New design guidelines coming for tall buildings
Proposed building at Martha/Lakeshore; goes to OMB Feb 2017
The city’s Director of Planning Mary Lou Tanner has advised council that the department will be retaining a reputable planning and urban design firm to immediately prepare draft Tall Building Design Guidelines.
The city is getting more applications for tall buildings, including at Thomas Alton Boulevard (two 19-storey towers) and the foot of Martha/Lakeshore (26-storeys), as well as several recent inquiries from developers for tower redevelopment in downtown Burlington.
“The City is beginning to feel the development pressures of intensification,” said Tanner. “For that reason, I have become convinced of the need for made-in Burlington Design Guidelines. In particular, Tall Building Design Guidelines.”
The guidelines are intended to help achieve urban design excellence, build communities with quality of life and quality of place, and fulfill the part of the city’s strategy to Grow Bold by “building up, building smart and building beautiful.”
August 3, 2016 @ 2:53 pm
A necessary move. With the available development land reaching its maximum point, if we want to grow, up is the only option. Having guidelines for developers in place will help keep it reasonable. If! It can actually be enforced and not have the OMB overrule at every last turn, and if infrastructure stays ahead of and not behind development.
August 5, 2016 @ 12:47 pm
Dan, Agree, as long as the OMB is in place, we have limited control over implementing the good changes we want in Burlington.
July 28, 2016 @ 9:34 am
With more and more tall building being proposed, I think that having a review of tall buildings is very worth well so that planning for the future can be done.