Some Residents Fuming About Brand New Development Proposed for Mississauga

Residents are torn about another new development that’s been proposed for the city. 

The recent Planning and Development Committee meeting on Monday (Feb. 26) had a quite a few members of the community attend to discuss a potential high-rise building that might be coming to Port Credit.

An application submitted to council has asked the city to permit a 15-storey apartment building with 207 units and three levels of underground parking on the south side of Park Street East, east of Stavebank road. The proposed development would be next to the heritage designated Vimy Park. 

(Photo courtesy of City of Mississauga PDC agenda)

The development would be located in an area of Port Credit that is marked as “residential high density” and already permits high-rise buildings. There are a variety of different properties in the area, including high-rise and mid-rise apartment buildings, detached homes, and three-storey rental units. Currently the land use is not zoned for a 15 storey building, so building it would require an amendment to the by-law. 

Several members of the community spoke about ongoing difficulties with traffic in the area and how the addition of a large complex could cause more congestion. Port Credit is already marketed as a tourist destination and is known for hosting Canada Day celebrations, music festivals and art shows. Some say the building could add more crowding to the popular neighbourhood. 

Councillor Nando Iannicca suggested the addition of the LRT and the existing Port Credit GO station would help ease the congestion and encourage people to use transit instead of cars.

There were also concerns regarding the height of the building. With many senior citizens living in residential buildings approximately three to five stories tall around the proposed site, some said the 15-storey building might eliminate the community feel and appear “out of place.” 

(Current site vs. artist rendering, courtesy of PDC agenda)

Currently, there are three detached houses on the lot where the potential property would be, with two of the properties listed under the Ontario Heritage Act. The Heritage Advisory Committee granted permission for demolition of the two structures.

To the west of the site is Vimy Park (previously called Cenotaph Park), where a war memorial (or cenotaph) is located. The monument was built in 1925 and was designated for its historical and contextual importance. It was built by merchants and citizens of the Town of Port Credit in honour of those who fell in battle during World War I. This is also where a Remembrance Day service takes place every year. The building developers, Edenshaw Park Developments Ltd., have tried to minimize the impact the proposed development would have on the park by including a wall with greenery to minimize the contrasting backdrop to the cenotaph. 

The proposed development has come to council at a time of transition, as the newly-elected (by council) Dave Cook just took his place as the appointed Ward 1 councillor following the sudden passing of Jim Tovey. He will be critical to the approval or disapproval of the application. Councillor Cook will be at attendance at the upcoming community meeting in relation to the property.

“Awkward situation, the residents are seeing it for the first time, your councillor has been sworn in for three days, what a mess,” says Councillor Iannicca. “In my constituency I would be approving this thing tonight, in a heartbeat.”

There had been a community meeting scheduled for the end of January that has since been moved to March 26 at Clarke Hall. This will ultimately postpone approval of the property, prompting some concerns that the report may not come to council in time for quick turn around for the project. 

“I’m a little bit concerned that this [project] might get away from us… I think this [project] hits all the high notes,” says Iannicca. 

Updates to follow.

Cover photo courtesy of @gualdjouma