Two property owners in Port Coquitlam will lose part of their yards when a laneway is built for a new subdivision.
On March 11, city council voted 6-1 to issue the permit for Burkhill Developments Ltd. to split 2472 Chilcott Ave. — north of Metro Ford Motors — into three lots and construct a lane on a city-owned right-of-way off Hastings Street, between 3350 and 3346 Hastings St., for the new homeowner of Lot 3 (Coun. Dean Washington was not at the council meeting).
Coun. Steve Darling said Hastings Street is already busy and civic planners predict the area will change given it has older houses, larger lots and is located within a prescribed bus stop under the provincial government’s new Bill 44, which allows up to six units per lot.
Darling suggested an alternate driveway for Lot 3 via the cul-de-sac on Ogilvie Crescent — a move that would result in two significant trees getting the chop.
Still, his motion to send the bid back to committee for staff to consult with area residents failed. As a result, Darling opposed the permit.
Bruce Irvine, Port Coquitlam’s director of development services, said the city mailed out notifications to neighbours before the council vote.
“There’s no opportunity for people to come here anymore and say, ‘This isn’t right. We shouldn’t do this,’” Darling complained.
Mayor Brad West also commented on Victoria’s mandate that now bans public hearings for municipal applications that are compliant with the Official Community Plan.
“It’s unfortunate that provincial legislation and housing changes have impacted situations like this and it leads us into this sort of limbo that we exist in right now,” West said.
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