While council caused some local controversy with the approval of Freedom House in Rutland, there was still a group of neighbours who went home happy Tuesday night.
They came from the Lower Mission, near the Green Square townhomes on Mission Springs Drive, where plans to build the final phase of homes were causing controversy.
The developers from Troika were applying for four variances, including an increase in height from four to six storeys, and a decrease of 11 parking spaces.
Troika's CFO Brad Klassen told council that the other ones were regarding setbacks on the four towers' upper levels, and that people shouldn't be worried.
"The variances to the setbacks are all on the outside of the project, they do not affect the separation between buildings," he said.
"We have, between the townhomes and the closest building to the existing townhomes, 40 feet or more of separation."
And while most councillors approved of that aspect, along with the request to move from 4 storeys to 6, Luke Stack did not.
He says changes to plans for the final phase felt a little sneaky.
"Everybody knew there's gonna be density here, everybody knew there's gonna be four-storey buildings. But it does feel difficult when you come in with six storey buildings, and you're the last guy on the block, because it really changes the nature of the neighbourhood," he said.
"Reading all the opposition, I would rather see this developer go back and modify their design."
The major concern was parking, especially the plans to incorporate tandem parking spaces, which multiple councillors cited as being an issue in other projects.
Planning Manager Ryan Smith was also asked why the city supported a request to build only 198 stalls, instead of the required 209.
"We're planning for the future, and that's parking scenarios that are 10, 15, 20 years down the road. And from both a car ownership perspective, and a parking perspective, those types of industries may change quite a bit in the next few years," he said.
"There may be a greater sharing economy for parking, there certainly will be a greater sharing economy for vehicles - more people potentially sharing ownership of vehicles."
City staff say they also got a few dozen letters in opposition to the plan.
In the end, council voted 5-4 to defeat the development application.
Mayor Colin Basran voted in favour, along with councillors Gail Given, Ryan Donn, and Mohini Singh.
Voting in opposition was Stack, and fellow councillors Brad Sieben, Maxine DeHart, Tracy Gray, and Charlie Hodge.