Strong support was shown for the Ocean Stories seniors development during a public hearing on the project held March 3.
The development is proposed by Doug Spani for his 2.4-hectare property between Chatelech Secondary School and Shorncliffe.
Phrases like, “I just want to wholeheartedly support this project,” and “it’s a wonderful idea, we need it,” were echoed by several speakers throughout the hearing that saw about 70 people gathered at Sechelt’s municipal hall.
Despite the strong support, however, a few people raised concerns about the project’s proposed height and road access to the site.
The project calls for four separate buildings offering independent supported living for seniors and possibly assisted living in the future.
Building one consists of 125 rental units offering independent living with the potential to convert the units to assisted living down the road.
Building two would house a 60-unit residential condominium apartment building that’s planned to be six storeys high on the uphill side; however, the slope of the site will result in two additional underground storeys being visible in the southwest corner.
Building three is slated to become a 26-unit residential apartment building that could house 20 units of affordable housing for seniors. The project also includes room for a future six-unit residential community or hospice building.
The exact design of the site and the buildings has not been set in stone but will be nailed down at the development permit stage, planner Angela Letman said.
The idea of putting a six-storey building on the undeveloped lot caused concern for a handful of speakers at the meeting.
Joan Baker voiced her concern over the height as well as access to the site proposed off Medusa Street, which she said is much too narrow to accommodate the kind of traffic expected at Ocean Stories.
“I really need you to look very seriously at that. It is a lane, it is not a street,” she told councillors gathered for the public hearing.
Other individual concerns raised were about the steep grade of a proposed walkway that would wind from the site through the Rockwood and onto Cowrie Street (Letman noted the path would wind in a way that makes it accessible to wheelchairs and walkers) and the need for enough parking spaces and possibly bus service to Ocean Stories in the future.
Letman noted the district is currently “in discussions about transit” and said the parking provided onsite would be sufficient.
Staff will now bring a report on the public hearing back to council for consideration of the zoning and Official Community Plan amendments needed for the development to move forward.
