Squamish’s Dentville is set to get a new 29-unit townhouse development.
Council passed third reading for the development at its July 21 council meeting.
The Newport Landing proposal by Kerkhoff Development Ltd. is for a mix of two and three-bedroom townhomes contained in five buildings. Each building will be three storeys high, according to district documents on the project.
According to the developers, the units will be priced for first-time homebuyers.
The property was once the site of an automotive centre but has been empty for several years.
The developer has offered the district $60,000 in an amenity contribution for a new playground.
At a public hearing prior to council’s vote, several neighbours to the proposed development voiced concerns. Chris Arkell, who lives three houses down from the site, said he is worried about increased traffic and loss of privacy.
But Colin Hogan of Focus Architecture, who represented the proponents at the hearing, assured council that privacy for neighbours would be maintained.
“[The complex] doesn’t even abut an existing residential home,” he said. “We are really quite well removed from existing homes.”
Resident Adrian Litz expressed several concerns about the development including whether district infrastructure such as for sewage and water could take the strain of a new development. He was also worried the development would create drainage and flooding issues for his property, which is immediately south of the development site.
“I want to be assured that we are not going to be accepting runoff that could flood our basement,” he said.
Hogan said studies were conducted and determined that area infrastructure could handle the capacity of the new development. He said drainage will be addressed. District staff said municipal policy does not allow for displacement of drainage water onto neighbours’ properties.
After the meeting, Litz said he wasn’t sure that council had really listened to his and the other speakers’ concerns.
Before construction can begin, development permit (DP) approvals are needed and expected to come before council in September.
The first units should be ready for people to move in next summer, according to the developers.
