Update on Townhouses @ 14th and Havelock Gate

Post date: Apr 08, 2013 1:15:19 AM

Our friends at the Rouge Fairways Ratepayers Association shared the following summary, regarding the development of townhouses on 14th Ave at the first intersection east of Markham Road.

History:

RFRA has been working to ensure that any future development on this vacant land at 2 Havelock Gate will not become detrimental to our community. In 2009, Mayor Frank Scarpetti requested that a Working Group be formed with members of the community and with RFRA to work with the Developer, Delpark Homes/Briarwood Homes to find a win-win solution as all prior designs were met with heavy opposition.

Timeline of Applications submitted by Delpark Homes/Briarwod Homes:

Recent Developments:

On March 5^th, 2013, members of RFRA and the Working Group team meet with the Developer and City staff to listen to their latest proposal and to voice our concerns. The new proposal is to build a 25 unit Townhome Condo Complex with a driveway entrance onto 14^th Avenue for right turn in and right turn out only. We asked the City to ensure that all measures have been made to protect the amenities and densities of our existing community before approval of this plan

Our concerns were:

1. Traffic and pedestrian safety

2. Density of housing units

3. Streetscape appearances

4. Parking overflow

We recommended the following improvements for the City’s consideration:

1. A dedicated right lane into Havelock Gate and the new complex

2. A dedicated left lane into Horstman Street

3. Relocation of bus stop

4. No stopping in front of the Havelock complex

5. Relocation of mailbox

We recommended the following enhancements for the Developer’s consideration:

1. more green space along Havelock

2. homes blend into and inline with the existing community

3. prefer them to widen their lane way for vehicle maneuvering

Next Steps:

A recommendation report (either for or against) will be written up by the City Planner, Stacia will be made available to the public no later than March 15. This report can be found online in Markham’s website www.markham.ca under Council and Committee Meetings (under Agendas and then look up the date of the meeting).

We believe that we have done all that we could in addressing all our concerns. Lowering the density by as much as 95 units in itself is a huge victory for this community.

On Tues April 9^th, 9:00 am in City Civic Centre, Council Chambers this plan will be brought forth to Council.

Questions?:

If you have concerns about this development prior to the Council meeting, you can still do so by making a deputation in front of Council on Mar. 19^th or write/call your local Councillor Logan Kanapathi (lkanapathi@markham.ca or 905-477-7000).

If you have any questions for RFRA, please forward them to info@rfra.ca.

FYI, the developer has placed the townhome designs and site plans onto their website at www.briarwoodhomes.ca.