The Windsor city council has approved a 100 per cent municipal tax cut for the condo development on Quellette Avenue and the developer, Peter Valente is moving forward with his downtown condo project which now includes an extra floor and eight additional units according to News Locker.
"I'm really excited about the project. The project was originally three storeys high with 24 units. It has since expanded to be a four storey, 32 unit project. We all want to see the downtown built up and more people living downtown."
Developer | Peter Valente
He said the development will attract new businesses and new services to downtown which will, in turn, attract people to live there. They could be moving into the condos by Christmas 2019.
The safety of the neighborhood is one of his concerns. The condo is designed so the parking lot is locked off to people who don't live in the building. There will also be a secured entrance with cameras.
Valente has called on the council to commit to people's safety with the proper infrastructure and appropriate allocation of funding for "the safety of future residents and the safety of the existing residents" of downtown.
Back in March, Valente had mentioned his concerns of the Downtown Mission moving into the central branch of the library for a homeless shelter and he has worked out a solution with the executive director.
Ward 3 councillor, Rino Bortolin has reassured him of the council's commitment to public safety.
Valente told the council that he hopes to begin construction at the first thaw next year.
Per Canadian News, Peter Valente was at the City Council meeting on Monday and urged councillors to address rising crime rates, homelessness and addiction problems in the downtown area.
His project was the first significant new residential development for the downtown area in more than two decades and is tied to the city's one year old community improvement plan that provides incentives for projects that bring more residents into the downtown area. The community improvement plan has been a huge success and has spurred $60 million in new development and several hundred new residential units with more to come. Learn about all the mixed-use projects coming up for bid with a free trial from DataBid.
There is a CIP application right now for an eight residential unit proposed for the top floor of a long vacant Quellette Avenue commercial building, plus a 152 unit residential building on vacant land at Wyandotte Street West and Crawford Avenue.
Right now Valente questions whether a new condo development would be viable across from what will become the new home of the Downtown Mission. Even with this obstacle, he has decided to go ahead because he had already bought the long-vacant property and believed he could address any safety concerns of his future residents with features like the latest technology entry systems and a gated parking lot.
Peter Valente said that on Monday, he had talked to Mayor Drew Dilkens who detailed multiple strategies to deal with the rising crime and included recent moves to add 24 more police officers.
He also said that he had recently purchased an adjacent property which allowed him to expand to 32 units. This expanded the value of the project from $5 million to $7 million. The CIP incentives include $2,500 grants for every new residential unit created up to $50,000. The biggest incentive, however, is an annual grant that gives back the increase in municipal taxes on a property once it hass been developed. For this project, it would mean that he will pay the current taxes of $8,210 annually for vacant land, instead of the taxes of $78,888 for the 32 unit building. This comes out to a savings of $706,775 over ten years.
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