Agreement approved by Ontario Municipal Board for 4853 Thomas Alton Blvd.

City of Burlington Press Release — A settlement agreement has been approved by the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) for the development proposal at 4853 Thomas Alton Blvd.In December 2016, city staff recommended approval of an Official Plan and Zoning ByLaw Amendment to permit a residential development by Adi Development Group at 4853 Thomas Alton Blvd. City Council refused the application which resulted in an appeal to the OMB.During the OMB process, city staff sought and received direction from Burlington City Council to enter into settlement discussions with Adi Development Group.City staff worked within the settlement parameters approved by Council and subsequently reached an agreement that would:

• Reduce the height of the two towers from 19 storeys to 17 storeys;
• Reduce the total number of units from 612 to 601, thereby reducing the density of the site;
• Replace the two rows of stacked townhouse blocks with two mid-rise, six storey apartment blocks, resulting in a reduced building footprint on the site;
• Increase the size of the publicly accessible park on the site from 2,064 square metres to 2,481 square metres;
• Keep the 21 standard townhouse units on the west side of the site adjacent to existing townhouse development.

The agreement also included Section 37 benefits consisting of $60,000 for improvements to Doug Wright Park and public access over the park on the site by way of an easement registered on the title to the property.My Take: I did not support this project as submitted, or the revised settlement that was approved. The revisions improve the application but still represent overintensification. A development within existing planning permissions would have been preferable.