No to transient housing in Kincardine’s downtown core
November 10, 2024
To the Editor:
This week, Kincardine council revealed its plans to turn a portion of the parking lot behind the Bruce Power Training Centre (the former W.E. Thompson Public School across from Victoria Park) into a space for (at this point) 34 single-bed studio apartments.
Council used $15,000 from the Affordable Housing Reserve Fund to hire a firm called Flourish, associated with Indwell, to scope out “under-used” land in the municipality and devise an initial concept, and this was the No. 1 recommendation to the municipality.
Flourish’s report further stated, “We also recommend that the municipality explore the option of converting the former W.E. Thompson School.”
The municipal council report of Oct. 23 states, “The community hasn’t been engaged on the project at this point.” Not only had no mention been made to Kincardine residents until Oct. 30, but on Nov. 13, council intends to direct staff to sever and re-zone the lot for this proposal. All with ZERO input from taxpayers or residents.
For those who haven’t seen the links or had a chance to read them, here is some background.
First: The Oct. 23 staff report to council mentions a “potential development concept for a portion of the under-utilized parking lot to support future housing.”
It is unclear when the Flourish/Indwell folks came to look at local properties, but that parking lot behind the Bruce Power Training Centre has 95 parking spots. Besides those spots being filled to various levels during weekdays year-round while training is going on, anyone who has ever been downtown for any event knows that the lot is filled to overflowing for every Monday Market in Victoria Park, every Saturday Night Pipe Band, every fireworks display, Cruise Night, downtown days, concerts in the park, beach parties, Santa Claus Parades, and of course, for huge, multi-day events such as the Kincardine Scottish Festival each July.
The reconstruction of Queen Street downtown resulted in fewer parking spots in overall, and this proposal would wipe out roughly half of the available space behind the training centre. And the proposed building would also require its own parking. Even if each unit houses only one person, it is very unlikely that none of them own a car. So, there is the potential for up to 34 or more cars (depending on whoever is using all the meeting spaces, etc.) that will still need a place to park. Which would leave perhaps 12-15 parking spaces for the use of the current tenant (Bruce Power Training Centre).
Second: The proposal is a three-storey building to accommodate 34 very tiny single-bed studio rooms. Only eight of these units would be on the ground floor, with the remainder of the ground floor space being taken up by a lobby, two offices, a large kitchen, a large dining room (even though each unit appears to have its own kitchenette), as well as a meeting room and lounge.
The remaining 26 living units would presumably be on the second and third levels. (Only a ground-level floor plan was shared.) This many units would overwhelm the capacity of the neighbourhood to absorb. What are all these extra ground-floor amenities for?
Third: The small size of the units means that NONE of this space is intended for families at all, even though it is a family neighbourhood. This proposal places a modern, probably cheaply-made building smack into the middle of Kincardine’s heritage area. The surrounding Victorian homes on Princes Street North and Olde Victoria Street are all either single or 1.5-storey, with a few two-storey homes. Many of them are designated as heritage, which means their owners generally take great pains to maintain the integrity of style and workmanship. They take pride in their properties. Their efforts contribute to the value of the municipality and the area is very popular with tourists.
It is quite certain that the property values for all the surrounding properties immediately tanked as soon as this news broke. (Of course, the already high taxes in that area only continue to go up.) And despite most of the homeowners on both these quiet dead-end streets having moved there specifically to have quiet properties to enjoy, a great many of them already generously share their driveways (and often their yards) with tourists and visiting pipe bands to help promote Kincardine events.
Fourth: Absolutely, Kincardine needs to facilitate building more housing, of various types, but this is NOT the location for 34 hotel-room-sized units to be situated. They are obviously meant for individual, short-term (transient) use.
If the parking lot is actually deemed to be under-used, I would respectfully submit that the location behind 705 Princes Street could, indeed, perhaps support one (or possibly two) two-storey four-plexes. This would alleviate some of the housing squeeze, and hopefully, they could be built in a way that is compatible with the neighbourhood. Most importantly, that could provide stable, long-term, affordable housing for several families, in a welcoming family neighbourhood.
Fifth: There are many other properties in Kincardine that are potential sites for new housing. The Flourish/Indwell report mentioned the huge open field beside Elgin Market School. The report gives it a low priority in case there are complications from it being a former landfill. But if the housing build doesn’t require basements, that shouldn’t be much of a problem. This space is enormous, private, and is currently simply flat lawn.
Other properties that were mentioned (but not necessarily recommended by the report) include the lot at the entrance to the motel on Kincardine Avenue, Blackwell Park, Highway 21 and Russell Street, and the Tiverton Cemetery expansion. Driving around Kincardine, several small parks and green spaces can also be seen to be potential spaces for building assorted types of low-income housing.
NOT listed in the report is an obvious candidate for development: Connaught Park. The ball diamonds are there, but there is also an abundance of completely unused space – not even needed for cars. It’s also a close walk to downtown. Why was this space not considered?
For background, from Indwell’s website:
Indwell’s Mission states that “Indwell is a Christian charity that creates affordable housing in communities that support people seeking health, wellness and belonging” and states “We value the inherent dignity of all people as image bearers of God.”
The company has converted buildings into subsidized rental units mainly in Toronto, Hamilton, Kitchener and London. It recommends that municipalities donate or secure lands for projects like this and makes suggestions for receiving funding from various investors and levels of government.
The Flourish report states, “Other strategies could include converting former retirement residences, motels, schools, and churches as opportunities for broader affordable housing development throughout the municipality. These approaches could be explored in concert with local builders or non-profits, focusing on creating a replicable typology that cost-effectively meets local needs.”
Predictably, the report to Kincardine council also states, “We also recommend that the municipality explore the option of converting the former W.E. Thompson School.”
Taxpayers and residents of Kincardine should be aware of all this information and have full input and discussions before council moves forward with any of it. Yet THIS Wednesday, at the Nov. 13 meeting, council is planning to direct staff to sever and rezone the property.
If you have questions or concerns on this topic, I would suggest a call to your local council member.
C. Brown
Kincardine
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