On November 25, 2021, we met with the community to provide an update on our proposal for the development of 801 McKenzie Avenue. We invite you to view this update by clicking on the video below. In addition to the videos, we have included a bulleted summary highlighting the thoughts and ideas that came from the community through our conversation. We encourage and welcome feedback on this proposal.

Meeting recording.

Density

• Don’t want condos
• Density is major concern
• Emphasize density, deficiencies with use of park and traffic
• Reference to Douglas Street – eleven to ten lots
• Adding more will make life too much – access will be unsafe and frustrating
• Will become more/too crowded with development
• Small community but trying to fit a lot into
• Not for development in neighbourhoods
• Put townhomes proposed for Rainbow and Sevenoaks on McKenzie instead
• Design minimizes cars
• Reduce density not sidewalks or crosswalks

Traffic

• Traffic is more than area can manage
• Access to neighbourhood and access via road
• Families who attend school and use Sevenoaks for school drop off and pickup – additional development would make traffic worse
• One way access on Rainbow and Nelthorpe is limited
• How to get traffic onto McKenzie – how might we go about doing this?
• Access via Sevenoaks or Rainbow or McKenzie?
• What would vehicle access look like?
• Traffic volume not reduced but signal changes may have helped flow
• Can have to wait just to get out of driveway on Sevenoaks
• Traffic and safety and congestion are concerns
• Where will access and egress come from?
• Traffic and congestion issues in area key considerations
• Thoroughfare between two projects – is this possible?
• Access for vehicles from McKenzie
• Traffic concern is volume and mostly from school
• Traffic light may have had some improvement – but still line up on Sevenoaks
• Townhomes proposed vast improvement for neighbourhood
• As long as traffic doesn’t get worse for the neighbourhood
• Swan Lake has a daycare this also brings drop off and pick up traffic
• Schools use Rainbow Park – this also brings traffic
• Other uses already exist in neighbourhood
• People who come from other areas to use park – not locals
• Traffic is a concern
• People who use basketball courts are coming from other places – not from neighbourhood
• Replace basketball with another kind of court sport – for example tennis
• This could keep it local
• Currently cars pull onto boulevard to get by
• 8 to 8.45 and 2.45 to 3.45 are peak times – challenging to leave driveway at these times
• Left turn lane off McKenzie into St Andrew’s School
• Clarification – Exit lane off of Highway 17 to Douglas and Haynes Road
• Exit from Highway 17 into the neighbourhood
• Or both access out of neighbourhood and into neighbourhood from Highway 17
• Doesn’t fix design or width of the road
• Traffic and road width is a concern
• Ability to leave this area – felt like a prisoner with the road construction on Rainbow
• Traffic moves at speed off McKenzie onto Rainbow
• Stop sign at Sevenoaks and Nelthorpe a few years ago an improvement but visibility is still poor
• Improve visibility needed at Sevenoaks and Nelthorpe intersection
• Advance left turn into school zone or Sevenoaks/Nelthorpe would be a good idea
• Analyzing impact and example of process
• School traffic moves quickly/fast down Rainbow and Sevenoaks
• Access from Douglas and Haynes – access in and out – right in – right out
• Even if a light / signal is required
• Access from Highway 17 could allow traffic through neighbourhood
• Could create other issues for people on Ralph Street
• Nothing proposed will exacerbate traffic
• Proposed development will exacerbate traffic
• McKenzie access is highbank
• Will Saanich accept access from McKenzie?
• McKenzie is a busy road
• Improving living condition will include engineers and traffic specialists
• Two projects are side by side

Pedestrian safety

• Walk to school along Sevenoaks – traffic moving on street can come close to pedestrians – does not feel comfortable
• Should be able to safely walk to Park and along Sevenoaks
• Support for development on Rainbow and Sevenoaks because it improves Sevenoaks – but not direct neighbour
• Currently want children to travel through Swan Lake instead of along Sevenoaks because of traffic
• Sidewalk on Sevenoaks would be great
• Crosswalk across Rainbow would be great
• Kudos for sidewalk down entire length of Sevenoaks – currently a gambit with parking on both sides of road
• Sidewalk will increase safety and might better organize parking
• Crosswalk with signal or light

Parking

• Basketball court is currently used by neighbourhood kids – changing this would not be helpful
• Saanich has added some on street parking
• Angled parking next to Rainbow Park
• Move on street parking as close to Rainbow Park as possible
• Would prefer underground parking or less parking for new development
• Saanich has jurisdiction over Saanich parks
• Angle parking is a good idea

Commercial space

• Commercial space in proposal? For example coffee shop or café?
• Retail or coffee shop would be great
• Retail or coffee would be great near Park
• Currently have to leave neighbourhood to access these kinds of services
• Would feel a little more cosmopolitan
• Some kind of commercial space that is pedestrian oriented – coffee shop would increase neighbourhood feel
• Park and basketball court brings a lot of users that could also use a commercial space
• Coffee shop is a great idea but would add density to neighbourhood

Community amenities

• Infrastructure needed
• Lighting on Rainbow could be helpful
• Signage for park is really poor
• Streetlight a possibility at Lancaster and Canterbury – roads previously closed off
• Spectrum School example of better signage directly on street and pylon cones
• Input on amenities should come from neighbours
• Removing basketball courts and replace with anything that doesn’t bring traffic
• Basketball is not a useful amenity
• Some previous park improvements are positive and some are not
• Lots of local kids do use the basketball court
• People do come from far away to access Rainbow Park

General

• I like what it is, quarter acre lots, space between buildings
• Slightly rural feel
• We like space between buildings
• What was done regarding flooding, parking issues from previous townhome development?
• Feeling overwhelmed with proposed change
• What is timeline between 801 McKenzie and townhome proposal at Rainbow and Sevenoaks?
• Time between Rainbow construction and new construction? – Won’t immediately know traffic impact
• Address neighbour concerns in future meetings

On January 26, 2022, we met with the community to provide an update on our proposal for the development of 801 McKenzie Avenue. We invite you to view this update by clicking on the video below. In addition to the videos, we have included a bulleted summary highlighting the thoughts and ideas that came from the community through our conversation. We encourage and welcome feedback on this proposal.

Meeting recording.

Traffic & parking

• What is going to stop people from renting rooms within the development? Concern over the amount of units across the lots (104 units over 3 lots). Already overflow parking filling the street. Commercial, construction, etc.  
• Concerns about traffic management during construction (trades parking as well)
• Commercial space (coffee shop in particular) – is an attractive idea. The space would increase traffic as well, which has been a voiced concern from the community. Additionally, there are certain types of tenants that would be preferred, however the community doesn’t have direct control over this.
• Concern regarding the impact of the proposed density on the traffic in the area.
• Can the TIA (Traffic Impact Assessment) be shared with the neighbours?
• What is the reason for access not being granted on McKenzie? Would a decrease in density improve the likelihood of access off McKenzie? Does the design impact the likelihood of gaining access onto McKenzie?  
• Is there potential to add street parking on McKenzie? 
• Why is Modo being proposed in the project? How would that compare to other projects (example: Black and White)?  
• Concern regarding the exit routes within the community. The proposed development would add more density to the area, adding more congestion to exit routes. Have alternative exit designs been explored?  
• Safety issues at the park (pedestrian safety, traffic, speed of vehicles coming off McKenzie, access control). Are there any potential alternative entrance locations proposed for the development?  
• Is there any consideration to move the access to Sevenoaks? 
• Do the proposed on-street parking spaces compromise the driving lanes on Rainbow or Sevenoaks?  

Project specific questions

• How many stories will the building be?  
• What is the average square footage for the units?  
• Are there any slides showing the design / character of the building?  
• Has an independent architect been engaged?
• Would Abstract be the ongoing landlord of the property?  
• How long would the transit pass subsidy be offered for?  
• What is the point of the bike lane that only extends the proposed length?  
• Concern regarding density. How are issues raised by the community prioritized? Is there a potential for final input, prior to presentation to council?  
• On the McKenzie frontage, how far would the improvements go, and does Saanich have any intention to carry those improvements on?  

On February 24, 2022, we met with the community to provide an update on our proposal for the development of 801 McKenzie Avenue. We invite you to view this update by clicking on the video below. In addition to the videos, we have included a bulleted summary highlighting the thoughts and ideas that came from the community through our conversation. We encourage and welcome feedback on this proposal.

Meeting recording.

Community amenity suggestions

Density

• Density and parking are a concern as well as impact to the overall impact to the existing traffic network in the area.
• Density is a consistent concern for residents. How would the community change Abstract’s position on density?   

Traffic & parking

• Has there been any discussion to reconsider the location of parking spaces at Nelthorpe and Rainbow?
• Is the traffic impact assessment commissioned by Abstract rather than by Saanich?
• Is there potential for the Modo vehicle to be electric? Potential for an EV charging station? 
• How many parking stalls are proposed within the property?
• Given how close the entrance is to McKenzie it might be prudent to prevent left turn into the property therefore all cars entering might be going down seven oaks road too. 
• Left turn into the development would impact traffic north and south on Rainbow.
• Parking and traffic flow is going to be made problematic for residents. 
• Incredibly dense parking and traffic situation that will become a major safety concern.
• Adding 90 parking stalls, on top of the Rainbow townhome development, turning left off McKenzie onto Nelthorpe to Sevenoaks GREATLY impacts the already congested traffic and parking on Sevenoaks in addition to the traffic you will now add to Rainbow. 
• Moving these large commercial waste bins for independent collection will further congest the sloping hill and parking on a short block with limited parking space.
• Rainbow and Seven Oaks can not accommodate visitors to that many units. 

Design

• When traveling east on McKenzie and turning right onto McKenzie, will you need to turn left into the underground parkade to access the building and commercial space?  
• Would Saanich consider adding angled parking along Rainbow St?
• What will the proposed sidewalk improvements/design look like along Sevenoaks?  
• What is the motivation to go from a 4-story to a 6-story?  
• How many units exactly are proposed? 
• Is there potential for the frontage design to include additional parking stalls? 
• Have you studied how few people actually walk this section of McKenzie to benefit from these improvements?  Perhaps that is not the best amenity to provide.

General questions

• Has there been correspondence with St. Andrews school about the proposed development?  
• Coffee shop doesn’t seem like the appropriate fit for the community.
• What is the intent of the Community Engagement presentation? 
• Saanich has approved a high density location along Oak street as part of the Douglas/Uptown development. Intent was to prevent high density in residential areas. Perhaps this type of density would better suit that area.   
• Amenities for a project with 104 homes and a proposed bakery/commercial unit will be significant.    

On May 8, 2024, we met with the community to provide an update on our proposal for the development of 801 McKenzie Avenue. We invite you to view this update by clicking on the video below. In addition to the videos, we have included a bulleted summary highlighting the thoughts and ideas that came from the community through our conversation. We encourage and welcome feedback on this proposal.

Meeting recording.

Density

Transportation & traffic

• How is the 35% traffic reduction when compared to the original application accomplished?
• This proposal proposes a section of bike lane which is connected to Saanich Rd. Currently not able to be continued towards Quadra. What are the benefits to the community? Could Abstarct request Saanich to consider rerouting the bike network so it’s connected to the Galloping Goose through Douglas?
• With the installation of a bike lane on Mckenzie, will the number of vehicle lanes reduce? How will this reduce overall traffic?
• The Commercial space was replaced by the bike repair station? Will the bike repair station be a commercial offering?

Trees

• Concerns around additional Garry Oaks sharing space with root systems of existing Garry Oaks.
• How many existing Garry Oaks are there? How many are proposed to be removed in the current application?

General comments & questions

• Accessible parking width, locations and the number of accessible stalls. Is there an accessible path from parkade to rest of the building.
• What was the change to the unit mix?
• Timing of construction for the 3977 Rainbow and 801 McKenzie development
• Please share the section of the elevated sidewalk again. Is there a more realistic view of this?
• The new proposal looks good. The creative solutions used to retain additional trees are great
• An additional 21 units are proposed when compared to the original application. Will the road improvements be completed prior to the construction of the project? Community is looking for improvements to immediate road network (ie, Sevenoaks).
• Would like to see the materials provided ahead of the meeting.
• When was the resubmission completed?
• Will this project require variances?
• How does the timing of this proposal correlate with the newly approved Official Community Plan?
• Would like to see the discussion of this project in conjunction with the 3977 Rainbow development in the future.
• Height variance between current and previous proposal?
• How many parking stalls are proposed? How does this compare to the newly proposed unit mix? What is the shortfall in parking requirements with the current proposal?
• 821 McKenzie demolition was estimated by the Property Manager to be April/May of 2025. How does this correlate with construction start?
• 811 McKenzie is rented to students. Are there any restrictions on who can buy the proposed homes? Concerns around bulk buyouts that are then rented out to student as student housing.
• What inputs from the 3977 Rainbow public hearing were considered for this project?
• Are there any units proposed to be below market value or non-market units?