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A London developer is pitching a trio of highrises, a combined 490 housing units, for the west-end “transit village” near Oxford Street and Wonderland Road.
Westdell Development Corp. has proposed a trio of residential towers, a total of 490 units, for 689 Oxford St. W. An artist rendering shows a bird’s eye view.
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A London developer is pitching a trio of highrises, a combined 490 housing units, for the west-end “transit village” near Oxford Street and Wonderland Road.
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The triple-tower proposal at 689 Oxford St. W. includes 17-storey, 18-storey and 21-storey buildings, to be constructed in two phases. The revised application from Westdell Development Corp., first circulated in 2020, will go to council’s planning committee later this month.
The site currently houses a retail plaza.
“Though it’s a viable commercial centre it’s certainly underutilized as far as development is concerned, especially with the city tagging this node as a transit village corridor,” Westdell president Iyman Meddoui said.
The company’s proposal starts with a single tower, including 10 affordable housing units, which wouldn’t impact the plaza. Demolition would follow for the second and third buildings, likely five or more years down the road, Meddoui said.
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The property is within the transit village outlined in the London Plan, what was intended to be the end point for the west leg of bus rapid transit. The proposal site is just west of Capulet Walk, one-half of a loop that rapid transit buses would have used to turn around. City council axed the west corridor in 2019.
A staff report that will recommend either rezoning or refusal for the Westdell project hasn’t yet been published.
An artist rendering shows the triple highrise project, with a total of 490 housing units, proposed by Westdell Development Corp. at 689 Oxford St. W., looking southeast.
Ward 8 Coun. Steve Lehman said he’s heard from neighbours worried about the proposed development.
“From my perspective, it’s not in keeping with the area,” he said.
“This would loom over the single-family homes. When it was first announced there was a lot of concern from the community. I had hoped, when it was sent back for revisions, that I would see a substantial decrease in the height and density. For three buildings of that size, on that small little triangle (of land), seems pretty intense.”
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The 17-storey tower would include 146 units, the 18-storey 160 units, and the 21-storey 184 units. The transit village allows heights between two and 15 storeys, with up to 22 storeys allowed through bonus zoning, where a developer can offer community benefits such as elevated design and affordable units in exchange for height and density.
“It’s going to improve the area,” Meddoui said. “There’s no doubt development spurs other development.”
A public meeting for Londoners to weigh in will be held during the planning committee on June 20.
mstacey@postmedia.com
Twitter.com/MeganatLFPress
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