Village Mall residential building gets green light for now as city approves application

St. John's city council has approved preliminary plans for a six-storey residential building on a portion of the Village Mall parking lot.

Council voted unanimously Tuesday afternoon to allowVillage Shopping Centre (2006) Inc. to proceed with its proposal for the Topsail Road development.

The proposed plans say the final building willcontain 110 residential units, composed of 50 one-bedroom units, 40 two-bedroom units and 20 units classified as two-bedroom plus den.

It's not yet known whether the units will be rentals or for purchase, or whether they'll be earmarked as affordable housing.

"The city does not regulate type of ownership (rental or condominium), the size/configuration of dwelling units, the price at which a developer chooses to rent/sell a unit or if they are provided as affordable units," wrote Coun.Carl Ridgeleyin a report prepared for council earlier this month.

Leading upto Tuesday's vote, council repeatedly raised concerns about the housing deficit in St. John's, saying the proposal was in line with the city's push for intensification.

"The vast majority of people are overwhelmingly in favour of this," Coun. Greg Noseworthy said, noting he'd heard from residents on the issue during his recent byelection campaign.

WATCH | Mayor Danny Breen describes his excitement for the proposed apartments:

The Village Mall is one step closer to living up to its name, as city approves proposed housing

2 days ago

Duration 0:47

St. John's city council has unanimously voted to approve an apartment building in the far back corner of the Village Mall parking lot. The proposal says it will be a six-storey building with just over a hundred housing units and a parking garage on the ground floor.

The vote is a preliminary one, which approves the company cancontinue its designs and development plans. Council did not mention a timeline for final approval.

"It does mean that we don't get all of the information necessarily right at the very start, in terms of design and otherwise," said Deputy Mayor Sheilagh O'Leary.

"I'm very supportive of this project going forward. We'll all be keeping an eye on the ultimate details that will come."

Several councillors noted the lot is underused, adding the area has changedin recent years.

"Because it's such a hub for Metrobus it's a fantastic crossroads for many people," O'Leary said. "There'll be all kinds of accessibility."

"If you can replace part [of] a parking lot in a city with a hundred units of housing, then I think you just did something that was good," Mayor Danny Breen added.

Ridgeley's report said the city received 29 submissions on the application. Those in favour agreed with counciland believed the development would address housing supply problems that have plagued the metro area in recent years. Others raised concerns about lost privacy on adjacent streets and worries the building would affect the mall.

The Village Mall will remain unchanged, Ridgeley wrote.

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