Several Stratford residents have spoken out with their concerns about a proposed long-term care nursing facility and retirement community that would be built on the northern edge of the city.
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The development, which is being proposed by peopleCare Communities, would be built at 3188 Vivian Line 37 and include 288 beds in a seven-storey nursing home, 164 retirement beds (in 150 units) in a five-storey building, and 42 apartment units in a two-storey building. PeopleCare Communities previously operated a building in the city on Mornington Street before a 2015 flood led to its closure.
GSP Group is planning the development, which would also include amenities such as a hairdresser. While there are no construction timelines, GSP is expecting approval from the province in November.
One resident, Jane Marie Mitchell, expressed concerns that the number of units has grown from 160 that were previously approved by Ministry of Long-Term Care and will result in high population density for the area.
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“This is a total of 494 people at least on this property,” she said. “That means a density of 215 (people) on 2.3 hectares. This institutional use seems overcrowded and missing some important features for the residents’ benefit.”
Pierre Chauvin, a consulting planner with the city, the entire property would include 245 parking sports, which he said is “well in excess” of the minimum number required in the bylaw, though Mitchell expressed her doubts.
“There should be many, many more accessible parking spaces due to the type of population living on the property,” she said. “It’s not the same as downtown or somewhere else. The residents on the south side, approximately 204, could possibly own vehicles and possibly also have mobility issues that require a parking spot very close to the entrance.”
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Pam Balfour, a relative on Vivian Line, took issue with the potential increase in traffic.
“It is a raceway now. Traffic is ridiculous. We used to play on our front lawns. We no longer do that. When I go for walks, I make sure my child is on the inner side of the sidewalk.”
Chauvin said a traffic study was not requested as part of the application, however widenings would be included. While Chauvin said Vivian Line should be able to handle the forecasted traffic, Balfour was not convinced.
“We have 200-plus new people coming into a neighborhood,” she said. “Adding, let’s say, three to four children per person, that will have those visits as well as anyone coming in to that facility.
“Many times my child’s bus is at Harrison and Vivian, at least twice a week, and that bus is blown through. Somebody blows through that stop sign. So as much as we say, ‘oh, it’s not going to happen, this, that and the other,’ it’s right in front of us. I’m just coming as a mother for you to consider the safety of my children,” she said.
The project will be done in two phases, with the first phase to include the nursing home. GSP planner Rachel Bossie said community needs may change over time and only phase one would be requested for approval at first.
“Even the makeup of our beds versus apartments may change because (peopleCare) want to provide a development that will best follow the needs of the aging community at that time,” said Bossie, who previously worked in the city’s planning office.
Council is set to consider the application at a special council meeting on Aug 22 at 6 pm
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