The future of downtown Kingston’s skyline could be decided this spring when Ontario’s planning tribunal pays another house call on City Hall.

The Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) will open 10 days of hearings starting Monday, March 26 to consider the fate of the 15-storey Capitol Condominium project. It’s been almost three years since IN8 Developments unveiled the first version of its proposed condo atop the former Capitol movie theatre site at 223 Princess Street.

IN8 Developments president Darryl Firsten unveiled the Capitol condo in the spring of 2015. Three years later, his project is the focus of a fight at the OMB

Since then, the project has been scorned, praised and purchased. Investors have bought up many of the unbuilt units, according to IN8’s president Darryl Firsten, for either themselves or to rent out from a prime downtown location.

While opponents don’t have qualms about residential intensification, it’s the scale, height and density of this project that concerns them. It’s why they have filed appeals with the OMB, the quasi-judicial planning body which will decide which height is right.

There are four key appellants – three individuals and one group. They are Samantha King, Annette Burfoot and Vicki Schmolka, who have formed an alliance under the group Building Kingston’s Future, plus the Frontenac Heritage Foundation.

“They should just say no,” said Schmolka on what they’re asking of the OMB to tell the developer. She added:

“Why bother having an Official Plan if you’re going to ignore it?”

Schmolka says the condo high-rise, to be located closer to the Queen Street side of the property, will overshadow the existing low-rise buildings in the neighbourhood and potentially ruin the downtown’s historic charm that makes it attractive for tourists and other visitors.

She says the building is actually 16 floors when rooftop mechanical and amenities are included, which is about twice as high as what the Official Plan and current zoning rules allow.

The Capitol condo view from Princess Street features a 212-unit, 15 floor building over a former movie theatre

For his part, Firsten says he’s already come down from the 21-storey height that was initially proposed and he’s not prepared to go lower on the eve of the OMB hearing.

Another thing that irks opponents is city council’s decision to stay on the sidelines of what could be a critical turning point in the future of downtown intensification. Council voted 6-6 against supporting the project (tie votes are considered lost). This followed a re-vote after Coun. Adam Candon was forced to declare a conflict of interest due to his work as a real estate agent.

Despite council’s rejection (in the face of planning staff’s support of the height), politicians decided not to seek any standing at this OMB hearing, essentially leaving it to private groups and citizens to fight it at their own cost.

Schmolka, a former councillor, estimates the cost of the joint citizens’ appeal will be $90,000. So far, she says they’ve managed to raise about half of the cost to cover their out-of-pocket legal expenses while the city, with much deeper tax-funded pockets, has not indicated it will provide any financial help.

The stakes, like the Capitol condo, are indeed high.

Schmolka and others have stated that the outcome of this hearing could set the pattern for other downtown developments that are waiting in the wings, namely, two Homestead high-rises proposed for lower Queen Street that are taller than the Capitol building.

Homestead Land Holdings has proposed 17 and 19-storey buildings on lower Queen Street. This project is also slated for a future OMB hearing.

In addition to Building Kingston’s Future and the Frontenac Heritage Foundation, there are about 40 individuals who also plan to address the hearing both for and against the development.

Firsten says interest in his proposed condominium remains strong, noting 70 to 75 percent of the 212 units have already been pre-sold at prices ranging from $225,000 to $450,000 per unit.

“We’d love to throw a shovel in the ground right away, but we’ll be patient.”

Both sides are lining up their lawyers and urban planning experts for the hearing that will be spread over three weeks; March 26 to 29, April 3 to 6 and April 10 and 11, if needed.

After that, the outcome will be in the hands of the still-unknown adjudicator.