City gets feedback on developing former orphanage property
St. John’s city councillors are hearing a lot of comments on the proposed rezoning and possible redevelopment of the former Belvedere Orphanage property, the deputy mayor says.
Sheilagh O’leary said she has been getting an “incredible amount” of correspondence regarding the proposed rezoning and development of the property at Margaret's Place, near Bonaventure Avenue.
“There’s been an incredible number of emails that have been coming forward and certainly points of concern regarding the development,” O’leary said during the public council meeting on March 19.
THE PROPOSAL
Council voted in November 2023 to consider the rezoning, which could potentially see a 60-unit apartment building and townhouses built on the site, which houses what is believed to be the secondoldest building in the city.
The proposal is currently at the heritage and land use report (LUR) stage, which would then be followed by public consultation.
Since the land is in a designated heritage area and the proposed buildings are adjacent to a heritage property, both of those reports and the consultation are required.
EARLIER CONSULTATION
At the council meeting, chief municipal planner Ken O’brien said the reason council would hear from the public now is that the company behind the potential development, Logy Bay-based Stonemount Enterprises Ltd., has been speaking with neighbours and the public as part of developing the land use report.
In the past, there would have been a lot of back and forth between staff and the applicants before the public got involved. Changes adopted as part of the Envision St. John’s Municipal Plan in 2021 mean the applicants have to talk to the neighbours much earlier in the process and, hopefully, iron out any problems and details before they get to a final land use report and a public meeting.
“People might be a little bit uneasy that maybe decisions have already been made, but that’s not the case,” O’brien said.
“The applicants are working through their report, we’re getting a lot of feedback and we appreciate the public interest in people putting their comments forward now, but they should rest assured that once a report is done it then goes to a regular process of a public meeting, followed later, possibly, by a commissioner's hearing.”
HISTORIC PROPERTY
The apartment complex is slated to go on the site of the former Belvedere Orphanage, which burned down in 2017 and was subsequently demolished.
The convent, which is still on the property and was also an orphanage at one point, was constructed in 1826 and is believed to be the secondoldest building in the city, built for lawyer and politician Hugh Alexander Emerson.
In November, a representative for the developer told Saltwire that the future of the former convent and orphanage hasn’t been fully fleshed out yet, but it's expected to be converted to housing.
The property is in the St. John's Ecclesiastical District, a national historic site that also includes the Mount St. Francis Monastery, Gower Street United Church and the Basilica, which is also a national historic site.