City Council’s Planning Committee has unanimously approved a 12-storey, 176-unit rental building on Main Street West, proceeding despite the City planning staff’s inability to recommend the proposal’s approval due to non-compliance with urban design guidelines and the area’s secondary plan.
The proposal, put forth by Kindred Works, the development arm of the United Church of Canada, was approved by the Planning Committee in an 11-0 vote on October 3 and is set to be ratified at the October 8 Council meeting.
The site at 1570 Main Street West is located approximately 500 metres west of the planned terminus for Hamilton’s light rail transit (LRT) line, arguably placing it within a provincial Major Transit Station Area (MTSA).
The move is consistent with recent planning trends influenced by OLT rulings. The OLT has previously declared the neighbourhood’s 2005 secondary plan, which sets an as-of-right height limit of three stories, to be “dated” and to have a “detrimental effect on achieving good planning outcomes” as envisioned by provincial policy. Given the Province’s mandate for high-density development near major transit station areas, the City of Hamilton would face a challenge in defending the existing low-rise limit against an appeal.
Ward 1 Councillor Maureen Wilson supported the approval, citing the City’s need to secure family-friendly rental units and capitalize on the economic uplift of the planned B-Line LRT.
“I understand that this will not please all of the neighbours,” Councillor Wilson stated, “but, my responsibility as the ward councillor … is to consider all of our objectives as a City.”
She noted the 12-storey building “provides three bedrooms, two bedrooms, one bedroom units, the kind individuals we are seeking to attract and retain in our City will be able to live in and afford, whether they’d be nurses, whether they’d be graduate students, whether they’d be teachers, who are right now forced out of the market.”
“I support and recognise the need for density along this corridor,” Wilson said, adding lowering the building height to six-storey would result in “jammed units in there, small micro-units” that would not meet existing housing needs.
Ward 12 Councillor Craig Cassar clarifed the roles of staff and Council on planning matters, saying it is “staff’s job to bring forth a recommendation based on policies that exist” and it’s Council’s “job to evaluate that and look at the bigger picture and where we may be going and begin to consider everything.”
Staff Council Not Support Proposal as Designed
Senior Planner Mark Michniak told councillors that staff could not recommend approval because “the adjacent properties to the north 14 Cottrill Street and 15 Kingsmount Street North will not receive a minimum of three hours of [backyard] sunlight between the hours of 10am and 4pm as measured on March 21st” and “the proposal does not comply with the City’s urban design policies” due to “negative wind impacts,” shadowing, and building massing “that establishes an incompatible relationship with surrounding uses.”
Staff also noted the building will exceed a 45-degree angular plane as measured from the centre of Main Street West.
Acting Director of Planning and Chief Planner Anita Fabac stated 12-storeys “could be supported” on Main West “but it comes down to how is shadow mitigated and how was wind mitigated?”.
She said staff held conversations with the proponent, but “there was not a design proposal that was brought forward that staff could support.”
Neighbourhood Opposition
There were four public delegations in opposition to the proposal, and one walk-on delegation from a McMaster student with generalized concerns about the housing market for students.
The local neighbourhood association expressed its concerns in writing.
“Neighbours recognise need for more housing and fully support it. Unfortunately, the proposed development is not suitable for the site and not compatible with our neighbourhood in a form how it’s presented right now.” nearby resident Oleksiy Razborshchuk told councillors.
“There is a lot of issues with the building and we request developer to build and to reconsider the project and make it suitable for the site, suitable that fits the site size and compatible with our neighbourhood and respect the neighbours,” he said.
Ward 7 Councillor Esther Pauls expressed sympathy for the neighbouring concerns, but said Hamilton needs to intensify to meet its growth objectives and maintain a firm urban boundary.
“I understand and I feel for the people that live there as well but if we’re trying to build housing, if we’re trying to intensify that’s what we’re told and then we say no to this, what precedent do we set for the whole city?”
Proponent Stresses Financial Viability, Affordability, and Sustainability
The proponent’s agent, Registered Professional Planner Edward John emphasied the projects location near the LRT, the planned use of low-carbon mass timber construction, and the desire to have at least 35 per cent of the rents set at below-market rates.
“What they are trying to achieve on this site and this is a mixed use, mixed incomerental development that really employs great environmental sustainability techniques,” John stated.
Kindred Works, already “far exceeds” many affordable housing financing mandates by providing an average of “approximately 35 per cent on average affordable units within each design build” project it has completed.
He noted the proximity to the LRT, and existing frequent bus service on Main Street, make this an ideal location for mid-rise intenstification.
John said imposing a six-storey height limit would cut “by half the number of units” would mean the “sustainability and the ability to get below market units will be significantly affected” and the project may not be viable.
Conditions of Approval
In granting unanimous approval, Planning Committee directed City staff to amend the approving bylaw to include holding provisions requiring the proponent to work with staff regarding massing and shadows, wind impacts, and to ensure affordability conditional upon Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation financing.
City Council is expected to ratify this direction on October 8, with the enacting bylaw expected to be approved at a later date after finalizing of legal language.
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Published: October 6, 2025
Last updated: October 6, 2025
Author: Joey Coleman
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