By Pepper Parr
January 30, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Talk about trouble in paradise!
ADI Development Group wants to put up a 28 storey structure on the corner of Lakeshore and Martha.
The hotel on the right was going to be a Delta – it will now be a Marriott. The 22 storey Bridgewater condominium is on the left.
City council doesn’t like that idea one bit and point out that we already have a “legacy” project on the waterfront – that being the Bridgewater 22 story condo.
Has the company that was brought into to construct the 22 storey condominium on the right gone into bankruptcy?
However, we have been told that the construction company signed up to build those 22 floors is in bankruptcy – and that will trigger all kinds of issues.
Given the reported bankruptcy – might we see the ADI Group looking for a way to get in on the Bridgewater development? They are an aggressive organization that is close to completing their Mod’rn Project on Guelph Line; squabbling with the city over their share of the cost of providing services to the Linx2 project on Sutton and Dundas; probably gearing up for an Ontario Municipal Board hearing on the LAkeshore Martha project and doing some deep thinking on what they want to do with the property they bought from Paletta International next to the Aldershot GO station.
These guys have BIG plans
When the Bridgewater condo development was being put together Myrose Tyco – the developer had to meet some stringent requirements set out by the Conservation Authority. One of these had to do with the amount of set back from the edge of the lake that is required. Setbacks from the lake are handled by Conservation Authority and right now Burlington doesn’t have the kind of representation needed at that Authority.
Three city Council members managed to keep Councillor John Taylor off the Conservation Authority but he got appointed to the Niagara Escarpment Commission – that will get him back to the Conservation Authority in time.
Through finagling on the part of Councillors Craven and Sharman Councillor Taylor is not going to be at the Conservation Authority table. Councillor Meed Ward will be there and once she has the organization figured out she will bring her style of politics to that room.
Councillor Rick Craven, centre, would appear to be holding many of the keys these days. He is certainly not opening any doors for his colleague John Taylor on the right.
But it will take some time for her to learn to fit in and while she is doing that Burlington will not have access to the “institutional” memory that John Taylor brought to that job.
There is a lot more to tell about how your city council has really mis-managed its relationship with the Conservation Authority.
It gets better – the 8 storey hotel that was intended to be opened for the Pan Am Games – that didn’t happen did it – got pushed back. The city was assured that it was going to have the equivalent of a four star hotel right in the waterfront.
Delta Hotel’s signed on and you the tax paying public were led to believe that everything was coming along just fine.
The Gazette doesn’t know how well the project is coming along but we do know that it isn’t going to be a Delta Hotel.
We are advised that it will now be a Marriott Hotel – which is going to mean all kinds of paper work for the permits department at city hall.
The city’s solicitor Nancy Shea Nicol will get pulled into this as well – she will wear two hats – one as the Interim City Manager – the one we had left town for Florida and wasn’t able to get a new city manager in place before he left – even though that was one of the reasons he was hired.
Oh what a tangled web we weave.
@JQPublic, The pier was public money, this is private. No comparison.
Marriot have different levels of star ratings and can be comparable to Delta.
@Centreline, You are of course right about public versus private money. My point was how is this City Council going to handle the now-stalled project. Will it go on and on like the pier, with lawyers fighting lawyers? Hope not.
I have been led to believe that Conservation Halton grandfathered this development twice and this was to be the last time. This development was to be substantially built by December 2015. Failure to do so would result in the developer having to go back to Conservation Halton and start the procedure all over again. It is apparent that permission to build so close to the water would never be allowed. I hope Conservation Halton stands by this decision.
The people of Burlington are asking that its council hold fast to the Official Policy for height and density….we should expect no less from Conservation Halton.
I for one hope this development has to go back to the drawing board…..it way too much on one piece of property. Less is always more.
As soon as the news of Marriott buying Delta crossed the wire, red flags started appearing in my head. Now we hear the construction company for the 22 storey Bridgewater condo is bankrupt. Will this be the pier project part deux? Hope not.