Zelinka Priamo Ltd., the land developers behind Waterloo’s largest student development, ICON 330, has proposed yet another mixed-housing development. Proposing a series of bylaw amendment appeals to the region, 145 Columbia and remaining land on 330 Philip Street will soon become a 20 and 23 story building. An informal hearing on the bylaw accommodation by the region took place on Nov. 2.
“Zelinka Priamo Ltd. is seeking to amend the existing site-specific zoning applied to 145 Columbia St. W. that currently permits two residential towers with heights of 15 storeys (47 metres) and 20 storeys (61.5 metres). The applicant is proposing to increase the permitted tower heights to 20 storeys (61.5 metres) and 23 storeys (70 metres), respectively,” The Waterloo Region Stated in their public profile for Zelinka’s bylaw amendment appeal.
The region has recently granted the developers site plan control approval to construct a mixed-use, high-rise building consisting of 435 residential units or 445 bedrooms and 162 square metres of ground-floor commercial space. The building will face Columbia Street West, just east of Columbia and Philip Street intersection. The parcel of land proposed for development totals 1.5 hectares (3.71 acres).
In October, the developers began installing underground infrastructure that will be used to service the construction of multi-residential towers at 145 Columbia St. W, resulting in temporary closures east of Philip Street. The closures are expected to end later this month.
The property, 330 Philip Street, is already developed. Known as ICON 330,
Waterloo’s largest student development at 634 residential units (866 bedrooms) and 1000 square foot commercial space was listed as one of Canada’s top 10 largest projects starting in December 2014 at $71 million.
“Composed of two, twenty-five storey towers, an unparalleled view of the evolving Waterloo skyline and conveniently located directly across the street from the University of Waterloo, ICON is the ideal place to call home,” Rise Real Estate stated in their bio regarding ICON 330.
ICON 330, also known as ICON Waterloo, is currently managed by Rise Real Estate, a real estate company based in Ancaster. Besides being known for a growing list of student-oriented condominium projects, it also has a history of student complaints and real estate-based controversy. Move-in dates soon after construction were put off, there were repeated delays in construction, and the company could not establish a condo board to protect tenant investments.
At this time, concerns regarding the management of 145 Columbia are unknown as the property is in the early stages of its development.
