The site of a budget motel and Boston Pizza is being groomed for some major intensification in the way of a 28-storey tower that will become one of the tallest apartment buildings in the city. Toronto-based developer Campus Suites has had their rezoning application approved by council, paving the way for a residential tower positioned to attract students from the University of Calgary and Southern Alberta Institute of Technology.

The proposal would tower over its surroundings, image via ARK Inc.

Currently marketed in online materials as 4square, the development will pack 328 multi-residential units within a rectangular frame. Additionally, the proposal seeks to implant 3,000 square metres of medical office space and a 650-square-metre restaurant on the property.

An overview of the current site, image retrieved from Google Maps

Located at the crossways of two major arterial roads and only 500 metres from Banff Trail LRT station, the site at 2416 16th Avenue NW, despite being located outside the downtown core, is a worthy candidate for increased density.

A rendering for the project shows the sprawling podium portion, image via ARK Inc.

But nearly 100 letters received by the City described a number of concerns with the proposal, from the height of the building to the minimal supply of proposed parking, which residents believe will exacerbate traffic on residential streets in Briar Hill. The development isn't expected to generate a big jump in the demand for nearby parking — transportation habits of students tend to wildly differ from the mobility patterns of older age groups, who typically rely far more on the automobile as the primary way of getting from point A to point B.

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