Last week, an article by David Lea was posted on insidehalton.com, titled “Residents say apartment plan too big and out of place.” We’re always excited to check out new housing proposals, especially when they’ve created a stir within a community. But, this situation isn’t quite the same as what we normally experience in downtown Toronto.

The proposal for Trafalgar Rd. and Dunn St.

Trafalgar Oaks Developments Inc. is seeking a rezoning of 156-160 Trafalgar Rd. in Oakville to permit the construction of a four-storey apartment complex, which would feature 13 units and 22 parking spaces.

In the downtown core, we see locals fighting everything from 12-storey condos to 85-storey condos, but we’ve never seen pushback on a four-storey proposal. It’s all relativae though - according to the insidehalton.com article, the area features mostly one- and two-storey homes, and the only thing that comes close to the proposed height is a three-storey townhome complex down the street.

Concerns about the Trafalgar Rd. and Dunn St. proposal

The obvious concern is the height. Denise Baker of Townsend and Associates represents many property owners on Dunn St., and apparently, they’re not opposed to development on the site, but they think four-storeys is too high.

Baker and those she represents also understand that the site is on the edge of Oakville’s Central Business District, where four-storey buildings are permitted, but they still do not think that the proposal is appropriate.

Locals are also concerned about the proposed removal of trees. There are 15 trees on the site, and Trafalgar Oaks Developments’ proposal calls for the removal of 12 of them. We don’t know if you’ve been to this area of Oakville before, but these aren’t a few little trees, they’ve been there for decades, and the locals have definitely grown fond of them, not only for the aesthetic, but for the privacy they create.

The heritage aspect at Trafalgar Rd. and Dunn St.

According to insidehalton.com, the Oakville Heritage Committee is also against Trafalgar Oaks Developments’ proposal. The site itself is actually excluded from district designation, but apparently, it technically falls within the borders of the Trafalgar Road Heritage Conservation District, and thereby surrounded by heritage homes.

We’re not entirely sure how a site can be excluded from district designation, but that’s the case. We will investigate this further at a later date because it seems like it’s probably a whole new blog post for a different time.

Trafalgar Oaks Development has stated that they are willing to work with the community to come up with a development that suits the neighbourhood.

What do you think about locals fighting a four-storey building? Does it seem ridiculous or do they have legitimate concerns? Let us know in the comments.