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A former public high school, two parking lots downtown, and land near a golf course are all part of the city’s Made for Windsor plan for new housing.
Standing outside the former W.D. Lowe Secondary School building on Friday, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens announced the city’s intention to invite housing development on four city-owned properties: the Caron Avenue parking lot, the Pelissier Street parking lot, the Roseland Golf and Curling Club clubhouse and parking lot, and the former W.D. Lowe property on Giles Boulevard.
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“These are the most ready today to move forward,” Dilkens said. “There are others that will involve different levels of complexity that we will come forward with when the time is right.
“We think these are the first four that we’ll see the biggest response, where you could … see probably the most amount of density. We want to move forward with these four and not delay.”
Last year, city staff identified these sites and others as being appropriate for residential development as part of its Housing Accelerator Fund application to the federal government.
The properties announced Friday are “best-suited and furthest along in the planning process to achieve the goal of supporting the development of more homes built faster here in Windsor,” Dilkens said.
Roseland is the first property that will “come online,” Dilkens said. Roseland will see curling moved to the Capri Pizzeria Recreation Complex for the start of the 2024-2025 curling season. That change, along with the future demolition of the existing golf and curling clubhouse, “allows for a complete reimagining of what is possible on that footprint.”
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A new clubhouse will be built on the property. Dilkens said the city has worked with an architectural firm to develop conceptual designs for a condo complex with 38 single- and two-bedroom units and underground parking.
The city will host a public information session to discuss the Roseland property on March 7 from 4-7 p.m. at Roseland Golf and Curling Club.
An online survey about plans to build housing on the Roseland property is available to the public until March 24. Hard copies of the survey will be available at the open house.
You’re dealing with a housing crisis
Ward 1 Coun. Fred Francis, who is currently on vacation and out of the country, told the Star he is “vehemently against” a condo complex at Roseland.
“Don’t open that door of development at Roseland,” Francis said. “You’re opening the door to further development at Roseland to the point where maybe there’s no more golf course there.
“When you’re dealing with a housing crisis, it’s only a matter of time. That’s one of my fears.”
When it comes to receiving help for housing from upper levels of government, this year has been rife with disappointment for Windsor. In January, the city was told it failed to meet a requirement for roughly $30 million from Ottawa’s Housing Accelerator Fund: opening any residential lot to four-unit development.
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Last month, Windsor learned it also missed out on $3.4 million from a provincial housing fund because it failed to meet its 2023 home construction target. Last year, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation recorded 346 Windsor housing starts — poured foundations, or the equivalent for developments without basements — and only 36 per cent of its provincial target of 953 housing starts.
The city has set up a website through which developers can register, connecting the development community with “these targeted opportunities, and with all future development opportunities” throughout the city’s housing plan, the mayor said.
The city intends to put out expressions of interest for development, Dilkens said, through which it will outline what it wants to see, generally, on each site.
Once the city selects a proposal, it will enter into a development agreement and will only agree to sell its property if the developer “hits all the marks” outlined in the city’s expression of interest, Dilkens said.
“If we don’t see happening what we had planned on happening, the city would have the right to take (the property) back,” he said.
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Any funding brought in by the sale of land will be “considered for reinvestment in adjacent communities,” Dilkens said.
The four properties announced Friday have yet to be rezoned for residential development. When rezoning applications come before both the development committee and then council as a whole, residents will be able to appear as delegates and provide feedback.
Joining Dilkens at Friday’s announcement were city councillors Mark McKenzie (Ward 4), Jim Morrison (W10), Renaldo Agostino (W3), Ed Sleiman (W5), Angelo Marignani (W7), Kieran McKenzie (W9) and several senior city administrators.
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