50-unit Rental Project at Oak and West 14th Goes to Public Hearing
A project that we wrote about back in January goes to public hearing next week. 2975 Oak Street is an existing 14-unit apartment building at Oak and W 14th that is being proposed for partial heritage preservation and replacement with 50 rental units in a new 10-storey tower; for a total density of 2.8 FSR on the 12,500 SF site. All of this is being done under the existing RM-3 zoning.
Existing Building
Proposed New 50-unit Tower
The Aquilini family bought the property back in April of 2012 for $4,600,000 ($130 per buildable SF based on the proposed density).
Demolish 14 units and build 50…and no rezoning. How are they able to do this?
It’s all about the heritage. The existing building is a Heritage ‘B’ and the proposal includes a Heritage Revitalization Agreement (HRA) for the site.
Under the current RM-3 zoning applicable to the site, the existing building could be demolished and the site redeveloped with a density of up to 1.9 FSR and a building height of 120 feet without Council approval, subject to replacement of the existing rental units and securing these units through a Housing Agreement.
However, as incentive and compensation to the owner for the heritage designation, rehabilitation, and conservation of the heritage facades of the existing building built in 1928, an increase in permitted density to 2.8 FSR with a new tower is being supported by the City.
As with any demolition of existing rental, Aquilini had to provide a Tenant Relocation Plan which meets the requirements under the Rate of Change Guidelines for RM, FM, and CD-1 Zoning Districts.
Overall, not a bad little deal especially considering that this project isn’t going under Rental 100 and therefore rents won’t be capped. But before you get excited about finding another just like it, keep in mind that this one was unique with a very small heritage building on a disproportionately large site RM-3 zoned site. Even the City acknowledges that it won’t be setting a precedent as there are so few properties where an HRA would be viable in this area.