A proposed apartment building next to Hazelwood Elementary has cleared a key hurdle for approval.
St. John’s council voted 8-1 yesterday to rezone the land from Institutional to Apartment 1.
That paves the way for the three-storey, 30-unit structure on the east side of the school, and backing onto houses along Blue River Place.
The next step is a review of the land use report, followed by notices and requests for public input.
Councillor Greg Noseworthy said he was initially in favour of the project but was swayed by safety concerns raised by residents.
Councillor Maggie Burton, meanwhile, says apartment buildings get a bad rap.
“Nobody in St. John’s is ever going to say yes, I want an apartment building next to my house because people discriminate against apartment buildings, no matter where they go,” she said. “And if we can’t put it on a vacant piece of land, right next to Topsail Road, where are we going to put one? So I would encourage my colleagues to think about that.”