A developer in Lake Country has been sent back to the drawing board.
Council has shot down a staff recommendation to approve development variance permits for a property on Chase Road.
“Council is listening to the residents,” said Coun. Lisa Cameron of concerns about allowing the developer to possibly narrow the road and have shorter driveways.
“We received a number of letters about traffic impacting their lives. Roads in the area are already small and not big enough to allow two cars to pass.”
In one letter, a resident expressed concern about access to the development.
“There is no planned separate entrance to the new development from the main road, Chase Road, meaning all construction and future residential traffic will be through the Sage Glen community and specifically via Crimson, Satin, Celeste and Santina roads,” they wrote.
“There are upwards of 50 children living on these four roads. The safety risk posed from the increased traffic from heavy equipment and machinery, construction vehicles and construction workers, followed by the eventual increased residential traffic of the additional units, is immense.
District staff had urged council to support the developer’s concept.
“The proposed pavement width and right-of-way width is consistent with the recent subdivision to the north,” said Paul Wolanski, the district’s planner.
“Reducing the front yard setback to 4.5 metres, fronting a garage door, could be supported where vehicles will not overhang sidewalks.”
Cameron isn’t sure what council’s denial of the development variance permits means for the future of the project.
“The developer will have to make the situation more amenable to residents if they want to bring it back to council,” she said.