(FILE PHOTO: Unfinished “Stittsville Walk” condos, March 6, 2016.)
“I suppose the best one can say is that it is no worse than the original proposal.”
That’s the reaction I received today from a long-time Stittsville resident who’s been following the progress — or lack thereof — of the Stittsville Walk condo development at 1491 Stittsville Main Street. The project has been stalled since late 2013, and only one of the six blocks was ever built. It remains unoccupied.
We found out via Councillor Shad Qadri’s newsletter today that the City has received and approved a revised site plan for the development.
Originally known as “Reverie Quarters”, it included 24 stacked townhouse units over six blocks (see image below), each three storeys, plus another five-story building fronting Stittsville Main Street.
Now under new ownership and rebranded “Stittsville Walk”, the revised plan calls for “street-oriented townhouse dwellings”. Under the new plan:
- No changes to the building
frontingtowering over Stittsville Main Street. As approved in 2011, it will be five storeys, with retail on the ground floor, offices on the second and third floors, and apartments on the top two floors. (It’s virtually guaranteed that it will be the tallest building on Stittsville Main, since new rules passed in 2015 limit height to four storeys.) - Blocks 1, 3, 4 will be reconfigured as town homes, each with 5 units.
- The two blocks at the back of the site will be reconfigured to include a total of seven town homes.
- Block 2, already built, is still subject to a redesign. A new plan will be approved within six months.
Another significant change is that the exterior of all the buildings will be changed to brick, stone, and siding. That means the much-derided yellow composite panels on the existing building will disappear.
By my count, the total number of units is increasing from 24 to 26, and could be higher depending on how the existing block is altered. The total number of parking spots remains about the same.
“I have been in contact with landowner [sic] throughout this process and have requested an update regarding the construction timelines to share with the community, however unfortunately I have not received any additional information at this time,” wrote Qadri in the email. “It has been stressed to the developer that the community and I have had many concerns with this development and we are eager to see the project completed. Please be assured when I have more information regarding the construction timelines I will share this with the community.”
One more thing: Because this is a site plan revision, city staff had full authority to approve it, and there was no formal public consultation required. But this particular development has been a sore spot for a lot of residents. City staff and Councillor Qadri should have included public consultation as part of this revision process. Just sayin’.