Garage conversion underway at Rendell Boulevard on Hamilton Mountain

Work has begun to convert the garage behind the house at 38 Rendell Boulevard on the east Mountain into a separate housing unit.

The project had been stalled by a Committee of Adjustment (COA) decision in March to deny a parking variance for the proposed new dwelling.

But last June, the city removed parking requirements for detached secondary dwelling units where the required parking for the principal dwelling continues to be provided on site, negating the need for the variance, and a building permit for the garage conversion was issued on Aug. 29.

A building permit to add a basement apartment to the house was issued in September 2021, and that work began late last spring.

It's a win for housing and creating more affordable and attainable housing units," said Ken Bekendam, agent, designer, consultant and contractor for the house and garage conversion.

Bekendam said the project will add some much-needed housing to the city.

One of the benefits of adding secondary dwelling units in housing and buildings is that we're making good use of (existing) infrastructure," Bekendam said. What's great about a garage unit (a.k.a. garden house or granny flat) is that it is a smaller space; it is going to be more attainable for somebody to rent that space versus the main floor of the house or the basement or renting a full single-family house."

Bekendam said they had appealed the COA decision to the Ontario Land Tribunal, but withdrew the appeal after the city changed the rules regarding detached secondary dwelling units.

Many of the neighbours in the area are opposed to the garage conversion.

A petition with more than 100 signatures was filed with the COA.

Alex Razborshchuk, a Burlington resident who owns the property, along with his wife Tetyana Holoshchuk, said he is happy to see the project moving forward.

It's a lot of time and money spent, almost wasted on this whole process," said Razborshchuk, who noted he has spent many thousands of dollars" on the project. It's not going to be in any way obtrusive to the neighbourhood; we are not adding any new structures."

Nor is the new garage dwelling going to have any windows that peer into neighbouring yards, Razborshchuk said.

While he sees more garage conversions in Hamilton's future, Bekendam said they are not going to be sprouting in the numbers that some residents might fear.

They are not going to be popping up everywhere because there are still bylaw requirements we have to maintain," he said.