New Apartment Block for Broad Street: RPC Update I

Wednesday evening, the Regina Planning Commission approved an application to build a four-story, 70-unit apartment complex at 110 Broad Street North. According to the report, there was some community concern about this development. Chief among them being the shadow the building would cast on the houses to the west and the fact that it would block residents' view of Broad Street (because, naturally, Broad Street is something you'd want to look at). The city’s need for rental housing won out in this case, however.

And as for that... it’s true the city needs more affordable rental properties. And this is good sign that developers do see it as feasible to build them. The downside is that this building is at Broad and 5th which is just beyond the north end of the Warehouse District, and while I think this is still technically in the “Central Zone” it isn’t exactly centrally located, if you know what I mean -- especially when you factor in the PHZ (Pedestrian Hostile Zone) in and around the rail overpass.

More than 70 rental units have been approved for conversion to condos on Rae Street between 13th and College in the last year alone. In addition, there have been conversion approvals for a building at Montague and 13th, two more in the Transition Area and most recently, one near the UofR. Meanwhile, cranes aren’t exactly going up all around the downtown to build affordable housing. (Nor around the university as far as I know.)

A sad byproduct of all this attention being paid to the downtown and of all this resurgence in interest in living centrally is that more and more lower income people are being driven towards the fringe of the city where there aren’t so many services. That’s fine, I suppose, if you’re living in a suburb and own a car or three, but many of the people being displaced in all this gentrification aren’t car owners.

Oh... one other bit of good news. The greenhouse/plant shop that is currently on the site where this apartment block is being built is remaining. It will just be reoriented on the lot. I’ve a soft spot for greenhouses.

This application will go before city council on March 23 for final approval.