Was Treo over the height limit when it was built? The current height allowed there could be where they got a revised land use.
Treo was built before the current ARP was in place. I am not sure what the policy context for it was, however I do recall it's height being raised as a concern for the Marda Loop ARP when it was being prepared. Residents were worried about the constant shadow on 33rd Ave it cast, leaving a cold, uninviting street. Fair point. Hence why very little else in the ARP was allowed to go to 6 storeys.
However, since the ARP was passed, we have seen Strategic get approval at 6 storeys for the SW corner 34th and 20th street, although I don't think that parcel was actually governed by the Marda Loop ARP now that I think about it.
Is 6 storey's acceptable for Courtyard 33, given that it is on the north side of 33rd Ave, and won't cast a shadow on the street? Maybe, however if you ask the homeowners to the north, they will probably say no.
Astraya, it is quite clear you are not in favour of this development. I am going to give you some advice from someone who is involved in the development industry. Your best bet at stopping this development from occurring is to convince City Council not to vote in favour of their land use application and ARP amendment. Talking on an internet forum will do you no good, unless you enjoy it and are here for pleasure like most of us are. Official information on the actual application can be found here:
https://developmentmap.calgary.ca/#property/LOC2017-0391
https://developmentmap.calgary.ca/#property/DP2018-0091
Watch those links for ways you can submit comments to the City planner reviewing the file, and for dates when you can speak before council at the public hearing(for the land use application).
As someone who has watched countless public hearings, your best bet will be to convince Council that approving this new set of rules will have a greater negative impact on the community than a positive impact. The stickiest issue will probably be the height. Water tables, utility capacity, etc.. are all technical challenges that can easily be overcome through a good design and an investment from the developer, something that will be a requirement of any building design/approval. Traffic could be considered an impact, but given that the building will be accessed via the lane, and the cut-through traffic restrictor on 22nd street is being re-located to be just north of the lane, it will be difficult to demonstrate how the greater community will be impacted, other than increased congestion on 33rd (ie, someones home on 30th avenue for example is likely to see no difference in traffic because of this building). Further to this, RNDSQR has hired a professional transportation engineering firm, to complete a transportation impact assessment, outlining what impacts the project will have on the local network. They have even made that report available to the public for review:
https://static1.squarespace.com/sta...4ba1e56e/1513637973825/17.12.17+TIA_Final.pdf
You can disagree with the findings of that report, but when you say to Council you disagree with them, you will need to justify why your opinion is more valid than the professional engineers who prepared the report on behalf of RNDSQR, or more valid than the professional engineers who reviewed the report on behalf of City Administration.
For the height thing, it seems to be more subjective (at least to me). Again though, RNDSQR has provided their rationale as to why the height should be 6 storeys, see page 17 of their "Vision Brief 4.0":
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jN-g4rxAYaa7q2dSqcw6zMhfS3OK9etM/view
Review that rationale, find reasons you feel it is not accurate, or areas it misses, and prepare a presentation to Council. If you can't make it to the public hearing, which is fair as not everyone can take the day off work to be there, send it in written form to Councillor Wooley, whose contact information can be found here:
http://www.calgary.ca/CityCouncil/ward-8/Pages/WardDefault.aspx
At the end of the day this is the best you can do within the legal process we live under. If Council votes in a way you don't agree with, well, that's life. The same response would be put to RNDSQR if Council rejects their application. Welcome to the joy of living in a democracy. I can understand the frustration of residents who bought along the north side of the alley behind this project (and others along 33rd). Especially those who bought pre-ARP. However, land use planning and city building is constantly a moving target, and things will inevitably change. Council's responsibility is to shepard and guide that change in a way that provides the greatest overall benefit to Calgary, while minimizing the impacts on the immediate neighbourds. Not an easy task.
