Hamilton City Council and Delta Joint Venture Inc. have agreed to a settlement permitting up to 962 residential units on the former Delta Secondary School property at 1284 Main Street East.
The settlement agreement is expected to be rubberstamped by the Ontario Land Tribunal tomorrow. (October 22, 2024)
Changes from the original 975 unit proposal include modifications to the tower buildings to make them less imposing with stepbacks from the heritage secondary school building, further stepbacks at the ninth and thirteenth storey, increased separation between the three towers, and changes to the rear twelve storey tower to separate the tower portions above the seventh storey.
The rear building will be twelve storeys, instead of the original proposal of fourteen.
There will be 9 three-bedroom units between the three towers.
The unit mix for the development is now 104 studio units, 494 one-bedroom units, 240 one-bedroom plus den units, 101 two-bedroom units, and 23 three-bedroom units.
82 of the units will be within the former Delta Secondary School.
Fourteen of the three-bedroom units are four-storey townhouses at the perimeter of the property.
The number of two and three-bedroom units is a minimum. The settlement states the developer and city agree that one-bedroom and studio units can be combined into larger units “based on market demand.”
The changes will decrease shadowing on neighbouring properties and make the buildings less imposing in the community.
Ward 4 Councillor Says the Deal is a Compromise by All Sides
Ward 4 Councillor Tammy Hwang, who voted in favour of the deal during Council closed session meetings this past summer, describes the settlement as a good compromise.
“The settlement was a good compromise on both sides, knowing full well that neither side got everything that they wanted. But we all came to a conclusion that this is good for the community and what we ought to be moving forward with it,” she stated at City Hall late this afternoon.
“From my previous conversations with both the developer and with our legal team. Every side had to make compromises. They compromised on their design and what they wanted to do. We pushed back because there were several things that were just not in keeping with what residents were saying about it.”
Hwang said reducing the height of the rear building and having step-backs on the fourteen storey towers was something the City wanted.
The property is located in two Major Transit Station Areas (MTSA).
The new Provincial Planning Statement requires the Ontario Land Tribunal to approve high densities on major arterial roads, especially in MTSAs.
Hwang says the settlement requires the preservation of the historic Delta Secondary School in the first phase of the development. She says this is important to ensure the building is preserved and restored.
“We were really firm in trying to maintain some of the heritage aspects.”
The Ontario Land Tribunal settlement hearing will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday.
Delta Joint Venture Inc is a partnership between New Horizon Development Group and Losani Homes.
RELATED LINK: Past TPR stories on the 1284 Main Street East redevelopment.
Update, October 22, post-OLT hearing: The OLT received the settlement agreement, and will formally approve the deal in a written order to follow.
Production Details v. 1.2.1 Published: October 21, 2024 Last updated: October 22, 2024 Author: Joey Coleman Update Record v. 1.0.0 original version v. 1.1.0 added that 82 units are within the former high school building. (approx 40 minutes after initial publication) v. 1.2.0 Changes to reflect Delta Joint Venture Inc is a partnership between two developers. (Oct 22 2024 at ~8:30 a.m.) v. 1.2.1 added post OLT hearing note. (Oct 22 2024 at ~9:00 p.m.)
Thanks for this Joey, this is just down the street from me. It would be interesting to know if the dev/city have any forecasts into the age demographics this site expects to attract. If there are school age children, which schools will they go to?
I am unsure about school catchment areas.
Thanks for this infor.ation. Do you know when construction will start and how long the project will take? I work as a Pizza driver nearDelta High School and business has been down since the students left. My boss would be happy to hear about this news.
I do not know when the developer will begin construction.