Keep student housing building from becoming rooming house, councillor asks

Bay wardCoun. Theresa Kavanaghis moving to have a controversialWoodroffeAvenue student residence rezoned to prevent it from ever becoming a rooming house.

The zoning change goes before the planning committee next week andwould remove "rooming house" as a permitted use for the site.

"I worked with our department here,planningdepartment, and we just took that out. We're not touching what they are doing now because we can't,"Kavanaghsaid.

The 97-bedroom development at 975 Woodroffe Avenue has been controversial for the Glabar Park community.

The project began as a plan for eight townhouses but the property was sold to Smart Living Properties before the townhouses were built.

The company thenfiled multiple permit applications in order to develop 16 units with three, four and eight bedrooms.

Local residents described the changing plan as a "bait and switch"but the city determined the changes were legal under previous rules.

City council passed new rules

Since then city council has passed new rules limiting residences to four bedrooms unless they file for an "oversize dwelling" permit.

The changes Kavanaghis pushing forwould mean each unitwould have to be rented as a whole rather then asindividualrooms.

Smart Living Properties didn't respond to a request for an interview about the rezoning.

Kavanaghsays her office has continued to work with local residents who have concernsabout the development, but said that most have accepted it.