Community groups line up against proposed Sherbrook development
By: Tyler Searle
Posted: 9:32 AM CDT Friday, Mar. 29, 2024
Diana Fred’s connection to the West Broadway community run deep.
She has lived in the 100 block of Sherbrook Street for nearly two decades. Her grandfather was raised in a home across the street.
“This whole strip, that’s what they want to do,” she said, pointing to “Grandpa Charlie’s” former property — now occupied by a four-storey condo building.
“I’m not against development. I just want to see development that serves the community.”
Fred, who spoke at length about her love for West Broadway, is among a handful of neighbourhood stakeholders who have reservations about a proposal to construct a new apartment complex in the area.
They fear the project will not provide affordable housing that meets the community’s needs, but the developer argues it is doing everything it can to keep rents low.
Paragon Design Build, a local developer with a large portfolio of infill and affordable housing units, hopes to construct a seven-storey, 102-unit apartment complex with seven commercial spaces on a stretch of land between 126 and 140 Sherbrook.
The proposal requires the city to approve a zoning variance, allowing Paragon to consolidate 23,777 square feet of land spread across four lots.
A derelict home, a shuttered business and two occupied houses currently sit on the lots. Their owners have agreed to sell, pending the project approval, Nigel Furgus, Paragon’s president and CEO, told the Free Press Thursday.
“I really think its going to bring a lot of value to the area. I think it will bring security to the area… more activity, more vibrancy and businesses,” he said.
“The area is in need of this.”
Paragon has committed to including 38 units deemed “affordable” under the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. guidelines, which are calculated based on the median income of Manitoba renters.
Under the federal Crown corporation’s definitions, housing is considered affordable if it costs less than 30 per cent of a household’s before-tax income.
Rent for an affordable one-bedroom unit in the proposed development will be set at about $1,100. Someone renting that apartment would need to make at least $44,000 to remain in the affordable range.
However, data from the 2020 Statistics Canada Census shows 76 per cent of West Broadway residents have incomes below $40,000.
A coalition of community groups, led by the West Broadway Community Organization, believes Paragon should instead calculate rental rates based on an individual’s annual income — whatever that may be.
The coalition intends to make its case during a public hearing at city hall Thursday, as the city centre community committee considers whether to approve the proposal.
“My main point is, this is a neighbourhood where there is an extremely high need for rent-geared-to-income housing,” said Talia Potash, director of housing at Resource Assistance for Youth Inc., a community organization located across the street from the proposed development.
“We do need more housing in the area, but it has to be affordable.”
Potash and eight other housing advocates penned a letter to Furgus early this year, urging him to consider lowering rents further.
“Some of the community organizations want the rents lower, but it’s just not feasible,” he said in response.
“To make the rents further discounted would, essentially, shelve the project.”
If the proposal is cleared for a zoning variance, it will still require a review by the city’s director of planning, property and development and a final stamp of approval from city council.
tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca