said he did “a little celebration dance” when he learned of the ruling. Though traffic impacts weren’t at issue at the hearing, he said he’s pleased Fung acknowledged the effect the towers would have on the site of the 1813 Battlefield of Stoney Creek, a pivotal victory in the War of 1812.
“It’s a historical site and the last thing we need is a major highrise taking away the experience of Battlefield park,” Francis said. “You go there and sit there and you feel like you’re in the middle of the country, so to know that we’re not going to be staring at 18- and 20-storey buildings is very reassuring.”
Francis noted the decision comes on the heels of the tribunal’s April 10 rejection of a massive redevelopment of the LIUNA Gardens property in Winona, which the city also opposed.
He said it may signal that the tribunal’s trend of approving nearly all developments has limits.
“There’s a hope that this is a harbinger for good decisions to come by the Ontario Land Tribunal and possibly for developers maybe not appealing to the OLT in the first place and building within the rules,” Francis said.