Residents in View Royal will have the opportunity to share their thoughts about a proposed development just metres away from Victoria General Hospital.
Invictus Commercial Investment Corporation (ICIC) is proposing to build Eagles Nest, a residential development featuring three buildings ranging from four to six storeys in height at the corner of Burnside Road and Helmcken Road in View Royal.
A rezoning application has been submitted to the View Royal and a virtual public hearing has been scheduled for June 16 at 7 p.m.
The proposed development would result in 247 residential strata condominium units — 85 one-bedroom units, 140 two-bedroom units and 22 three-bedroom units — being built on 3.4 acre property near Eagle Creek Village.
ICIC’s proposal also includes rain gardens and an internal courtyard is designed as a ‘woonerf’ which is a Dutch term or concept for a living street and is defined as a “road in which devices for reducing or slowing the flow of traffic have been installed,” according to Oxford Dictionary.
A total of 264 bike stalls and 340 vehicle parking spaces, all of which would be located underground, are planned for the development as well.
Robilee Apartments, which is a 15-unit apartment building, and three single-family homes currently located on the property would be demolished in order to make way for the new development.
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Eagles Nest would be located in an area of View Royal known as the Northern Gateway Community Corridor which has experienced “incremental infill development” over the years. The area includes properties along Helmcken Road between Burnside Road and the Trans-Canada Highway.
According to a staff report, the development fits within the town’s existing Official Community Plan and addresses a need for housing “close to the hospital, to the regional pathway system, and to amenities at Eagle Creek Village.”
The proposed development would also be less than 900 metres from Trans-Canada Highway, less than 500 metres away from Victoria General Hospital and about 3 kilometres away from Camosun College Interurban Campus.
A report by Watt Consulting Group, which is available on the Town of View Royal’s website, states that the proposed development will generate 83 new trips in the morning peak hour and 100 new trips in the afternoon peak hour after the existing site trips are deducted.
ICIC originally had planned construct four buildings resulting in 262 units on the property but that proposal was rejected by View Royal’s Committee of the Whole in 2018 over concerns around density.
Staff support ICIC’s revised proposal, calling it “much improved” over the previous proposal, according to a recent staff report, which states that the development provides “an attractive entry feature to View Royal” and is “sensitive to the residential and agricultural interfaces.”
However, included in View Royal’s agenda for the upcoming June 16 public hearing were more than 25 letters from residents that voiced either their support or concern for the project. Many of those who were opposed to the development, cited traffic issues a major concern.
If approved, ICIC would be required to provide a community amenity contribution of $850,000 to the Town of View Royal and an additional $2.5 million in rezoning, off-site improvements, and other related fees. The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure would also have to approve the rezoning bylaw because the development is less than a kilometre away from the Trans-Canda Highway.
Should the development be approved by council, ICIC plans to apply for a development and building permit and begin construction next year. Construction is expected to be completed by spring 2023.
Those who wish to speak at the upcoming public hearing or listen to the proceedings are required to register with the Town of View Royal before 3:00 p.m. on June 16. Registration can be done by contacting the town’s development services department at 250-479-6800 or by emailing [email protected].
Nicholas Pescod
