This large sign was recently installed in front of 2405 Lake Shore Blvd. W., warning of the upcoming construction of two condo towers.
A plan to build a 33-storey, 10-storey towers and new roadway in Mimico is moving ahead with many residents expressing displeasure of the proposal.
A large sign has been installed in front of 2405 Lake Shore Blvd. W., notifying residents that ‘change has been proposed on this site.’
The proposal will be heard by the Ontario Land Tribunal in a 10-day video hearing on July 8.
The signage shows an outline of the towers planned and state notifications will be posted of public meetings of the proposed mega development.
The proposal if approved will lead to the demolition of 2405, 2407, 2409, 2411 and 2417 Lake Shore Blvd. W., between Mimico and Superior Avenues to construct a 33-storey and 10-storey towers that will contain 471 residential rental apartments in mixed sizes.
A 30-storey tower is planned in the vicinity of Birds and Beans Coffee Roasters and Amos Waites park
There would be retail space at the ground floor level, residential uses above, and two underground levels of parking, according to the proposal.
The proposal includes a portion of land from Amos Waites Park to be used for a new public road, which will be located to the south of the planned building site. The road would provide additional public road frontage to Amos Waites Park, allowing the park to be publicly accessible on three sides.
The plan has left many Mimico residents concerned about the magnitude of the project and what it will do to a low-density community.
Area resident and community activist Alex “Sandy” Cameron said he is opposed to the current proposal because it is too large ‘for the location and does not fit in.’
“I do not believe that this project can start until public consultation has occurred,” Cameron said. “I do not believe that has happened yet.”
He is seeking further information from City officials.
Many area residents say the development is too large and will change the face of the community forcing many people to leave.
Rozhen Asrani, President, of the Mimico Residents Association (MRA), in a letter last October to City officials said the MRA supports city staff’s position in opposing this file at the Ontario Land Tribunal.
“We do not feel the current iteration of this proposal would appropriately address the needs of our community,” Asrani wrote. “The applicant has not yet participated in any form of community engagement and the proposal contradicts many of the fundamental objectives of the Mimico-by-the-lake Secondary Plan.”
The MRA said given Mimico’s proximity to higher level transit and the abundant underutilized lands, ‘we understand that our community is a prime location for intensification.’
“This being said, we do not feel the current iteration of this proposal would appropriately address the needs of our community,” the association noted.
The MRA said affected tenants should be provided interim housing in the neighbourhood at current rental rates, provided financial aid for their hardships, and opportunity to return at current rent.
The group said about 15 per cent of the units should be affordable housing.
It said a new planned roadway is too close to Amos Waites park and will have an impact on the park, a children’s playground, Mimico pool and Mimico Square.