Victoria townhome development headed for public hearing amid opposition from neighbours

A controversial development in Victoria has taken another step forward, with the city council voting last week to move the project to a public hearing.

All but one councillor, Geoff Young, voted in favor of a public hearing for Aryze Developments' proposal to build 18 housing units in two, three-storey buildings, on a half-acre treed lot near the Oak Bay border. 

The project, which also includes a covered parking structure and bike shed, is located at the junction of Foul Bay Road and Quamichan and Redfern streets. It has been vacant since 2016, when a 1911 heritage house burned to the ground and was never rebuilt.

The development plan calls for the removal of 28 trees, of which 17 are protected under the city’s tree preservation bylaw, which requires two trees to be planted for every protected one cut down.

Fourteen trees would be retained, and 33 new ones would be planted to meet the city’s two-for-one replacement ratio.

Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps says under the current zoning, the developer could remove most of the trees without a public hearing.

“Something that is not really understood is if Aryze wanted to, they could cut down all those trees and build four, single-family homes without having to come to council, without any process at all,” says Helps. “In this instance, because there is a political process in order to build homes for 18 families, some trees will need to go if this is approved.”

Many residents in the neighbourhood have lawn signs with the caption, “Save the Trees at 902 Foul Bay,” and there is an online campaign opposing the development. 

Locals in the area are concerned about the number of trees that will be lost and the added density on what was once a single-family lot.