The Palmwood restaurant in Crystal Beach is the latest site of new development in Niagara, and has been the subject of some debate at council-in-committee meetings this year. A five-storey, mixed use building has been proposed for the site. Plans outline commercial development on the ground floor and new residential developments on the remaining four storeys.
The plan that was put forward involves demolishing the standing building and rebuilding the restaurant and seven apartment condo development above. There was a meeting regarding this in April, and a meeting early in the month of May, where Crystal Beach residents discussed potential issues.
The plan for Crystal Beach
The proposal includes demolishing the standing building and completely rebuilding from the ground up, if the by-law amendment required to go up to the fifth storey passes. Current by-laws limit the construction to three storeys, which has halted the development plan.
The architect of the development said that the proposal complies with the Niagara Region’s official plan policies, as well as, adhering to the province’s growth plan, and the urban boundary.
Residents concerned
The concerns that the residents have about this plan surround issues with parking and privacy. The proposal features a large number of windows in the five storey building; residents are concerned about the potential privacy issues these windows could create.
The residents are also concerned with where the residents of the proposed condo, as well as, customers in the restaurant, will park. Parking along nearby streets is prohibited at this time.
There are also concerns from nearby residents that the tall building will impact the waterfront view of surrounding properties. The thought is the building’s height would impact the value of properties being sold.
Addressing concerns
Michael Allen, who is the architect of the development, has said that the issues that the residents are concerned with will be addressed later. As the plan is still halted by the by-law amendment process, but as the planning process continues, more details will be available to address the concerns of the public.
