I am a resident living very…

I am a resident living very near the Jamesville site abd I do not support the MZO.

My main concerns are:
The proposed 20-storey building greatly exceeds the maximum 6-storey height limit set by Hamilton’s Setting Sail Secondary Plan, which was developed through public consultation.
The site was previously home to 91 rent-geared-to-income housing units, but the new plan prioritizes market-rate housing first, delaying affordable housing for displaced residents.
CN Rail has raised concerns about the site’s proximity to the rail yard, but no public mitigation plans or technical evidence have been shared to show how the site and a newly proposed 20 sotry tower addresses these issues.
A 20 story building will negatively affect the neighbourhood’s character, create traffic and infrastructure pressures, and impact livability.
This MZO bypasses local democratic planning processes and community input, undermining trust in fair development decisions.

I am strongly in favour of Jamesville's redevelopment, but the addition of the 20 story tower, and the delay of social housing until the end seems like a serious misstep.

I can also attest to the noise, vibrations, and dirt that comes from the CN railyard and agree that strong mitigation of these concerns should be addressed in the new development for the sake of the new residents. I know we are upset with CN delaying the project, but I think that perhaps it is the city and the developers that are not willing to mitigate the environmental concerns caused by a railyard that are the real problem.

Requesting an MZO results in the bypassing of local democracy and input, reduces accountability and transparency, avoids environemental assessments, and typically benefits private interests such as developers.

For these reasons, I am unsupportive of the MZO.