Houses are about to go up on the St. James United Church property — and a handful of neighbours are not happy about it.
The development is meant to house people from mixed backgrounds, with 30 per cent of the units below market price, as well as market rate units, and accessible units.
Half a dozen of the residents at the meeting shared they were certain the townhouse complex will become a “slum.”
Crews have been working on the grounds for the last few months, but construction of the homes has not begun yet. Construction is expected to finish in the fall of 2025.
Carly Forrester, with development company Kindred Works, told residents at a final information meeting Wednesday evening (May 1) that construction is waiting “for a final T to be crossed” before it begins.
Forrester said the city is looking at one last detail about a storm capture issue before building, which she estimates will start in the following weeks.
She said rental prices will be based off of 30 per cent of residents' incomes, ranging from $45,000 per year to $85,000 per year.
Kindred Works is its own company, but it works closely with the United Church of Canada on housing projects. The 44-rental units at 308 Parkside Dr. will be constructed by a Waterloo-based company called Oak and Noble.
“There will be some interruptions, there is going to be some noise, but at the end of it, in 18 months, it will be all done,” said Nathan Hallman, co-owner of Oak and Noble.
Hallman specified that construction will take place between 7:30 a.m. and 5 p.m., within the noise bylaw regulations for the City of Hamilton.
But while the project is well on its way, residents were very vocal about their disapproval of the project, stating they weren’t informed enough about it and that the housing development would disrupt their way of life.
Parking concerns main point for many residents
Wednesday’s meeting broke out into shouting matches between neighbours in the crowd, as some residents took out their frustrations at the project on the presenters from Kindred Works and Oak and Noble.
One of the top concerns neighbours shared was the lack of parking for the units. Each unit, Forrester said, will have one parking space.
Residents said they were certain overflow parking would end up on their streets nearby. Some said that Waterdown is not a city and most families have more than one vehicle.
“We’re trying to push for a less car-centric kind of future,” Forrester said, adding that residents with a second vehicle could park in one of the 50 spots the church has.
The design plans for the townhouse complex show a walkway with flower beds leading to nearby Kelly Street. One neighbour asked for the walkway to be fenced off, to discourage residents at the townhouses from parking on their street.
"We can't close it and restrict access to people living in the units who would be using that walkway," Forrester said.
Residents said there are already parking issues when the church hosts large events, and that potentially having an additional 40-plus cars parking regularly in the neighbourhood could be a nightmare.
Neighbours critical of renters, design of units
At times, comments from local residents at the meeting became extremely critical of the project and potential new neighbours.
"I'm going to be totally honest, what I am hearing from some people in the community is that they are concerned with who is going to be in there," said one resident from Buchan Court.
Comments about renters not being responsible and destroying units, peeping into backyards and leaving their yards unmaintained were made during the meeting.
Hallman said he has worked on similar projects to the St. James development in the past, and he said by the end of the project, neighbours' attitudes usually change.
But neighbours had plenty to question during the two-hours-long meeting.
Units in the townhouse complex will be built to accommodate people with disabilities, which one resident took issue with, saying the development company and the church were “hiding” that the townhouses were meant for people with disabilities.
"If you're building it for special needs, perfect. Come out and say that on your [website]," the resident said, adding that a housing development meant for people with disabilities does not fit in with the surrounding neighbourhood.
While there are a good number of accessible units, Forrester re-iterated that the development is meant for a mix of residents, with accessible units, units with stairs, and both market and below market price units available.
Residents were also unhappy about the design of the units, saying Waterdown is a "Victorian Village", they are being built in a heritage neighbourhood and do not match the aesthetic.
"These homes do not blend in well with the surrounding area," one resident said, comparing the look of the buildings to an army barracks.
One resident questioned why only 12 units out of 44 will be “affordable.” Forrester said it’s a matter of having a sustainable housing project.
“In today’s world, purely affordable housing developments don’t work. They do not work. The interest rates are too high, the construction costs are too high… This is a fully financially sustainable project,” she said.
