A contested Ontario Land Tribunal hearing regarding a development proposal at 140 Glen Echo Drive began Wednesday with the developer’s lawyer saying constructing a mid-rise building on the site represents good planning.
The former Glen Echo School property was sold by the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board to Losani Homes in March 2023 for approximately $6.75 million.
The original planning application submitted to the City of Hamilton in 2023 proposed constructing two buildings with 310 residential units between two buildings: an eight-storey and a four-storey building.
The plan was amended to 264 units with one eight-storey building and stacked townhouses.
Hamilton’s professional planning staff did not support the proposal, and recommended denial of the proposal. In April 2024, the planning committee unanimously voted to deny the application.
Losani Homes appealed the denial to the Ontario Land Tribunal.
The Tribunal declined to release the joint document book at the beginning of the hearing. The Tribunal’s new practice is to release documents only after a hearing concludes.
This means written statements, agreed statement of facts, visual evidence packages, and the final proposal details being considered are unavailable at this time.
In December 2024, Ontario’s Auditor General stated the OLT should provide easy access to evidence and recordings of hearings. [Recommendation 10]
“We recommend the OLT review and adopt best practices from other tribunals to enhance the transparency of the OLT hearings process, such as making evidence the OLT examines easily accessible through its website, publishing notices of upcoming hearings and recording hearings.”
Day One: Opening Statements and Developer’s Planning Evidence
It is not clear how many units are being considered or the configuration of the buildings and stacked townhouses.
New visual renders of the proposal flashed on the video conference screen at times.
Losani Homes lawyer Jennifer Meader told the Tribunal the proposal is good planning, fits within the community, and that the OLT should approve it.
City of Hamilton lawyer Peter Krysiak said the proposal is not good planning because it is too much density inside of a stable residential neighbourhood, is not in a node or corridor planned for density, and is not within an intensification area.
Registered Professional Planner David Aston, who was retained by the developer, was the first witness in the hearing.
He stated it is his professional opinion the proposal is good planning, meets provincial policies, and should be approved because it is near the future Nash Road LRT stop, is well served by public transit, is within walking distance of many amenities, and will not have negative impacts upon the surrounding neighbourhood.
Aston made a point of clarifying there is no loss of public open space.
The hearing continues tomorrow.
Production Details
v. 1.0.0
Published: June 18, 2025
Last updated: June 18, 2025
Author: Joey Coleman
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