The developer of the Galway subdivision is calling out the City of St. John's for allegedly rejecting the development of a new apartment building in a time of housing need, while the city says that council hasn't seen any proposal for apartments.

Danny Williams first voiced his displeasure in a news release on Thursday, saying the city is showing an obstructionist and hypocritical approach to housing.

Williams says his development company, Dewcor, attempted to make an application for a new 60-unit apartment building in the Galway subdivision on land already approved by the city — and that the application wasn't accepted.

"We've spent the last six to 12 months doing design and engineering and all the preliminary work and then we filed the application last week. And within a week we had it sent back to us. Not only was the application just, you know, rejected for flaws, it was not accepted," Williams told CBC News on Thursday.

Williams accused the city of holding the application over his head in an effort to see work on a road leading into Galway completed — known as the Southlands Boulevard Extension.

He said that road isn't his responsibility on account that the land is owned by a neighbouring developer. He said Dewcor has worked to facilitate an agreement — and has spent over $2 million completing the road to the end of his land — but the city says it's his full responsibility.

"We don't have any control of this. It's not our land, it's not our property," Williams said.

"They're going to try and force me, then, to act on something that I have no control over."

Williams also specifically referenced a post on X — formerly known as Twitter — by Coun. Maggie Burton. In the post on Oct. 29, Burton spoke on the role municipalities have in helping reduce process approval times for housing projects.

"A councillor's saying one thing, and doing something else. They're speaking out of both sides of their mouth, and, you know, I can't understand it," Williams said of Burton.

This isn't the first time Williams has had quarrels with the city relating to Galway. He announced in April he was suing the city over the city's desire for a new roundabout, and has been vocal in the past that the council makes it hard to do business.

Accusations 'a giant pile of crap': Burton says

Speaking with CBC News before the interview with Williams, Burton didn't mince words.

"The general response I have to the overall press release is that it's a giant pile of crap," she told CBC News.

Further, Burton said council hasn't received any kind of application on an apartment building in Galway. The post on X referred to by Williams was also taken out of context, she said.

"I firmly believe in my words, and I stand by them. He, however, took what I said completely out of context as I was talking about a development at the Village Mall and about why we need to not obstruct new development."

Burton said the approved land Williams is likely referring to has an active rezoning application for a personal care home. Williams told CBC the land had been zoned for an apartment building for at least four years. The city confirmed Friday that it is currently zoned for an apartment building.

"It's a confusing situation, but the bottom line is that we didn't reject an apartment in Galway. In fact, council never voted on anything to do with an apartment building in Galway," Burton said.

"Mr. Williams put himself in this position in the first place by choosing to develop Galway where he did, which was separated from all existing city services and roads by privately owned land. So it's his responsibility to work that out, not ours.… I very much welcome the apartment building in Galway as well, but we have to see the developer hold up his end of the bargain."

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The Newfoundland and Labrador government has announced the location of the facility that will eventually replace the aging St. Clare's Mercy Hospital in St. John's.

The new hospital will be built on Nils Way, located off Kenmount Road just west of Kenmount Terrace.

Premier Andrew Furey spoke in front of reporters, cabinet minister and the mayors of St. John's, Paradise, and Mount Pearl on Monday, delivering the details of the new facility, which he envisions will be campus-like with different buildings.

"This new, important and modern campus will be more than just a replacement of St. Clare's Mercy Hospital," Furey said. "It will help us realign health-care services on the Northeast Avalon as we transform and grow as a province."

Furey said the location was selected because it's easily accessible by road and connects St. John's, Mount Pearl, CBS and Paradise.

In 2022, government announced its plans to replace St. Clare's with a new bigger and more modern facility.

It's premature to say when the hospital will be open, Furey said, or how much the final cost will total. But the next step is an issued request for proposals in 2025 for the design of the new space.

WATCH | Furey details what the new hospital in St. John's will offer:

14 hours ago

Duration 0:52

It’s vacant land now, but Premier Andrew Furey says Kenmount Crossing will eventually be the site of the new acute care hospital and cardiovascular and stroke institute. It is near the borders of St. John’s, Mount Pearl and Paradise. The cost, a timeline and who will build it — including whether it will be a public-private partnership — are not yet known.

The new hospital will provide diagnostic and intervention care. It will also focus on acute care for elderly patients and serve as a hub for clinical teaching.

In anticipation of the traffic congestion because of the new hospital construction, Transportation Minister Fred Hutton said the province will work with the surrounding municipalities to construct new roads linking to the site.

But there's another reason why the province chose the 10 acres of land that sits on the border of Paradise and St. John's. It was donated.

Glenn Hickey and Bert Hickman spoke on behalf of H3 Development — a joint venture between between the Hickman automotive group and companies owned by Glenn Hickey.

"We felt that we had the ideal location for this hospital and we really wanted to get the premier's attention," Hickey said. "We also saw a rare opportunity to make a positive impact in our community and the province we hold so dear."

Hickey told reporters the company is also open to discussions about selling adjacent land for the hospital.

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