Guelph city council are hearing feedback on a plan to build what could be the tallest building in the city.
The public and councillors weighed in during a Tuesday night meeting for a proposed 23-storey building on 58 Wellington Street East.
Developer Fusion Homes made the proposal for the building that goes over the city's usual allowance of 18 storeys.
"When developers ask for more than what's allowed, we should expect something in return, be it environmental sustainability or more green space," said Ward 2 Coun. Rodrigo Goller.
The current plan for the building includes 250 residential units, commercial space, but no units classified as affordable.
"We will be taking a hard look at what the pricing looks like, what the market looks like when we get to launch in terms of what meets the definition of affordable," said Ryan Scott of Fusion Homes.
Fusion also wants to build a five-storey parking podium above ground with 224 parking spaces. This would be less than what the city regulates per residential unit.
"We're in a downtown major transit station area close to the GO station, close to public transit," said Scott. "We feel that reduces the need for that one to one ratio."
Goller worries that many of his constituents need at least one or two vehicles.
"We're very concerned about the building," said Jack Anderson, who owns a condo across the street on Wellington. "It does not fit. It's overwhelming.
"It's a very busy intersection now. We often have to wait for traffic to get out of our driveway, and this will triple it."
Council says they're not ready to vote on the zoning change yet.
"We need some give and take," said Goller. "I'm looking from some give from the developers in this case."
Fusion Homes says they will take council's comments, work on addressing some of the concerns, and come back for a decision meeting later in the year.
