Finch Avenue building in North York to grow by two floors despite concerns

At the June 17 meeting of North York Community Council, councillors agreed to allow the developer to build a 12-storey building with 78 units. That decision must still be approved by city council, which will review the issue at its July 8 meeting.

Several residents complained about the bigger building at the community council meeting.

"This is absolute greed on the part of this builder," said Saul Libstug, calling an additional six parking spaces being added to the larger building "absolutely ridiculous."

Saying it’s unfair to suggest he is greedy, applicant Farhad Morsh argued the smaller building isn’t feasible.

The city has designated the Finch and Bathurst area as a hub so development is reasonable to support the area’s services, which are now under-utilized, he said.

"We see a nice building there for the community to see something new," Morsh said. "The area needs it."

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• Dec 31, 1969
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The shape of the building has improved dramatically since it was first proposed and the developer is paying to improve the intersection, which will help everybody, Morsh said.

But neighbours, such as Sheldon Goldberg, remain upset with the larger building.

"I worry developers will be coming to you (council) with projects that suggest one thing and once the initial approval is given, they will be back for amendments," he said

"Are you setting a precedent? Developers, as we all know, are quick to learn."

Ken Sigesmund agreed.

"This is a classic bait and switch," he said.

Yvonne Booth is worried about the lack of parking for the larger building.

Drivers from outside the area already use available visitor parking in the neighbourhood even when they aren’t visiting residents in the buildings, she said.

"We’re saturated to the point of having people in our visitor parking all the time," she said.

But Morsh and traffic consultant Vivian Leung said it’s not fair to penalize the developer for that, suggesting residents install access gates to prevent outsiders from taking up parking spots in their buildings.

The larger building complies with new city requirements for fewer parking spaces, Leung said, adding 20 per cent of people living in the new building are expected not to own vehicles.

However, York Centre Councillor James Pasternak, whose ward includes the proposed building and who was the only councillor to vote against the project, will meet with residents and city transportation staff to discuss traffic density and parking issues in the area.

Council made a conscious decision to reduce the requirement for parking spaces at buildings to encourage people to use alternative ways of getting around and now has to hope that works, York West Councillor Anthony Perruzza said.

"The horses have left the barn. I’m not sure anyone is going to corral them and put them back in the barn," he said.

"Is it a standard that is being well received? For all purposes, no, not yet. Will it be well received in the future? Who knows?"

But it was a decision based on information from city staff and the development industry, Perruzza said.