By Kyle Marshall, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
The City of Burlington held a pre-application meeting on Feb. 29 for a proposed development in Aldershot, but representatives from the city and the development company faced some backlash from members of the community.
The potential development would be located near the Aldershot GO station, on the ten acres where Aldershot Greenhouses Ltd. is currently. The greenhouses will be moving to the company’s Waterdown farm after 59 years at that current location.
A formal application has not yet been presented to the city, and the pre-application meeting was the first step in the process towards a full application.
Branthaven Developments Inc. will be acquiring the land and is putting forth a proposal that would see a residential development featuring both low-rise and mid-rise buildings.
The proposal calls for a total of 135 townhouses along with an eight-storey, mid-rise building with a total of 366 units for a grand total of 501 residential units.
Representatives for Branthaven and the City of Burlington were in attendance, including Mayor Marianne Meed Ward, to take feedback from the public regarding the proposal.
“Each of the townhouse units will be supported with (an) individual driveway and garage parking,” said the City of Burlington website. “Parking for the mid-rise building will be provided via an underground parking garage.”
There will be a total of 453 parking spaces provided to support the mid-rise building, including 70 visitor parking spaces.
Entrance to the new development would be provided via Gallagher Road and Enfield Road.
However, many in attendance at the meeting, which was both in-person and online via Zoom, had concerns over the additional traffic the new development would bring to an already busy area next to the GO station, as well as transportation concerns.
The Branthaven and city reps tried to dispel some of their worries by informing them that a traffic impact study is being conducted and will be reviewed by both the City of Burlington and Halton Region.
But there was more apprehension over traffic with many feeling the area would be overloaded with vehicles, making it dangerous for their children.
Pat Wilson, who lives on nearby Shadeland Road, a continuation of Gallagher Road after it crosses Plains Rd. E., has lived in the area for 56 years. Wilson is curious about how the new development will affect the area she lives in.
“The traffic on Shadeland has become horrendous over the last few years and I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like when you add another 750 cars during various times of the day,” she said.
“It’s very narrow, it’s got blind curves, it’s got dips, it’s not a street that can handle tons of traffic. It really is too busy right now and because we have no sidewalks, there is a huge safety issue,” said Wilson. “We even get transport trucks going down the street, which is just ridiculous.”
Other citizens at the meeting echoed Wilson’s concerns over the lack of sidewalks in the area as well as the entrance to the proposed development.
“Burlington has a traffic problem and it’s got to get fixed before we add more density,” added another attendee.
Some attendees were roused to profanity when expressing their thoughts on the matter, with one person claiming that developers like Branthaven come in and “…f*** up the whole neighbourhood. It makes me sick.”
Other issues that were brought up were the lack of resources in the area, including grocery stores and schools, to support new residents.
As part of the review process, school boards will also be consulted, according to the city and Branthaven reps.
The next steps in the application process will be the presentation of a full application to the city, a submission of public and technical circulations, followed by a statutory public meeting at City Hall, and then a recommendation and final report for consideration by City Council.
Mayor Meed Ward tried to temper the worries of those in attendance while trying to keep the meeting peaceful and respectful but was also realistic.
“We do have a housing crisis,” she said. “We know that development is coming. And we as a council have unanimously said that we will welcome the provincial pledge of 29,000 units.”
“So what we’re here to do tonight is hear what your concerns are, and there’s been some great feedback,” Meed Ward continued. “Our planning staff have been taking notes (on) sidewalks, traffic, where the entrances are, how it connects to Gallagher, the act of transportation…There’s been such incredibly important feedback that can shape this development.”
“And we will take that back. The planners will take that back. The developers will take that back. And I would urge you, please engage in this process in a respectful way. We all care about Burlington. We all care about the future of this city. We want it to be the best that it’s going to be.”
For more information on the proposal and planning process, visit the project’s page on the City of Burlington’s website at https://www.burlington.ca/en/news/current-development-projects/1097-1135-gallagher-rd.aspx.
