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9. ZONING - 311 CENTRUM
BOULEVARD AND 3301 ST. JOSEPH BOULEVARD ZONAGE - 311, BOULEVARD CENTRUM ET 3301, BOULEVARD ST. JOSEPH |
Committee recommendation as
amended
That Council
approve an amendment to the former
Cumberland Urban Zoning By-law to change the zoning of 311 Centrum
Boulevard and 3301 St. Joseph Boulevard from R5B-X2 to R5B-X2 (Block F),
as shown on Document 1 and detailed in Document 3, by deleting Clause 1 and
replacing it with the following:
1. The Residential Apartment – High
Density – Exception Two (R5B-X2) provisions of 6.21 are amended by adding a
special building heigh provision that, notwithstanding the maximum building
height for a main building in the R5B zone, permits a maximum building height
of 105 metres at sea level, and no more than 10 storeys, for a single building
located within the R5B-X2 zone and delineated as Block “F” on the accompanying
zone key map.
Recommandation modifiÉe du Comité
Que le Conseil approuve une modification
au Règlement de zonage urbain de l’ancienne Ville de Cumberland afin de changer
les désignations de zonage du 311, boulevard Centrum et du 3301, boulevard
St-Joseph de R5B-X2 à R5B-X2 (Bloc F), tel qu’il est indiqué dans le document 1
et expliqué en détail dans le document 3, en remplaçant la disposition 1 par ce qui suit :
1. Les dispositions
prévues au point 6.21 pour la désignation « Residential Apartment – High
Density – Exception Two (R5B-X2) » (immeubles d’habitation – densité
élevée – exception no 2) sont modifiées par l’ajout d’une disposition
spéciale relative à la hauteur des bâtiments qui permet, nonobstant la hauteur
maximale autorisée dans la zone R5B pour un immeuble principal, une hauteur
maximale de 105 mètres au-dessus du niveau de la mer, et un maximum de
10 étages pour un seul bâtiment situé dans la zone R5B-X2 et identifié
comme étant l’îlot « F » sur le schéma de la zone joint au document.
Documentation
1.
Deputy
City Manager's report Planning,
Transit and the Environment dated
20 December 2006 (ACS2007-PTE-APR-0026).
2. Extract of Draft
Minutes, 9 January 2007.
Report to/Rapport au :
Planning and Environment Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme et de l'environnement
and Council / et au Conseil
20 December 2006 / le 20 décembre 2006
Submitted by/Soumis par : Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager/
Directrice municipale adjointe
Planning, Transit and the Environment/ Urbanisme,
Transport en commun
Contact Person/Personne ressource : Karen Currie,
Manager / Gestionnaire, Development Approvals / Approbation des demandes
d'aménagement
(613) 580-2424, 28310 Karen.Currie@ottawa.ca
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SUBJECT: |
ZONING - 311 CENTRUM BOULEVARD and
3301 st. joseph boulevard (FILE NO. D02-02-06-0134) |
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OBJET : |
ZONAGE
– 311, BOULEVARD CENTRUM ET 3301, BOULEVARD ST‑JOSEPH |
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That the recommend Council approve an
amendment to the former Cumberland Urban Zoning By-law to change the zoning of
311 Centrum Boulevard and 3301 St. Joseph Boulevard from R5B-X2 to R5B-X2
(Block F), as shown on Document 1 and detailed in Document 3.
RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT
Que le Comité de l’urbanisme et de l’environnement
recommande au Conseil d’approuver une modification au Règlement de zonage
urbain de l’ancienne Ville de Cumberland afin de changer les désignations de
zonage du 311, boulevard Centrum et du 3301, boulevard St-Joseph de R5B-X2 à
R5B-X2 (Bloc F), tel qu’il est indiqué dans le document 1 et expliqué en détail
dans le document 3.
BACKGROUND
In October 2006, Council authorized the development of 9.5 hectares of City land in the Orléans Town Centre through a public-private partnership agreement to be entered into with Orléans Town Centre Partnership (Report ACS2006-PGM-ECO-0017).
In doing so, Council also directed staff to immediately proceed with the related planning applications. Accordingly, the Department initiated the subject Zoning By-law amendment to put in place the zoning framework necessary to implement the approved development plan for the Orléans Town Centre lands.
The subject amendment affects an approximate 0.4-hectare portion of vacant land on the northwest corner of the intersection of St. Joseph Boulevard with Tenth Line Road. Document 1 identifies the subject site.
The subject site is currently zoned “Residential – Apartments – High Density” (R5B), which permits, among other residential uses, apartment dwellings to a maximum building height of 85.8 metres above sea level. A building of six storeys in height would be achievable on the subject site at such elevation. The proposed Zoning By-law amendment increases the maximum building height specific to the subject site to an elevation of 115 metres above sea level. At such elevation, an apartment dwelling of 14 storeys would be permitted.
DISCUSSION
The Official Plan designates the subject site
as “Mixed Use Centre”, which is the designation applied to select areas
throughout the city that are strategically located along the rapid-transit
network, and that are, or are intended to be, compact centres of activity
containing a wide range of transit-supportive uses, including offices,
institutions, entertainment uses, retail and service uses, and medium and
high-density residential uses. The Plan
also identifies the subject lands as the “Town Centre” of the Orléans
community, where an employment target of 10000 jobs is to be achieved.
The Plan considers Mixed Use Centres to be
priority locations for development or redevelopment and, accordingly,
encourages the use of such strategies and techniques as flexible zoning
controls, reduced parking requirements, and increased height and density
provisions, to achieve the desired development.
Volume 2B of the Plan also sets out a
comprehensive set of site-specific policies for the planned development of the
Orléans Town Centre. These policies
encourage the creation of a dynamic, mixed-use town centre having a “main
street” focus that is intended to foster a sense of place for the residents of
Orléans and the City. The intent of
these policies is consistent with that of the Mixed Use Centre designation.
The site-specific policies designate the
subject site as “Urban Residential”, the objective of which is to provide for a
residential community in the Town Centre that offers people the opportunity to
live and work in the same location.
This land use designation permits medium and
high-density residential development at an overall density for the designation
of between 50 to 150 dwelling units per hectare, and specifically states
that the height of any residential building shall not protrude above the height
of the escarpment that dominates the Orléans landscape. However, the policies also specify an
exemption to this height restriction over the eastern-most lands within the
Urban Residential designation adjacent to Tenth Line Road. This exemption is enforced in the implementing
Zoning By-law.
Zoning By-law
The former City of Cumberland Urban Area Zoning By-law zones the subject site as “Residential – Apartments – High Density” (R5B), although it is presently proposed to be changed to “Residential – Apartments – High Density – Exception Two” (R5B-X2) through another concurrent Zoning By-law amendment application (Report No. ACS2007-PTE-APR-0025) that also affects the subject lands. The R5B zone generally permits apartment dwellings, retirement residences, and some institutional uses. The maximum building height for any main building is set at 85.8 metres above sea level (a.s.l.), equal to the height of the escarpment. However, the Zoning By-law contains a special building height provision that permits up to two apartment dwellings at a specified location in the R5B zone to project above the escarpment to a height of 105 metres a.s.l. The specified location, described as “Block E” on Document 1, corresponds to those lands resting at the lowest elevation a.s.l. in the R5B zone (between 63 and 68 metres a.s.l.) whereon a 14-storey apartment building is achievable.
Details of Proposed Zoning By-law Amendment
The current zoning in force on the subject lands was established several years ago to facilitate the implementation of the Town Centre land use development plan adopted at that time. However, with Council’s recent approval of a revised and more detailed land use development plan for the Orléans Town Centre, attached as Document 2, modifications to the current zoning are necessary in order to implement the revised plan.
The subject Zoning By-law amendment proposes to create another special building height provision specific to the subject site that would permit an apartment dwelling to a maximum height of 115 metres a.s.l. in lieu of the current limit of 85.8 metres a.s.l. Document 3 provides the details of the recommended zone provision. The area to which this new provision would apply is identified as “Block F” on Document 1. Given that the elevation of the subject site is 72.0 metres a.s.l., the effect of the requested increase in building height would be that an apartment dwelling of 14 storeys would be achievable where, currently, a building of only six storeys in height is possible.
Analysis of Proposed Amendment
Staff evaluated the proposed amendment in terms of its conformity with the Official Plan policy objectives applicable to the Orléans Town Centre, and in terms of its compatibility with the surrounding uses and environment.
The Urban Residential land use designation of the Official Plan’s site-specific policies for the Orléans Town Centre establishes that residential buildings generally located at the east end of the Town Centre lands may, by exception, exceed the height of the escarpment. The applicable policies also set an overall development density of between 50 to 150 units per hectare for the entire land use designation. The projected development density for the entire land area under designation, including the existing and proposed development, is approximately 100 units per hectare, which is well within the established range.
The Mixed-Use Centre policies of the Official Plan also support increased height and density in the Orléans Town Centre. This is a specific consideration of the Plan’s commitment to development within these priority land use designations throughout the city.
In this regard, the Plan encourages the development of Mixed-Use Centres over time in a manner that is more compact, dense, transit-oriented, and inclusive of residential uses. Staff conclude that the proposed amendment conforms to the land use policies of the Official Plan, including those specific to the Orléans Town Centre.
With respect to the issue of compatibility, staff considered the impact of the proposed apartment building on the surrounding built environment and the local residents’ enjoyment of their properties. One of the Official Plan’s growth management strategies is to encourage the intensification of development throughout the urban area. Indeed, Council’s recent approval of a land use development plan for a more dense and compact Orléans Town Centre is evidence of this strategy. However, the Plan states that implementing this strategy requires a sensitive approach to dealing with the differences between new development and established areas, and allowing for flexibility and variation that complements the character of established areas is central to successful intensification. A compatible development generally is one that enhances an established community and coexists with existing development without causing undue adverse impacts on surrounding properties. Yet, it is possible for a compatible development to fit in with its surroundings without having to be the same as the existing surrounding development. It is within this context of the Plan’s policies respecting compatibility that staff considered the proposed Zoning By-law amendment.
In consideration of the height and massing of the proposed building, staff had regard to the area context, primarily to the adjacent low-density residential community outside of the designated Town Centre lands. The Town Centre and the existing residential community of Queenswood Heights are separated by St. Joseph Boulevard and the natural 14-metre high escarpment, which measure approximately 100 metres wide. From atop the escarpment, the proposed apartment building in the Town Centre would project about nine storeys above the height of the existing residential properties directly south of it. This combined height and spatial relationship between the two forms of development is not uncommon to other residential communities, and therefore, staff find it to be reasonable. Furthermore, the overall mass of the proposed apartment building facing St. Joseph Boulevard is relatively slender, which will reduce to the greatest extent possible the visual impact of the building and obstruction of views from the perspective of the southerly existing residential properties.
Staff also considered the impact of the proposed development on the privacy of the outdoor amenity areas of adjacent residential properties. In the case of the residences in Queenswood Heights, staff concluded that the publicly owned natural open space lands along the edge of the escarpment contain a reasonable growth of mature trees and shrubs to provide an effective visual buffer for residents during the summer months when it is most needed. Furthermore, all but one of the residential properties abutting the escarpment and directly opposite the subject site are currently screened from St. Joseph Boulevard and the Town Centre lands below by continuous mature cedar hedges of at least two to three metres in height. In the case of the existing stacked townhouse apartments immediately west of the subject site, staff concluded that the impact of the proposed apartment building on the privacy of these residents would be no greater than that of a five-storey development, which is presently permitted on the subject site, or any other high-density residential development currently permitted in these Town Centre lands. Furthermore, the proposed apartment building is sited as far away from the existing townhouse apartments as possible, and staff can ensure during the site plan control approval process that a reasonable level of privacy is attained through appropriate landscaping.
Finally, the interruption of direct sunlight to, and impact of shadowing on, adjacent properties was assessed. The proposed building is situated north of the residential communities atop the escarpment, and due east of the stacked townhouse apartment development in the Town Centre. Therefore, the only impact of note in this regard would occur for a short period of time during the early morning summer daylight hours, when the rear yards of some of the River Ridge and Turner Crescent properties would be in shadow, and during periods of the morning summer and fall daylight hours, when the stacked townhouse apartments would be in shadow. Staff consider this impact on access to sunlight to be minimal.
Staff conclude that the proposed development is compatibility with the surrounding built environment and uses and support the proposed City-initiated amendment and recommend that it be approved.
CONSULTATION
Notice of this application was carried out in accordance with the City's Public Notification and Consultation Policy. The Ward Councillor is aware of this application and the staff recommendation.
Members of the public expressed concern with the proposed amendment, however, as of the time of the writing of this report, no formal comments were received. The nature of the concern was to oppose the proposed amendment. Details of the consultation process are provided in Document 4.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
APPLICATION PROCESS
TIMELINE STATUS
This application was processed by the "On Time
Decision Date" established for the processing of Zoning By-law amendment
applications.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Document 1 Location Map and Zone
Key Map
Document 2 Approved
Development Concept Plan.
Document 3 Details
of Recommended Zoning
Document 4 Consultation
Details
DISPOSITION
Corporate Services Department, City Clerk’s
Branch, Secretariat Services to notify OttawaScene.com,
174 Colonnade Road, Unit #33, Ottawa, ON
K2E 7J5, and
Ghislain Lamarche, Program Manager, Assessment, Financial Services Branch (Mail
Code: 26-76) of City Council’s
decision.
Planning, Transit and the Environment
Department to prepare the implementing by-law, forward to Legal Services Branch
and undertake the statutory notification.
Corporate Services Department, Legal Services
Branch to forward the implementing by-law to City Council.
LOCATION MAP DOCUMENT
1
APPROVED DEVELOPMENT
CONCEPT PLAN DOCUMENT
2
DETAILS OF RECOMMENDED ZONING DOCUMENT
3
The proposed Zoning By-law amendment affects one section of former City of Cumberland By‑law 1-84, as amended. The proposed changes are outlined in general terms below.
1.
The Residential – Apartment – High Density – Exception
Two (R5B-X2) provisions of Subsection 6.21 are amended by adding a special
building height provision that, notwithstanding the maximum building height for
a main building in the R5B zone, permits a maximum building height of 115
metres a.s.l. for a single apartment building located within the R5B-X2 zone
and delineated as Block “F” on the accompanying zone key map.
2.
Schedule “B” to
the By-law is amended in accordance with the attached zone key map.
CONSULTATION DETAILS DOCUMENT
4
NOTIFICATION AND CONSULTATION PROCESS
Notification and public consultation
was undertaken in accordance with the Public Notification and Public
Consultation Policy approved by City Council for Zoning By-law amendments. A public information session was not held in
the community.
It should be noted that the public notification and consultation conducted for the subject application erroneously stated that the subject site was subject to the special building height exemption of 105 metres a.s.l., which, if it were so, would have permitted a 10-storey apartment dwelling adjacent to St. Joseph Boulevard. In fact, the subject site is subject to the maximum building height of 85.8 metres a.s.l., which would only permit a building of six storeys in height. This error in interpretation of the zoning resulted from the lack of clarity of the zone schedule attached to the office consolidation of the By-law. However, an examination of the official version of the By-law during the evaluation of the proposed amendment revealed that the special building height exemption, indeed, does not extend to the subject site.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
Comments were received from the Queenswood Heights Community Association and residents of Turner Crescent. The comments were unanimous in their opposition to the proposed Zoning By-law amendment, with the principal arguments being excessive height and loss of privacy.
SUMMARY OF PUBLIC INPUT
Mr. Mariani, representing an unspecified number of residents of Turner Crescent, expressed strong opposition to the proposed increase in building height to 14 storeys on the subject site. It is his position that the proposed maximum building height is excessive and would significantly obstruct the scenic views from atop the escarpment and contribute to a loss of residents’ privacy. Mr. Mariani concludes, therefore, that the maximum building height presently in force should remain, which would restrict any building on the subject site to six storeys.
Response
Staff’s position on these specific points is that the combined height and spatial relationship between the proposed apartment building and the existing residential properties atop the escarpment is reasonable, as is stated in the Discussion of this report. Furthermore, the relative slender massing of the proposed built form reduces to the greatest extent possible the visual impact of the building and obstruction of views from the perspective of the existing residential properties.
COUNCILLOR’S
COMMENTS
Councillor
Monette is aware of the concerns expressed by the residents who oppose the
subject amendment. The Councillor would
recommend a reduction in the requested height limit for the proposed
development to a maximum of eight to 10 storeys, provided such reduction
maintains the overall objectives of the recent Council-approved development
concept plan for the Orléans Town Centre.
The Councillor considers the proposed Town Centre development as a whole
to be good for the community, yet a compromise on the issue of the height of
the proposed apartment building is warranted in order to protect the quality of
life of the residents of Turner Crescent and River Ridge.
Response
It is staff’s opinion that the 14-storey, 96-unit apartment building, as proposed on the Council-approved Town Centre development plan, is an important component to the successful implementation of the Council authorized public-private partnership agreement to be entered into with Orléans Town Centre Partnership.
COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION COMMENTS
The Queenswood Heights Community Association
(QHCA) submitted comments following their meeting of 6 December 2006. The Association stated that, while they are very enthusiastic
about the development of the Orléans Town Centre and the Orléans Arts Centre,
the community in general has a concern with the proposed building height for
the subject site and recommends that the potential privacy concerns of the
residents of Turner Crescent and River Ridge Road be considered. In this regard, the Association takes the position
that the building height be reflective of the current Zoning Bylaw, that is, at
most 10 storeys.
In should be noted that, as a result of the error in the application summary disseminated to the community through the public notification process, the QHCA, through no fault of theirs, makes reference to the incorrect 10-storey maximum height requirement applicable to the subject site. As noted above, the correct maximum building height for the subject site is 85.8 metres a.s.l., which, in fact, would only permit a building of six storeys in height.
In response to the QHCA’s comment, it is staff’s position that the physical distance between the proposed and existing developments, combined with the screening affect of the mature trees and shrubs within the City-owned open space atop the escarpment, affords the residents of Turner Crescent with a reasonable level of privacy from the proposed 14-storey building during the summer months when it is most needed.