6-storey apartment building to replace auto repair shop in Mississauga
Published January 16, 2024 at 10:32 am
A six-storey apartment building proposed on the site of a vacant auto repair shop may finally be built after nearly 10 years.
The site at 971 Burnhamthorpe Rd. E. at Tomken Road was home an auto repair shop called VP Auto but it is now vacant.
The first application for a change to the property was submitted in February 2014, it was approved with provisions in 2016 and again in 2020.
The original proposal was for a six-storey apartment building with 52 units and commercial space on the ground floor.
However, a new potential owner of the property wants to get rid of the commercial floor and make the building entirely residential, Jaspreet Sidhu, City of Mississauga planner said at the Planning and Development Committee on Jan. 8.
Planning staff recommended sticking to the 2016 plan with commercial units on the ground floor.
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Removing the commercial floor would add approximately seven residential units on the ground floor, said a representative for the new owner, Martin Quarcoopome of Weston Consulting, during the meeting.
Quarcoopome said the building plans from 2016 would remain basically the same aside from allowing residential units on the ground floor.
The current owner had difficultly securing development partners, which is why the new owner is seeking a change to the plans.
“As designed today the project is not viable in today’s economic environment,” Quarcoopome said.
Ward 3 Coun. Chris Fonseca noted the long history with the property sitting unused for many years.
Fonseca praised the potential buyer for keeping the project at the same height while adding housing, which the community needs.
“They are proposing to, rather than add additional storeys, build seven additional units on the main floor without really changing the rest of the footprint, which is the community approved…” Fonseca said.
The committee agreed and voted to approve the new owner’s plans with provisions.
For more information on this project, see the committee meeting here.
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