• An infill townhouse development proposal has been submitted for Elm Road, which includes 12 three-storey units in place of three detached homes.
  • As we covered last July, the project would utilize a ~2,975 square meter combined lot comprising 338 Elm Road, 124 Fairview Avenue, and 340 Glad Park Avenue.
  • Each townhouse was originally planned to include a pre-built secondary basement suite; however, the units will now come with unfinished basements.
  • This change is in response to resident complaints regarding added density and traffic, as well as insufficient parking that does not meet Stouffville’s requirements.
  • The project will be presented at an upcoming Public Planning Meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. on February 7, 2024. It will take place in Council Chambers at 111 Sandiford Drive.

 

While the basement units would have provided 12 additional dwellings, Stouffville’s zoning by-laws require three parking spaces in a given unit to allow for the addition of a secondary suite. Each townhouse is currently planned to have only two.

Area residents, through submitted comments to the Town and during a meeting with the developer, also opposed the auxiliary suites. According to the Staff report, residents believe the proposal represents overdevelopment and that the number of dwellings—especially if the secondary suites are included—will have a negative impact on the existing neighbourhood’s functionality.

Staff expanded on this, saying the most frequent concerns put forward by the local community have been focused on traffic, congestion, and pedestrian safety due to the site’s close proximity to nearby schools. Residents are worried that the new homes “will contribute to and worsen an existing situation during peak traffic hours, particularly during school drop-off and pick-up periods in which many children are walking and parents are parked,” the staff report states.

In another change to the proposal, single-car garages planned for the rear of each building have been replaced with open-air carports to facilitate sightlines and traffic safety along a planned private laneway. That laneway was also switched from public to private at the request of the Town.

Other neighbourhood objections focused on negative impacts to existing neighbourhood character, excessive building height and resulting privacy concerns, lack of visitor parking and potential for spillover into nearby streets, perceived insufficient infrastructure to support the development, and the threat of snow being moved from the private laneway into the public realm.

The requested zoning change from Residential One to Residential Four Exception will continue to only permit residential uses, though it is necessary to build townhouses on the combined property. Site-specific permissions are also being considered which would permit smaller yards and slightly shorter, 5.5-meter-long carport parking spaces. Another permission sought by the builder is needed to allow the building height of 12 meters, as R4 zoning only allows for 10. A table from the Staff report detailing these requests is available in the gallery below.

Town Staff will continue to assess transportation studies provided by the applicant to ensure the added density will not overly impact the local road network. They will also be working to ensure the final private laneway design meets Stouffville’s standards, has acceptable sightlines, and allows for safe reversals from carports and parking spaces.

Residents can speak to the item at the meeting or submit their comments in advance by emailing clerks@townofws.ca.

 

*Plans and renderings property of PS Architect