On Tuesday, the Ontario Land Tribunal will hear a case that has become extremely controversial in Thorold: the proposed six-storey apartment complex at 16 Ormond Street South, the former site of Riganelli's Bakery.
One of the developers, Italo Marandola, is speaking out for the first time, hoping to correct what he says are some huge misconceptions about the project.
“I wanted to build something that I could be proud of," says Marandola, in an interview with ThoroldToday. "A legacy to leave behind.”
As ThoroldToday first reported, Marandola, together with developer Shane Webber, is proposing a 40-unit residential complex at the site. But some surrounding residents are concerned, saying the building won't fit the feel of their beloved neighbourhood.
The proposal was discussed at Thorold's Committee of Adjustment in March, where a decision was deferred because members didn’t feel they had enough information—particularly pertaining to parking in the area.
Now the case is set to appear in front of the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) on July 5.
The Ormond St. S. project is not the only controversial development Marandola is involved with. He is also behind the proposed 34-unit apartment complex at 1970 Decew Road, a proposal that was shot down by City Council in April. That project is also set to appear in front of the OLT at a later date.
Speaking to ThoroldToday, Marandola says both projects will cater to the same important market: people looking to purchase one-bedroom units.
“We’re gearing it towards 500 to 600 square feet per unit, aimed at retirees and young professionals,” he says. “So the young professional can go into the market. Same with retirees, they’re on fixed incomes.”
Even though the word 'affordability' has been thrown around a lot, Marandola says it’s hard to come up with an exact price point per unit because of the ever-changing market.
“We’re gearing towards a condo style, which also means we don’t have much control over pricing,” says Zachary Soccio-Marandola, the lawyer representing Marandola. “Once we market it, it goes to the highest bidder. Same with that person who buys it. Pricing is tough to regulate.”
Both the Decew Rd. and Ormond St. S. projects have received a largely negative reaction from surrounding residents.
On Decew Rd., there is concern because the proposed apartment complex is only a few hundred meters away from the now-infamous bulldozed frog pond. Marandola says the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority has signed off on the project.
On Ormond St. S., the main criticism is that the building is too big and unsightly. There are no other six-storey structures in the neighbourhood, even though six storeys are allowed under current zoning by-laws.
“They keep talking about the look of the building,” says Soccio-Marandola. “That’s not the process we’re in right now. This is simply a placeholder. We have to go through site plan, building permit, and construction.”
Another point of criticism on the Ormond project is the number of parking spaces. Currently, a building with more than 15 dwelling units must have 1.25 parking spaces per unit, but Marandola wants the 40 units to have just one parking space each.
“I’m giving everybody one parking spot and typically in a single-bed unit, they’re going to have one car,” he says.
According to the developer, one of the biggest misconceptions about both projects is that they're going to be student housing.
"I’ve been in Thorold for 57 years," Marandola says. "I’ve never hid what I’ve done. I’ve built houses, I’ve built student properties. These are not student places."
While Marandola understands that people are concerned, he feels some members of the public are dismissing the professional studies he has paid thousands of dollars to procure.
“When it came to council, they literally didn’t ask any questions about the [Decew] project,” he says. “We sent them a letter prior to everything saying: ‘If you have a question please call us.’ I never received a phone call from one councillor—not one.”
“We’ve politicized development,” adds Soccio-Marandola. “Now a council sits there and they’re going to adhere to their constituents because that’s their votes. There is now a conflict of interest in city council not wanting to change the status quo to ensure the votes instead of moving the city forward.”
Marandola points out that the Thorold Planning Department approved most variances for both projects, only rejecting one single variance on the step back of the Ormond St. S. building. Since both projects have moved to the Ontario Land Tribunal, all of Thorold’s city planners have left their jobs and the city has contracted MHBC Planning for all its planning needs.
Meanwhile, city council has instructed City Hall to hire a lawyer to fight the development proposals at the OLT. Marandola believes that's a massive waste of taxpayer money.
“You have your planning department that you pay hundred of thousands of dollars to shape the city of Thorold and plan it in a certain direction,” he says. “Then they want to know why they’ve got these planners leaving? I would leave too. The position of the city is yes. Council has now spent taxpayers' money to go fight a decision that they already spent money on supporting.”
A petition against the Ormond St. S. development has collected more than 150 signatures, but Marandola believes the project would be real a boon for Thorold’s downtown.
“We need bodies down there to then actually have a commercial district, to support the local businesses,” he says. “I can’t think of one business that doesn’t want 40 more residents a block from their commercial establishments.”
Marandola hopes the OLT will decide in his favour so he can build what he believes is a better future for Thorold.
“We’re not here to ruin neighbourhoods like they're claiming,” he says. “We’re here to build something that compliments the neighbourhood but that also fits a need to allow young professionals to get into the marketplace and our aging population.”
