An eight-storey building could soon perch on the edge of the Sixteen Mile Creek, above the popular Lions Valley Park.
The town has received an application to sever and rezone 4.6 hectares of vacant land from the St. Volodymyr Cultural Centre to build a rental housing complex for seniors.
The proposal calls for a 315-unit highrise building to run lengthwise along the edge of the creek valley. Behind it would be 27 one-and-half-storey independent living units arranged in four blocks.
St. Volodymyr would keep the land housing the banquet hall, as well as the Ukrainian cemetery to the south.
Will "tower over the valley," says resident
Nearby West Oak Trails residents recently received word of the proposal by Delmanor West Oak, in a letter from the town.
The requirement for a public meeting earlier in the planning process was waived by the town, due to COVID restrictions. Additional public meetings will be required but have not yet been scheduled.
Andrew Ion, a homeowner on Falkland Crescent, says it would be a big change to replace the property’s wide-open spaces with one of the biggest buildings in the ward.
“It would be a little bit like the hospital, which you can now see from everywhere,” he says.
“This thing is right on the edge of the valley and it’s going to tower over it.”
While the property is currently zoned private open space, a zoning that does not permit seniors housing, Oakville’s official plan does allow the use. Delmanor is seeking a site-specific zoning bylaw amendment.
Allow residents to age in their community, says developer
According to the application, the development would provide a continuum of senior housing, including 34 assisted living suites, 34 memory care suites, 116 independent supportive living suites, 131 independent living suites, and 27 independent living units. With a total of 342 units, the entire development would have a net floor area of 31,250 square metres.
Plans call for the complex to include a salon, art studio, kitchen, billiards, pub, dining room, multipurpose room, theatre and fitness studio, as well as outdoor patios overlooking the Sixteen Mile creek valley.
“The proposed seniors residence will serve the aging population of the West Oak Trails neighbourhood allowing opportunities for local residents to downsize and age within their community, while also welcoming seniors who move to the community because they have family residing in the neighbourhood,” says the planning justification report submitted by Delmanor.
“The proposed use is favourable for the West Oak Trails neighbourhood as it allows for the appropriate intensification along a dedicated transit corridor (Dundas Street) on a currently underutilized piece of land that is not located within a stable residential neighbourhood.”
Delmanor is part of the Tridel Group of Companies, a Canadian real estate giant that also operates a retirement community in Glen Abbey.