Kitchener 200 Victoria Street South | 151.5m | 45s | Rome Logistics | Arcadis

[Pinski]

Another proposal along the soon to be dense stretch of Victoria st South in Kitchener. This site is directly across the street from the recently OLT approved Victoria and Park development which caught a lot of flack from the neighbourhood. I suspect the same will be coming here.

Docs : https://app2.kitchener.ca/AppDocs/OpenData/AMANDADataSets/Supporting_Documents_List_677489.pdf

A couple of renders

---

---

 

[Paclo]

The developer is Rome Logistics (operating as "1928393 Ontario Inc" and "2592546 Ontario Inc"). They have an office operating out of 186 Victoria St S.

In addition to a POPS fronting Park Street to the east, this proposal also includes a publicly accessible terrace on the 33rd floor.

Additional renderings and perspectives:

 

[Northern Light]

Parking ratio here is 0.7; seems a bit high for a development being justified by an MTSA status.

3 retail units provided for roughly 2,000-4,000ft2

Site is already mixed-use, high density; but the FSI ask is greater than permitted. (but low by today's Toronto standards at 7.68)

From the Planning Report:

 

[Towered]

At this rate, KW is going to have the most disproportionally tall skyline for a sub 500,000 city in the whole country...

 

[ben.thebean1]

At this rate, KW is going to have the most disproportionally tall skyline for a sub 500,000 city in the whole country...

The tri-cities area is one of the slowest growing areas (in the geographical sense) relative to its population growth. Kitchener/Waterloo, Cambridge, and Guelph are projected to hit a combined population of 1 million sometime around 2040 and there isn't really too much urban sprawl happening, which is amazing because that area has some of Canada's best farmland

 

[CanadianNational]

I find the sudden placement of these towers among (and taking out) perfectly good older homes baffling. This is a big building with only one high-rise development somewhat near it for context, few amenities and not particularly near the ION train. I wonder why it's this assemblage of lots that's getting the attention all of a sudden. Maybe the land was relatively cheap.
The west side of downtown Kitchener has a few huge swaths - multiple blocks - of parking lots that I wish were being filled in first. Each one of them would be emboldening for downtown, which is still rather quiet and underutilized. I wish it was going there, first.

Oh well. Better height than sprawl.
It looks like it's going here (red area):

 

[ben.thebean1]

I find the sudden placement of these towers among (and taking out) perfectly good older homes baffling. This is a big building with only one high-rise development somewhat near it for context, few amenities and not particularly near the ION train. I wonder why it's this assemblage of lots that's getting the attention all of a sudden. Maybe the land was relatively cheap.
The west side of downtown Kitchener has a few huge swaths - multiple blocks - of parking lots that I wish were being filled in first. Each one of them would be emboldening for downtown, which is still rather quiet and underutilized. I wish it was going there, first.

Oh well. Better height than sprawl.
It looks like it's going here (red area):

View attachment 466664

The entire area inside the curved train track and north/left of the pond is within Kitchener's designated urban growth centre. I think Victoria (the major road adjacent to this plot) would be a good candidate for a future LRT line too, as it's really the only east-west route that goes all the way across Kitchener.

 

[prisecaru0]

I find the sudden placement of these towers among (and taking out) perfectly good older homes baffling. This is a big building with only one high-rise development somewhat near it for context, few amenities and not particularly near the ION train. I wonder why it's this assemblage of lots that's getting the attention all of a sudden. Maybe the land was relatively cheap.
The west side of downtown Kitchener has a few huge swaths - multiple blocks - of parking lots that I wish were being filled in first. Each one of them would be emboldening for downtown, which is still rather quiet and underutilized. I wish it was going there, first.

Oh well. Better height than sprawl.
It looks like it's going here (red area):

View attachment 466664

Are the houses here really worth saving? from what I've seen their mostly rundown and have been made into duplexes and businesses. I would really like to see them make an effort to expand victoria park ( the park with the ponds), to add some sports amenities such as tennis and soccer. It is a really nice park and despite downtown Kitchener having a lot of parks and green space, It is mostly empty green space with a few benches. Growing up in Kitchener, the downtown area was one of the sketchiest places to be, and at that time there were warehouses and parking lots littering even king street (the main street), and especially this strip of Victoria. Are the houses here really worth saving? from what I've seen their mostly rundown and have been made into duplexes and businesses.

 

[andrewjm3d]

Inspired by the most mediocre designs of 2005.

 

[Pinski]

Council approved this project but fought for affordable housing to be included. They settled on a 3 floor increase with 30 affordable units. This now stands 45fl and 151.5m