Krug Factory redevelopment described as a ‘transformation’

When a late-May public meeting in Stratford was abruptly canceled, it also delayed discussion about a proposal that could see the old Krug factory site at Trinity and King streets turned into a sprawling multi-residential development.

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This BMI Group proposal for 382 one- to three-bedroom apartment units comprising 11 buildings at the site, including one that is 10 storeys tall. Three of these buildings will be repurposed from the factory, while eight will be brand new. The roughly 2.8 hectares (seven acres) of land on the site would encompass the entire redevelopment, confirmed Hanna Domagala, BMI’s director of land development and design.

“We can offer on the site a number of different types of housing units, and we want to provide the options for all sorts of people to be able to live there from zero to 100,” Domagala said.

This mix of housing units, Domagala added, will provide options for people who are just starting out to young families who want to raise their children near the downtown to older residents who enjoy a more urban lifestyle.

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Additionally, 10 per cent of the units will be designated as affordable as defined by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation for the 25 years if the development is accepted into the program.

“Obviously, those units are responding to the housing crisis, so they are needed. . . . But the site is large, I mean, this is a huge site near downtown that is perfect for more residents,” Domagala said.

Along with applying to change the site’s zoning from industrial to residential, BMI is seeking several other accommodations for the development to go through. This includes reducing the number of parking spaces that Stratford’s current parking bylaw would require for the development from 495 to 383 while increasing the maximum height for the 10-storey building to 36 meters.

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While Stratford’s director of planning, Adam Betteridge, acknowledged this type of development is new for the city, it is not new for similarly sized cities across Ontario.

“I would agree that it is a significant change, especially for the neighborhood, but in the context of how cities are growing, even across parts of the province, this is happening elsewhere,” he said.

“This is what I would consider a typical sort of transformation from those under-utilized industrial sites into new urban residential developments in neighborhoods with a mix of housing types that caters to all types of residents,” Betteridge added.

While such sites are often difficult to clean up, improved technology has made that easier in recent years, Betteridge said. Although building housing developments on previously unused sites – also called greenfield development – ​​is more straightforward than repurposing a previous industrial site for intensification, this option matches the desire of new residents to be closer to amenities, Betteridge noted.

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“What we do know is that the growth of our city, especially over the next 20 to 30 years, is going to be more significant than what we’ve seen in the past, but we do have to be conscious about protecting farmland. Although we will see some future growth on the outskirts or edges of our city on farm fields, we know that we have to start doing that intensification on a prime site like this where, although it’s historically used for something else, a part of our neighborhood and community in 2024 is more appropriate for a new type of use, this being residential,” he said.

Although planning staff have not yet made a recommendation to council, they are generally supportive of the development but may recommend later changes in the application, Betteridge said. However not everyone in Stratford is completely on board with the entirety of the project.

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“Our view of Krug is that there are a lot of positive things there. There are also a lot of negative things there,” said Sharon Collingwood, a representative of the local citizens’ group, Get Concerned Stratford.

The 10-storey tower is an “alarm bell,” Collingwood said, noting she’s concerned with the previous it would set.

“We support protecting farmland. We, of course, support densification, but we support gentle densification. (We) have many environmental concerns about how that’s being put together,” Collingwood said.

Despite Domagala’s claim of residents being spread over a large area, the addition will make a big impact on the neighborhood, Collingwood said.

While Stratford residents are generally used to smaller low-density development, Betteridge explained the proposed 10-storey building would not be built right next to a neighboring detached home. This building, he said, is planned for the interior of the development.

“I don’t take that opinion lightly. . . . The city is growing. There are new people coming every day. . . . They’re not all going to be living in newer houses in new subdivisions. They are specifically wanting to be in these medium and higher density types of developments,” he said.

Although still early in the process, Domagala said the aim is to have shovels in the ground some time in 2025, with phased construction taking place over the next few years. The next public meeting to discuss the proposed development is set for June 27.

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