City identifies Roseland and other municipal lands for 'housing solutions'

Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens, council, and administration presented a list of municipal lands owned by the City of Windsor that have been identified to make shovel-ready for residential development.

It’s part of an ongoing effort to increase the supply of housing and meet aggressive housing targets for the community, according to a city news release.

Another initiative to increase the housing supply under the “Housing Solutions Made for Windsor” plan comes as Windsor is currently experiencing an accelerated period of growth and increased needs for housing, which are compounded by the housing shortage being experienced nationally.

Council has affirmed its support for targeted intensification to achieve provincial housing targets within the city.

In 2023, the city began a process to review municipal lands throughout the community that could support developments aimed at increasing the supply of housing in Windsor. That review identified several properties with significant and immediate potential for development covering all types of housing needs, including affordable housing, and missing middle housing.

Municipal lands identified for development at this time include the following sites:

• Former Lowe Secondary School site – 874 Giles Boulevard East
• Caron Avenue Parking Lot – 0 Caron Avenue
• Pelissier Street Parking Lot – 0 Pelissier Street
• Roseland Clubhouse and Parking Lot – 455 Kennedy Drive

As part of the overall plan, the process to identify potential lands was initiated by Dilkens requesting council colleagues to provide input and submit any properties located within their wards for consideration.

After this, council met in-camera on Feb. 12, to review and form consensus on the current list representing the first group of properties that are best suited, and furthest along in the planning process to achieve the goal of supporting the development of more homes, faster.

While each of the properties being brought forward are at various stages of the approval process, and some will come online sooner than others, the city will issue Expressions of Interest as soon as each property is deemed shovel-ready.

To streamline the process, a special Developer Registration site has been set up to connect the development community with these targeted opportunities and all future development opportunities through the housing plan.

The included list of four properties is the first that City administration will move towards preparing for residential developments with all necessary approvals ready for development. The City will also continue to review other available municipal lands to identify further opportunities to support evolving housing needs in the community.

Roseland Clubhouse and Parking Lot Development – Public Consultation

The first of the four properties coming up for proposals will be the Roseland Clubhouse and Parking Lot. The City will host a public information centre (PIC) to present and discuss the property. The Roseland Golf and Curling Club will see curling moved to Capri Pizzeria Recreation Complex for the start of the 2024-2025 curling season. This change, along with demolition of the current clubhouse and curling rink allows for a complete re-imagining of what the current Roseland building footprint and unused parking lot space have to offer.City administrators have worked with local architecture firm Architecttura to develop a conceptual condo complex near the the Roseland Golf Course in south Windsor, Ont. (Source: City of Windsor)

Development in this area will have no impact on the historic Donald Ross –designed golf course, but a new clubhouse will be built, and a plan for an innovative and complementary new condominium complex has been envisioned. City administrators have worked with local architecture group Architecttura Inc. Architects to develop a conceptual condo complex befitting of the historic Roseland Golf Course and South Windsor neighbourhood. This concept includes a potential 38 one-to-two-bedroom units, including balcony, a green roof, underground parking, tiered levels, glass railings, and sports courts along the south side of the current parking lot.

With public consultation being an integral part of the process, members of the public, agencies, and other interested persons are invited to participate in the upcoming Roseland Golf Club Parking Lot PIC:

Date: Thursday, March 7, 2024

Time: 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Location: Roseland Golf and Curling Club, 455 Kennedy Drive

A Roseland Clubhouse and Parking Lot Development online survey will also be available from March 1 to 24, 2024, for community members and stakeholders to provide input as part of the consultation process. Hard copies of the survey will also be available at the PIC on March 7, 2024.City officials say there will be no impact to the historic Donald Ross designed golf course, but a new clubhouse will be built and the potential for a new condominium complex has been envisioned. (Source: City of Windsor)

Summary of the City of Windsor’s key housing milestones to date:

• Adopted the Home Together: Windsor Essex Housing and Homelessness Master Plan
• Adopted a comprehensive amendment to its Official Plan and Zoning By-law that identified “Intensification Priority Areas” made up of Mixed Use Centres (260 hectares), Mixed Use Corridors (50 kilometres) and Mixed Use Nodes (137 hectares) to support housing targets
• Received housing targets from the Province of Ontario as one of the 29 fastest-growing municipalities to help the province reach a goal of realizing 1.5 million new homes in a decade
• Committed to supporting 13,000 new housing units by 2031 as part of its Housing Pledge to the provincial government
• Commissioned an independent housing needs assessment report.
• Identified 1,000 acres and nearly 50 kilometres of arterial roads with bus routes available for developments aimed at densification make sense for Windsor
• Identified and released a list of municipal lands that are ideal for development to increase housing supply that includes affordable housing and missing middle housing, as part of the Housing Solutions Made for Windsor plan.