Report to/Rapport au :
Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee
Comité consultatif sur la conservation de
l'architecture locale
and / et
Planning and Environment Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme et de
l'environnement
and Council / et au Conseil
27 January 2005 / le 27 janvier 2005
Submitted by/Soumis par : Ned Lathrop, Deputy City Manager /
Directeur municipal adjoint
Planning
and Growth Management / Urbanisme et Gestion de la croissance
Contact Person/Personne
ressource : Grant Lindsay, Manager / Gestionnaire
Development Approval / Approbation des demandes
d'aménagement
(613) 580-2424 x 13242, grant.lindsay@ottawa.ca
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That the Local Architectural
Conservation Advisory Committee recommend that Planning and Environment
Committee and Council approve the application for new construction in the By
Ward Market Heritage Conservation District at 90 George/135 Rideau Street in
accordance with the plans filed by DCYSM Architecture + Design received on
December 29, 2004, included as Document 2. This design will amend the previous
approval by Ottawa City Council of November 8, 2000.
(Note: Approval of this application under the Ontario Heritage Act must not be construed to meet the requirements for the issuance of a building permit nor pre-existing registered legal agreements.)
RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT
Que le Comité consultatif sur la
conservation de l'architecture locale recommande au Comité de l'urbanisme et de
l'environnement et au Conseil d'approuver la demande de construction d'une
structure au 90, rue George / 135, rue Rideau, dans le District de conservation
du patrimoine du marché By, conformément aux plans soumis par DCYSM Architecture + Design, reçus le 29
décembre 2004 et contenus au document 2. Cette conception modifiera celle approuvée par
le Conseil municipal d'Ottawa le 8 novembre 2000 et illustrée au document 3.
(Nota : L'approbation de cette demande aux termes de la Loi sur le patrimoine de l'Ontario ne signifie pas qu'elle satisfait aux critères de délivrance d'un permis de construire ni aux exigences des ententes juridiques enregistrées antérieures.)
BACKGROUND
This report has been prepared to allow for the
construction of a new condominium apartment building on the through lot which
extends from 90 George Street south to Rideau Street. The north half of the
site is included within the By Ward Market Heritage Conservation District,
designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act (By-law 60-91). A location
plan is included as Document 1. The Ontario Heritage Act requires that all new
construction in a heritage conservation district be approved by City Council
following consultation with the Local Architectural Conservation Advisory
Committee (LACAC).
An earlier design for this site was submitted
by Canril Corporation for a new Alliance Atlantis Cinema complex for approval
under the Ontario Heritage Act and was approved by the former City of Ottawa
City Council on November 8, 2000. A
building permit application was never submitted and the project did not
proceed. This heritage application is an amendment to the November 2000
approval and deals only with the designated part of the lot facing George
Street.
The former Caplan's Department Store was
demolished in November 2003 pursuant to a Fire Marshall's Order which deemed
the existing vacant building susceptible to fire after one or more had been set
in it. City Council approved the demolition of the building on the condition
that a replica of the Rideau Street elevation be reconstructed as part of any
future development on the site. This agreement was entered into by Canril
Corporation and the City and a letter of credit filed to ensure compliance. A
streetscape of the proposed Rideau Street elevation is included as Document 4.
A Site Plan Control application has been
submitted and is being processed by way of Delegation of Authority. A minor
variance to approve a side yard requirement and increased FSI on the Rideau
Street portion was approved by the Committee of Adjustment.
DISCUSSION
The new building will be 19-storeys in height
with three storeys of underground parking. There will be three floors of
retail/commercial space with 16 floors of residential condominiums above. The
residential tower will be set back approximately 14 feet on the Rideau Street
and 100 feet on the George Street side as illustrated in Document 5. The north
half of the project facing George Street, which is subject of this heritage
application, is three storeys in height and features a roof-top garden. It
conforms to the permitted height under the heritage overlay provision of the
Zoning By-law. The George Street elevation will be clad in buff-coloured
cultured (artificial) stone with evenly spaced rectangular windows arranged
around a large round-arched window. An entrance canopy and window highlights
will be grey metal. There will be
commercial space fronting George Street which will include a restaurant and spa. The garage door will be
recessed approximately ten feet from the face of the building, behind an archway.
A perspective drawing is enclosed as Document 2 and an elevation included as
part of Document 3.
Appendix B, "Building Improvement and
Design Guidelines" of the By Ward Market Heritage Conservation District
study addresses the character of the neighbourhood and new construction in the
District in Section 2, "General Principles." These principles stress
that (1) "The evolution, diversity and layering that characterize the
landscape are also the most important qualities of the building stock."
and (6) "New work in an area like this must respect the existing scale,
material, and forms of the district. However, it should be of its own time,
designed in a contemporary vernacular consistent with the traditions of the
area."
Section 3.4, "Infill: Commercial and Mixed
Use" specifically addresses the construction of new construction on vacant
lots. Recommendation 1 states that "Infill in commercial areas must
respect the scale and character of existing heritage properties and
streetscapes." Further Guidelines stress the importance of maintaining the
traditional pattern of retail at grade, with residential or commercial above
separated by a cornice or signage, storefronts approximately nine metres (30
feet) wide, and setbacks and heights
that respect neighbouring properties.
The proposed design as it relates to the George
Street elevation respects many aspects of these guidelines. The streetscape,
included as Document 3, illustrates a four bay articulation which is further
divided into a group of three defined by two pilasters and one bay to the west.
The three bay portion reflects the pattern of the three adjacent buildings to
the east. The semi-circular arch of the entry reflects the entrance to the
Giant Tiger store at the east end of the block and ties the George Street
elevation to the Rideau Street elevation.
An additional cultural heritage impact
statement by the applicant on the project's relationship to the By Ward Market
Heritage Conservation District is included as Document 6 in conformance with Section
4.6.1.2 of the City of Ottawa Official Plan as amended.
The Department supports the amendment to the
design of the north half of the 90 George/135 Rideau Street project approved by
City Council on November 8, 2000 because it complies, in large part, with the
" Guidelines" in the By Ward Market Heritage Conservation District
Study.
CONSULTATION
Adjacent property owners and residential tenants were
notified by letter of the date of the Local Architectural Conservation Advisory
Committee (LACAC) and Planning and Environment Committee meetings and were
provided with comment sheets to be returned to LACAC.
Georges Bédard, the Ward Councillor is aware of
this project.
The By Ward Market BIA is aware of this
project.
Heritage Ottawa has been informed of this
project.
Public notification was carried out as part of
a Site Plan Control application as well as an application for variances to the
Committee of Adjustment.
Information and drawings describing the project
are available at www.90george.com
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
SUPPORTING
DOCUMENTATION
Document 2 Perspective
view of 90 George
Document 3 George
Street Streetscape
Document 4 Rideau
Street Streetscape
Document 5 Plan
at Fourth Floor
Document 6 Cultural
Heritage Impact Statement
DISPOSITION
Corporate Services Department, Council and Committee
Services Branch, to notify the applicant/ agent (DCYSM Architecture + Design,
Ste. 600, 2000 Avenue McGill College, Montreal, QC H3A 3H4) and the Ontario
Heritage Foundation (10 Adelaide Street, 3rd Floor, Toronto, Ontario, M5C 1J3)
of City Council’s consent for new construction in the ByWard Market Heritage
Conservation District at 90 George/135 Rideau Street.
LOCATION PLAN Document
1
PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF 90 GEORGE Document
2
GEORGE STREET STREETSCAPE Document
3
