8 residential towers, two office buildings at Inn of Waterloo property proposed to council

Another big plan for a big change to the Waterloo skyline is in focus.

Drewlo Holdings proposed to council Monday night that eight residential towers and two office buildings be built at the Inn of Waterloo property.

The developer hopes to redesign the land at 475 and 485 King Street North to allow them to build up to 28 storeys high.

The property currently contains a building and parking lot previously occupied by the Inn of Waterloo and is mainly surrounded by offices, industrial buildings, a high rise condo, and a city-owned park and trail.

"We're trying to intensify a really underutilized parcel here," said Pierre Chauvin of MHBC Planning. "We want to provide a broad range of mix of uses, where people cannot only live, they can work, and they can play.

"There's also going to be amenity spaces with a pool and other features for the various buildings as well as outdoor amenity space."

The buildings proposed by Drewlo Holdings would range in height from 16-28 storeys.

Redevelopment is planned to be completed in six phases, with the first three phases anticipated to be completed by 2027.

If approved, over 1,700 residential units would be created, which would include 96 townhomes, 12,000 square metres of office space, 4,000 square metres of commercial space, 2,500 vehicle parking spaces, as well as 1,100 bicycle parking spaces.

Waterloo city staff will prepare a report with recommendations for council to consider at a formal public meeting for a later date.