Quispamsis Council Approves $23-Million Development
QUISPAMSIS – Town council has given final approval to a contentious 100-unit development on Hampton Road.
Council unanimously passed third and final reading of a zoning bylaw amendment at a meeting Tuesday night.
Elmtree Hill Development would see three four-storey complexes built at 257 Hampton Road, near Pinewood Crescent.
More than a dozen people spoke against the project during a public hearing in June and raised concerns about traffic, the loss of privacy, and the impacts of underground parking on the groundwater.
“When we were before you for second reading, we took away a good and thorough understanding of neighbourhood concerns,” said Peter MacKenzie of Comeau MacKenzie Architecture, who spoke on behalf of the developer at Tuesday’s meeting.
MacKenzie said a new site plan submitted to the town will see the building closest to homes on Peat Drive moved back by another 12 to 13 metres. According to a staff report, the setback distance is now set at 22.9 metres.
They also plan to put in generous buffers or retain the natural ones which already exist, he said. As part of the development agreement, the developer will be penalized if they fail to protect buffer areas during construction.
In terms of parking concerns, MacKenzie said they made adjustments to the surface parking to accommodate more cars, which is in addition to the underground parking already planned for the site. They also undertook a shade and shadow study to determine how nearby residences would be affected by the new buildings.
“Because the neighbours are all to the south of us … even in the early morning hours and late evening hours, shadows from our buildings fall significantly on our own property,” he said. “They do not manage to actually enshadow any single-family residence whatsoever in any direction around.”
Some residents also expressed concern about what sort of impact the underground parking could have on wells in the area. Dwight Colbourne, the town’s municipal planning officer, said they do not anticipate any major impacts on the groundwater table.
“There’s a study that was done that indicated that the overall depth of these underground parking would be similar to or just slightly larger to the single-family residential building,” said Colbourne.
The agreement will also require a traffic study to be completed before construction begins to ensure there are no conflicts or concerns.
Colbourne said the project meets all of the targets within the town’s municipal plan, which says they need better housing stock and more diversified housing.
The complexes would be built in three phases, according to developers. They expect it will take two years to complete each phase.
Brad Perry is the news director with Country 94/97.3 The Wave, Huddle content partners.