They complain about noise, vandalism, loss of privacy, traffic, density and parking problems.

A midrise seniors’ home, the longtime residents argue, doesn’t belong in their Oshawa neighbourhood.

“I’m extremely opposed to it,” Bill Northam says of the two proposed four-storey buildings that he calls a “detriment” to the area. “We bought into this high-end neighbourhood because it was one of the last single-family subdivisions with a minimum 45-foot frontage.”

Like “fish in a fishbowl,” he says, his family will be under the gaze of tenants “watching what we’re barbecuing.”

“We won’t see the sun till noon,” he adds.

Northam, who works in sales, says all of the 100 homeowners he approached signed his petition opposing the development on the vacant lot at Stevenson Rd. and Bond St. W.

Hillsport Developments Inc. proposes to build a seniors’ apartment building and adjacent retirement home with a total of 187 rental units. The plan includes 83 parking spaces, a spa, pool and hair salon. Rezoning is required for the site, which currently only allows single-detached homes.

That’s no longer an option on a busy regional road, says developer Peter Grady, who questions the fuss over a retirement residence. “They go to bed by 9 o’clock and they’re not going to be throwing beer bottles off their balconies.”

With its proximity to shopping, amenities and public transit, the location is ideal for older folks who want to live independently, he says. “We see it as a natural fit” for empty-nesters who want to downsize without leaving the community, Grady explains.

Anne Lord, an area resident for almost four decades, says she and her bridge friends may want to move in themselves one day.

“I think it’s a great idea,” says Lord, 74, who was the only voice of support at a packed meeting on the proposal last month. “It’s such a lovely location. It won’t spoil the neighbourhood.”

Senior citizens “aren’t exactly rowdy partygoers,” points out Jeanette Haywood, 77, who also has her eye on the home. “We always want these things to be not in our backyard, don’t we?”

Nothing against old people, critics argue, but 200 or 300 tenants will cause myriad problems. “Can you imagine families coming to visit their parents? They’ll end up parking all over our streets,” says Emmanuel Sforza, an electrician who lives just up the road from the lot that’s been empty more than 50 years.

Midrises will be an “eyesore,” says Sforza, who also worries about round-the-clock activity from service trucks, care providers and emergency vehicles “whenever someone ends up getting critical.”

Morris and Valerie Paplyk have just spent close to $30,000 on improvements — including a new deck — to their home of 20 years. But a real estate appraiser estimated the home’s value would drop by $50,000 if the project goes ahead, nine metres from their backyard, they say.

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“We have no opposition to seniors being housed,” Valerie says, “It’s just not the right location for it.”

City staff will look at public feedback and concerns before making a recommendation to the development services committee.

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