Westbound traffic on Clonmore Dr. at Queensbury
By Albert Williams
Homeowners living near Queensbury Ave. and Clonmore Dr. expressed outrage and shock at plans by developer Centreville Homes to construct a 120-unit condominium on the north side of Clonmore next to the Quarry.
Traffic was the main concern of residents, who complained that Clonmore is converted into “parking lot” during rush hour and a “race track” in off peak hours.
Development “just too big”
Peter Stienish who has been living in the area for close to 12 years said it takes him up to ten minutes most days to get onto Clonmore from Queensbury.
“Traffic is a problem,” Stienish said. “The planned development is just too big.”
The developers will have to submit a rezoning application to the Scarborough Community Council before construction can begin because the proposed condo will be replacing six single-family homes.
At the meeting where the condo project was unveiled, a spokesperson said the density of the project – 120 condos – is a “worst case scenario”.
Council will be required to hold a public meeting before it decides whether to approve the rezoning.
Traffic and TTC issues
Bruce Gordaneer, who has been living in the area for more than 60 years, called the plans crazy.
Residents say making a left from Queensbury to Clonmore very difficult
“Bringing condos here will only increase the traffic and create gridlock like the Don Valley Parking lot,” Gordaneer said.
He said he heard rumours about the new development but ignored it because “it had to be a joke.”
Michael LaPlante expressed a similar sentiment but added that he depends on the TTC for transit and would love to know if more buses will be provided when this development is completed.
“It is going to be a nightmare,” LaPlante said. “That’s a lot of people, [This is] absolutely outrageous.”
Next door to proposed high-rise towers
Queensbury resident Wendy Harvey said she’s “very angry”, especially since the proposed condo development is right next to the four high-rise towers scheduled to be built in the Quarry by the Conservatory Group.
The Quarry towers, if built, will house 1450 units. Immediately to the west, Build Toronto is building a retail/mid-rise development with another 300 units.
Artist rendering of high-rise towers proposed by Conservatory Group
“The people have zero say,” said Harvey. “We’ve been fighting it for years, petitioning and rallies and everything going on saying we don’t want it, we don’t want it. And then they snuck even more in. More than what they said was originally going in.”
Infrastructure problems?
Harvey, who owns one of the 400 homes that flooded with storm water and sewage in July 2012, was also concerned that the local infrastructure can’t handle all this new development.
The sewage is “backing up all the time”, Harvey said, and she wants the City of Toronto to stop allowing the area to get overcrowded.
Though all residents we spoke to were concerned about traffic, some seemed resigned to the idea of the new condos in the name of development.
Some resigned to development
“What are you going to do? It is the city!” said a man who gave his name as James .“People come in by the boatloads every day. They need homes, it is what it is.”
James said he has been living in the area all his life, and depends on transit to commute. “They will need to do something about traffic, because that is horrific,” he added.
John Elliot who moved to Queensbury more than 12 years ago, accepts that development must occur, but thinks a green space would be in better keeping with the tone of the community.
“Single family homes, low-rise would be perfect for the neighbourhood,” Elliot said. “Adding a thousand people to the neighbourhood will make traffic and parking harder. I don’t think the road system can handle it.”
A female resident who lives on Queensbury summed up proposed construction while backing out of her drive way. “That’s a lot of building.”
If you want to have your say to the Build Toronto staff, residents should come out to their meeting on Tuesday March 18th, 2014 in the cafeteria of Malvern Collegiate at 55 Malvern Avenue. They will be discussing the park space on their property, but its a good opportunity to have your say and let them know how you feel.
Just to be clear Karen, this new development (120 condos) is not under the auspices of Build Toronto. I presume you mean if people want to talk to Build about their porition of the Quarry?
Yes that is correct. If people want there say on propised development at Quensbury & Clonmore they have to KFA Architects or Centreville Homes. I believe I listed an email address in a previous comment in a previous story.
It is clear from all the outrage over these developments that people seem to want certain things without considering exactly how they are going to get them.
From some of the reports I have read, it sounds like people would like the retail space in the Build Toronto development site to be cozy, chic little cafes and restaurants instead of a proposed megastore. I think that would be lovely if we could have something a bit more community oriented. However, given the low population density in the area, how do citizens propose these little cafes and restaurants survive economically? Unlike the beaches, this area is not a tourist destination and businesses cannot survive off of high summer seasonal traffic. So the idea of having pretty little restaurants, coffee shops and stores, as we see in the beaches, is unreasonable unless we have a population density to support them.
The fact of the matter is that we live in the city and the higher the population density in the area, the more amenities and businesses will come to the area, making this a more desirable place to live. People complain about traffic in the area. Wouldn’t it be nice not to have to use your car to get everywhere? Wouldn’t it be nice to walk down the street to a lovely little coffee shop? Wouldn’t it be nice not to have to drive or take the TTC everywhere to get to the amenities you currently enjoy elsewhere?
Please refer to the story below and ask yourselves if you would prefer the developer sell the properties to the City of Toronto to build low-income housing instead:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/22/us/george-lucas-retreats-from-battle-with-neighbors.html?_r=0