Dear editor,
Re: the re-development of 1946-1950 Comox Ave.
Cascadia Views鈥� re-development concept for 1946-1950 Comox Ave. proposes 235 condos/apartments in three 3-5 storey buildings, and a two-storey underground parking garage that will direct all vehicles servicing the development onto both Comox and Buena Vista avenues.
This will add far too many vehicles to the already busy/high accident intersection at Comox Avenue and Anderton Road, negatively impact the residents of Buena Vista Avenue, and increase traffic into and out of downtown Comox.
This proposal is so dense it requires clear-cutting of the many mature trees on the lot - radically destroying its hydrology, ecology, and beauty - replacing them with some young saplings, which take decades to mature. Units would be rented or for purchase, depending on how market conditions would best maximize sales for Cascadia Views Inc.
The developer鈥檚 primary goal is to maximize profits, by appropriating and exploiting the current rallying cry of residents of big cities like Vancouver and Toronto for 鈥榙ensification.鈥�
Comox is a small town, and we do need more housing, but not at the density of a large metropolitan area. Every village, town, and city since the beginning of human history has needed new housing - the expansion of human populations and the replacement of the old with the new requires it. Comox is solvent - what services or amenities do we need that justify increasing the tax base via over-densification at the expense of destroying what makes this town livable and attractive? There are many less invasive ways to create more housing; granny flats, rental units in homes, and gently replacing existing homes with housing that will double or triple density on large lots.
As I write, the earth is warming to the hottest it has ever been. The Cameron Bluffs fire, which closed Highway 4 for many days, was visible from the Comox Marina. Responsible, forward-thinking re-development of this site would not sanction so much density and would preserve hydrology by retaining as many mature trees as possible.
On an aesthetic level, the look of the proposed concept is undistinguished, and does not improve the streetscape of downtown Comox. It could fit on a main traffic artery in Nanaimo, or Toronto, or any medium to large city in Canada - which is where it should be located, not in our pretty, still livable home by the sea.
Catherine Hannon,
Comox
