Bustling gateway to Aylmer
----Belvédère Lattion, 45-unit residential complex green-lighted for next step
As part of the city’s vision of a more densified Aylmer, a trio of uninhabited buildings on chemin Lattion are expected to be demolished in the near future and replaced with a 45-unit residential complex. Developed by the local company JB Construction Inc., the project is called Belvédère Lattion.
Located next to the Park’n’Ride at the intersection of Boul des Allumettières and Eardley Road, the development entrance will be at 2, 4 and 6 chemin Lattion. The project will cover the combination of all three properties for the construction of three 3-floor, 15-unit buildings near the public transit route. Providing one parking spot per unit, one of the project’s owners Guillaume Gaboury noted that the city’s required minimum number of parking spots per dwelling is 1.5. “We reduced to under the minimum,” Gaboury said.
According to Gaboury, the project has been in the works for approximately one year and a half and it was submitted to the city in the fall of 2019. Gaboury stated that the project is in line with the city’s proposed zoning regulations in its new Urban Plan regarding densification and proximity to active and public transportation – pointing out that it’s located in the proposed Wilfrid-Lavigne transportation axis (light rail). “The project will be located 20 metres from the Eardley-Allumettières Parc-o-Bus and also within walking distance of the bike path,” Gaboury said.
Communicating with residents and municipal representatives throughout the process, Gaboury said the project has seen certain adjustments in response to specific concerns. Those included adding an entrance directly from chemin Lattion to avoid circulation issues on rue Génois, the implementation of plant screens along fences on the perimeter of properties on rue Génois for aesthetic purposes, and moving the area where residents will put their garbage further from the buildings. He added that the new buildings shouldn’t affect sunlight on rue Génois homes.
Presented to the Comité consultatif d’urbanisme (CCU) and the Comité sur les demandes démolition in late September, the project was recommended unanimously.
Aylmer district councillor Audrey Bureau finds the project interesting, noting that it will add density to the area in proximity to public transportation access. However, considering its location, she expressed concerns about the project affecting the nearby residents’ neighbourhood atmosphere, especially those on rue Beaupré; safety risks with the project’s entrance intersecting a bike path; and, the potential impact on traffic congestion on chemin Lattion and rue Beaulac, which she considers dangerous. The project should go to municipal council this month for a final adoption.
Still having to apply for a construction permit once the project is approved, Gaboury hopes to get shovels in the ground sometime in 2021 – noting that it will take at least one year to complete.
