Temperance Street condo plan seen as disruptive to neighbourhood

A proposal to put a four-storey condominium complex on a patch of land near St. John's harbour could wreck the cosy feel of the neighbourhood, city councillors are being told.

RJC Services wants to put the development on Temperance Street, across the road from a series of stone buildings known as the Four Sisters.

Though four storeys high, the complex would be built into the slope of Temperance Street, with the finished height one storey above Battery Road.

Several residents object to the plan — the second in five years — to turn the vacant lot into condos.

"This would destroy the overall feel and the integrity of the neighbourhood and part of the scenic walk up the Battery," said Millie Bennett, who owns a home behind the proposed site.

The city's development division is recommending approval of the application, which goes before council at its regular meeting on Monday evening.

The plan provides for 38 units.

The St. John's Port Corp., meanwhile, filed a submission of its own about the property, which is near both its headquarters and several piers of the harbourfront.

"As with any development that is in close proximity to what is a very busy working port, we would remind the developer, and council, that activities undertaken at the various piers adjacent to the proposed development (on occasion 24 hours per day) will create noise that may be of concern to anyone considering a quiet residential setting," Paul Sheppard, the port corporation's manager of technical services, wrote in a submission to council.

Sheppard added that lighting and traffic may also be concerns to potential new residents.