After a five-hour public meeting, Peterborough city council voted to approve a zoning by-law amendment to allow a 17-storey mixed-use development to be built in Peterborough’s East City.
A report from Blair Nelson, the city’s commissioner of infrastructure, planning and growth management, was presented at a public meeting under the Planning Act during city council’s general committee meeting Monday night (August 25), with the report recommending that the zoning by-law amendment be approved.
The proposed development, which would be built at 90 Hunter Street East just west of the Mark Street United Church on a site of around 3,350 square metres (less than one acre), would be the tallest building ever constructed in Peterborough. It would have 205 market-rent apartments with 201 parking spaces.
Toronto-based developer TVM Group acquired the property where the building would be constructed from the board of trustees of Mark Street United Church is exchange for four rental condominium units in TVM Group’s nearby East City Condos development valued at $2 million, as well as the construction of a new hall on the north side of the church building at no cost to Mark Street United Church.
Originally, TVM Group was proposing a 10-storey mixed-use building at the location and, in June 2024, a consultant hired by TVM Group held an open house about that proposal. No other open house was held prior to or after TVM Group submitted a proposal to the city for a 17-storey building.
Following a presentation from city land use planner Nolan Drumm, council heard from 16 public delegations, including residents of Ashburnham Ward who expressed a variety of concerns about the proposed building, including its height, shadow, impact on the character of East City, and traffic and congestion issues, as well as a lack of community consultation.
Council also heard from Daryl Bennett on behalf of the board of trustees for Mark Street United Church, EcoVue Consulting Services Inc. principal Kent Randall (representing the applicant), and The TVM Group CEO Amit Sofer, all of whom spoke in support of the zoning by-law amendment.
Given the late hour, city council decided to defer all items on the agenda, except for the remainder of the public meeting and a time-sensitive item on development charges, to a special general committee meeting at a future date.
After voting 7-4 against a motion by Ashburnham Ward councillor Keith Riel to defer the zoning by-law amendment (with Riel and fellow Ashburnham Ward councillor Gary Baldwin and Town Ward councillors Joy Lachica and Alex Bierk voting in favour of the deferral), councillors then debated the main motion.
After councillor Kevin Duguay put forward a motion that the question be put, ending further debate, councillors voted 7-4 in support of the zoning by-law amendment, with Mayor Jeff Leal and councillors Duguay, Lesley Parnell, Matt Crowley, Don Vassiliadis, Andrew Beamer, and Dave Haacke voting in favour and Riel, Baldwin, Lachica, and Bierk voting against.
Items endorsed by general committee will be considered for final approval at the council meeting on Tuesday, September 2 after the Labour Day weekend.
