6-storey apartment building proposed for quickly developing area in Fredericton

A 50-unit apartment building on Dundonald Street in Fredericton is the latest project recommended for approval in a quickly developing area of the city.

The planning advisory committee is recommending a zoning change to allow the six-storey building at 521 Dundonald  next to an existing commercial building on Beaverbrook Court.

The zoning change to allow for a residential building in a commercial zone still has to be approved by council.

The development would see 34 one-bedroom units and 16 two-bedroom units. It would be among several along the corridor that links Forest Hill Road to Beaverbrook Street and Dundonald that have been approved in recent years. 

Resident calls for affordable units

Only one community member spoke about the development at the planning committee meeting Wednesday. Mark D'Arcy said he supported the plan but would like to see the building contain affordable units. 

He asked that the committee consider recommending council adopt bonus incentives, Such incentives are used to get developers to include affordable units in their buildings in exchange for extra units, among other uses.

"Right now, we can look at  bonus zoning as a way to encourage developers to put affordable units," D'Arcy said.  

Plans and policies like that take time, said Coun. Cassandra Leblanc, who sits on the planning committee and represents the ward where the Dundonald Street apartment building would go. 

Changing look of corridor

"And those plans are underway, the affordable housing strategy is on its way, the South Core Plan is on its way, inclusionary zoning is on its way, and affordable housing policies are coming to the city of Fredericton," she said.

LeBlanc would not agree to an interview after the meeting. 

The stretch of road where the development is planned is starting to look a lot different than it did just a couple of years ago. Single-family homes and houses converted into multi-unit buildings once dotted the corridor, but large apartment complexes are now taking shape. 

Since 2019, five other developments have been approved for the area. They include one, two-building development of micro apartments between Waterloo Row and Forest Hill.

If the latest project is approved by council and goes ahead, 526 units will have been added to the Forest Hill to Dundonald stretch.

Anthony Brown has lived in the area for nearly 20 years, and though he acknowledges that new housing is necessary in a growing city, a development that passed through council earlier this week has him concerned. 

On Monday, council approved a two-building, 178-unit development at 49 Forest Hill Rd. that will be built behind Brown's house. 

"It's not like we don't need housing in the city," Brown said. "I'm not sure that we need 178 apartments crammed into two buildings off of Forest Hill Road." 

He said the size of the development is problematic for the steep lot it will be built on. The zoning change was approved to allow for a higher-density building and two buildings on one lot. 

"In the city's core plan, this is supposed to be an area of modest growth … no radical changes. And this is a pretty radical change. I mean, it's way bigger than anything, anywhere nearby." 

But it's the kind of change the city says it needs. 

Last year, the city hit record development numbers. The total value of residential construction in 2021 was $135 million, more than double the 10-year average. Most of that development came from apartment and townhouse units. 

"There's a lot of pressure on our housing market," Coun. Jason Lejeune, chair of the city's economic vitality committee, said at its last meeting.  

"Whether it's owner occupied or rentals — part of meeting that need is supply. We need supply coming on stream constantly to meet just the universal pressures on our housing."