Trip down memory lane for Port residents

The public meeting on Grandson of Port Tower was about to start.

Scott Ritchie, St. Catharines urban design planner, stepped to the microphone ready to provide background on the proposal.

Suddenly, a baby in the audience began to wail uncontrollably.

Down the row from me, a woman muttered: “That’s how we all feel.”

Hey, it was funny.

Truth be told, I’m not sure if her utterance was meant as a political statement against the 220-unit condo proposal or whether she was simply ruing the start of another prolonged, divisive spat among Port Dalhousie residents.

Anyway, was it only 13 years ago that the same issue was discussed before the same people at the same Lions Club venue?

Ahh, memories ...

Back in November 2004, the star of the show was the original 27-storey tower proposal designed by renowned architect Jack Diamond.

It was a tense, occasionally raucous affair that night, pretty much devoid of any mirth.

This week’s session lacked such an electric atmosphere. I guess 13 years of battle scars will do that for you.

These are early days. Hard to know the extent, fervour and endurance of the opposition. Or what the key issues will be this time around.

Supporters of the Fortress Real Developments project will, as they did at the meeting, speak of the need for the economic jolt the development would likely provide for a fragile commercial sector. They also might praise the condo building’s design and the public-space elements.

Citizens opposing earlier versions of the project listed height and heritage as major concerns. Those issues, however, were a major focus of an Ontario Municipal Board hearing nearly a decade ago, with the developer’s vision winning out.

What may drive the opposition’s fury this time is the number of residential units that could potentially be built in Port’s rather confined commercial/harbour area over the next few years.

In addition to Grandson of Port Tower, known in smaller circles as Union Waterfront, a condo building is going up adjacent to Lakeside Park and plans are afoot to develop condos at the old Lincoln Fabrics building and the Royal Canadian Legion site.

What worries some residents is the traffic congestion and parking problems these developments could create.

But as a reminder that there are starkly differing viewpoints around town, Al Visser, owner of a couple of prominent business properties in Port Dalhousie, said at the meeting the problem with traffic in the commercial core is that there isn’t enough of it, an assertion that was met with a fair bit of applause from the audience.

At any rate, I’d suggest this is the time you set up a traffic/parking consulting firm. Your services will be in high demand.

For what it’s worth, the developer’s traffic consultant told public meeting attendees that his study concluded any traffic generated by the condo could be accommodated by the existing infrastructure. The audience response was reminiscent of a laugh track from The Beverly Hillbillies.

If history is any guide, the opinion of the city’s planning department will matter mightily on this matter, if not at the council level, then certainly when it proceeds to the OMB.

As for city council, I think it’s reasonable to believe there is considerable support for the development among its members. Certainly, it would fit with Mayor Walter Sendzik’s pro-growth mentality.

But, as we all know, approval from the required authorities doesn’t necessarily mean development will follow.

A market must still be found for a high-end condo building of unprecedented scope in St. Catharines. Otherwise, this is just another expensive, academic exercise.

Who knows, maybe the real estate climate will be more favourable for the Grandson of Port Tower.

Still, to be on the safe side, the city might be wise to book the Lions Club for a public meeting in 2030 on the Great- Grandson.