Quote:
Originally Posted by planarchy
It was upzoned through the centre plan from Parkland to HR1 or HR2. He can do a few hundred units easily byright on the site as is. He can submit for a permit tomorrow. But he wants to build 600+ units. It's not about buttering up Council, but a property owner who wants to amend the plan, a plan less than 2 years old. You need a reason for that and public benefit can be one of those reasons. This isn't anything unusual, whether through density bonusing in Downtown Halifax, Section 37s in Toronto and increasingly CBAs and contract agreements in Vancouver and elsewhere.
|
HRM by Design has density bonuses, sure, but that's not ad hoc. You get a certain density bonus in exchange for a certain value of public benefit.
I understand that public benefit can change the calculus and can be a positive for the community, but for the most part it has little impact on how much population can be supported in a given area. Nobody in this thread seems to be arguing that this area is too crowded, does not have enough amenities, or has no capacity for foot traffic or cars, or causes wind or shadow effects, and the developer will somehow build amenities to counterbalance or eliminate those negative effects. There's just a tenuous notion that more density implies that the developer had better bring something to the table, and perhaps that he needs to "convince" the community or council to let him build a certain level of density. I understand how that could be seen as a kind of municipal "shakedown".
I am also unsure that it serves the needs of the municipality to be rigid about limiting density when there is a housing shortage. I doubt that the current housing market was predicted when the bulk of the material in the Centre Plan was generated. It was kicked off in what, 2011?
I could imagine more compelling arguments for public benefit, e.g. people in the area would lose some amenity though the redevelopment. Or maybe even just some renters would be displaced. But I don't think that's the argument here.