Latest news with #AlannaJankov
CBC
14-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Charlottetown adding homes by rezoning parts of city from low to medium density
The City of Charlottetown is hoping to increase housing density in the city by rezoning portions of it from low to medium density. Eight zoning and development bylaw amendments passed first reading at the regular meeting of Charlottetown's city council on Tuesday night, most of them aimed at providing more housing options across the city. "A lot of people have this misconception that medium density means high-rise apartment buildings, but it doesn't, it means gentle infill. It means being respectful to communities, building townhouses, building tiny apartment buildings, building duplexes and homes with accessory suites and things like that," said Charlottetown's deputy mayor Alanna Jankov, who also chairs the planning and heritage committee. "We have potentially approved 1,100 units that could be developed over the coming years, but all through medium density. We're not looking at high rises. We're looking at preserving the communities and doing it with a level of class." Some of the bylaw amendments also came with developments. City council voted unanimously to rezone a portion of Mount Edward Road from low to medium density to make way for a multi-phased project that could bring about 150 units to the area. Phase 1 is a 47-unit apartment building with underground parking. According to city documents, some residents raised concerns about additional traffic in the area, something Coun. Mitch Tweel echoed during the council meeting. "If you look at Mount Edward Road, there is industrial traffic, there is commercial traffic, residential traffic. The traffic is just unprecedented, no different than, probably what you see, on North River Road," he said. "With all this development, there is a cost to the municipality to provide the necessary prerequisite infrastructure, and that's something I am going to ask our staff to set up the process for a traffic plan for Mount Edward Road. I think it's long overdue." Traffic is increasing along with the population, but that's not a reason to stop building housing, Jankov said. "That is the city's responsibility to look at traffic flow and traffic studies, which we will do and we [fully intend] to do that. But we can't stop growth because we're concerned with traffic because you are going to have the traffic. We have to deal with that, but we can't stop development," Jankov said. "We're in less than a one per cent vacancy rate in the City of Charlottetown. People need somewhere to live. People need affordable places to live." The city is also trying to encourage building near transit routes so people are less reliant on cars, Jankov said. City seeking feedback on bylaw Charlottetown's city council also approved zoning to allow a five-storey, 41-unit building at 139 Kensington Rd., a nine-unit townhouse at 171-181 Kensington Rd. and a four-unit townhouse on Evelyn Street. The city is seeking feedback on updating the Zoning and Development Bylaw. There are two public meetings this week: one on Wednesday from 5 to 8 p.m. at Simmons Sports Centre and one on Thursday night from 6 to 9 p.m. at West Royalty Community Centre. The new Zoning and Development Bylaw should come to council for a vote in the next six weeks, Jankov said.
CBC
26-03-2025
- Health
- CBC
Charlottetown council votes against letting shelter and outreach centre stay on Park Street
Charlottetown's council has voted to reject the P.E.I. government's application to keep its emergency overnight shelter and Community Outreach Centre operating at their current location. During a special council meeting on Tuesday night, city councillors voted 8-2 to reject the province's request for a zoning change to cover the operations on Park Street in Charlottetown. Approving it would have allowed both services to remain in the area indefinitely, although the province had previously insisted the location would be temporary. The timeline for what happens next is unclear. Housing, Land and Communities Minister Steven Myers had previously suggested the province would find a way to fight or nullify a city vote on the matter. "My vote was based on… land use and community impact," says Deputy Mayor Alanna Jankov, who voted against letting the services continue at the Park Street site. "Wasn't an easy decision, not at all, and I can only hope we can continue building that relationship and working collaboratively with the province on what we can do as the City of Charlottetown to help facilitate and find areas [where] these services can be serviced in our community." The province was asking the city to amend its Eastern Gateway Project master plan, the city's official plan, and Charlottetown's zoning and development bylaw to allow the two services to continue operating. The overnight shelter was set up to provide safe housing for people who didn't have a place to stay, operating seven days a week between the hours of 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. The outreach centre is designed to serve people dealing with mental health issues, coping with issues that accompany homelessness, and struggling to get back on their feet. If they don't comply, then they get an order. Then from here it's court; it's the same process for any applicant. — Deputy Mayor Alanna Jankov "It's a difficult social struggle we are having right now with mental health and addictions," Jankov acknowledged. But the city has spent $16 million to implement the Eastern Gateway Project in the last year or so, she went on to point out. Water and Grafton streets were realigned, and the intersection at the Hillsborough Bridge was reworked, to let the part of the city that includes the Park Street area become a hub of new development focused on the waterfront near the Hillsborough River. Expires end of month The temporary zoning variance allowing the outreach centre to operate at Park Street will expire by the end of March, while the variance that let the emergency shelter keep running expired in December 2024. "They'll no longer be adhering to an existing bylaw, so that will be something the provincial staff and city staff will work on, when that process will begin," Jankov said, adding there is usually a 30-day grace period. "If they don't comply, then they get an order. Then from here it's court; it's the same process for any applicant," she said. The province has 21 days to appeal the decision to the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission, according to Jankov. Late last year, Myers stated that no matter what council decided, the shelter and outreach centre would stay at Park Street. After city staff recommended denying the province's application in February, Myers wrote to express his disappointment with the decision. His letter noted that before the 50-bed shelter opened, Charlottetown had struggled to deal with a large encampment that had sprung up at the event grounds near the western end of the Hillsborough Bridge. The emergency shelter had a usage rate of 97 per cent in January, according to the province's website that tracks shelter use across the Island. 2 votes in favour of services staying Terry Bernard and John McAleer were the two councillors who voted on Tuesday night to keep the services in place, despite neighbours' complaints about disruptions near the site that included loitering and property damage. On top of that, Coun. Mitch Tweel has long talked about problems related to people using drugs in nearby Joe Ghiz Park. "My understanding is [that] inside the fenced area, the people that need help are getting that help and they are recovering. It's outside the fence where issues seem to be," Bernard said. "It's difficult because you don't want to see residents go through what some of them are going through, with their quality of life and the changes. At the same time, to say no to this — what happens? Where do they go? [Do] encampments start up again? "The police are saying this is going to be much more difficult for them to police," Bernard said. People concerned about the Park Street location of the services filled the council chamber on Tuesday night, driving home their past statements about feeling unsafe in their own neighbourhood. Complaints were similar when the Community Outreach Centre was located on Euston Street, before it was moved to Park Street in 2024. "I've been dealing with the file for the last two years, and I have been very close to the residents in and around that area and I have heard first-hand... the challenges that are being faced down there," said Coun. Justin Muttart, who represents Ward 2, which includes Park Street. "People feel that their safety is in jeopardy. They also feel their quality of life has diminished." Businesses 'don't want to deal with it' Muttart said he has also heard from business owners in the area who have had to invest in cameras and other security measures, adding that some say they are losing business because of being located near the shelter and outreach centre. "They don't want to deal with it any more — or they don't know how to deal with it, in most cases — and they are trying their very best," he said. I think the alternative here is to look for locations which are less invasive around residential areas and schools and parks, and allow these services to continue. "The decision around this was not based on whether or not the services are needed," Muttart added. "That's not up for debate here. "But... when they are embedded in residential areas around businesses, schools, parks, they bring a new set of challenges people are not ready to deal with." As for what the Park Street area should be used for, the Eastern Gateway master plan suggests a multi-use sports facility could go in the area. That's something Muttart would support, he said. The residents he represents aren't against providing services to those facing homelessness, Muttart said; they just don't believe the services should be offered in residential areas. "I think the alternative here is to look for locations which are less invasive around residential areas and schools and parks and allow these services to continue," he said.
