7. ZONING - 1581 GREENBANK ROAD

ZONAGE - 1581, CHEMIN GREENBANK

Committee recommendation

(This application is not subject to Bill 51)

That Council approve an amendment to the former City of Nepean Zoning By-law to change the provisions of the site specific CC Block 5 (Community Commercial, Exception) zoning in effect at 1581 Greenbank Road as shown in Document 1 and as detailed in Document 2.

Recommandation du Comité

(Cette demande n’est pas assujettie au Règlement 51)

Que le Conseil approuve une modification au règlement de zonage de l’ancienne Ville de Nepean pour que soient changées les dispositions de zonage visant le bloc CC n^o 5 (zone commerciale centrale, exception) et s’appliquant au 1581, chemin Greenbank, tel qu’elles sont illustrées dans le Document 1 et décrites dans le Document 2.

Documentation

1. Deputy City Manager's report Planning, Transit and the Environment dated
25 July 2007 (ACS2007-PTE-APR-0016).

2. Extract of Draft Minutes, 28 August 2007

Report to/Rapport au :

Planning and Environment Committee

Comité de l'urbanisme et de l'environnement

and Council / et au Conseil

25 July 2007 / le 25 juillet 2007

Submitted by/Soumis par : Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager /

Directrice municipale adjointe,

Planning, Transit and the Environment /

Urbanisme, Transport en commun et Environnement

Contact Person/Personne ressource : Karen Currie, Manager / Gestionnaire, Development Approvals / Approbation des demandes d'aménagement

(613) 580-2424, 28310 Karen.Currie@ottawa.ca

Barrhaven ( 3 )

Ref N°: ACS2007-PTE-APR-0016

SUBJECT:	ZONING - 1581 Greenbank road (FILE NO. D02-02-06-0102)

OBJET :	ZONAGE - 1581, chemin greenbank

REPORT RECOMMENDATION

That the recommend Council approve an amendment to the former City of Nepean Zoning By-law to change the provisions of the site specific CC Block 5 (Community Commercial, Exception) zoning in effect at 1581 Greenbank Road as shown in Document 1 and as detailed in Document 2.

RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT

Que le Comité de recommande au Conseil d’approuver une modification au règlement de zonage de l’ancienne Ville de Nepean pour que soient changées les dispositions de zonage visant le bloc CC n^o 5 (zone commerciale centrale, exception) et s’appliquant au 1581, chemin Greenbank, tel qu’elles sont illustrées dans le Document 1 et décrites dans le Document 2.

BACKGROUND

The applicant has submitted an application for a Zoning By-law amendment to permit drive-through service for fast food restaurants in order to develop two drive-through restaurants.

The subject property is located on the east side of Greenbank Road, approximately 200 metres north of Strandherd Drive, in Barrhaven.

The site is approximately 3.3 hectares in size and contains a shopping plaza known as Village Square, comprising an anchor grocery store, offices, and two separate restaurant pads. The site has been expanded from the original size of the plaza store by the acquisition of adjacent vacant land to the north. The site is bounded on the west by Greenbank Road, on the east by the Strandherd Transitway, on the south by commercial retail and to the north by a church and Berrigan Drive. On the north side of Berrigan Drive is a fire station. Across Greenbank Road to the west there is an area of predominantly low and medium residential uses developed as reverse frontage on internal local streets.

Further south, at the southwest corner of Greenbank Road and Strandherd Drive is a mall known as the Barrhaven Town Centre. At the southeast corner of Greenbank Road and Strandherd Drive is a shopping centre known as Riocan Marketplace. The two commercial entities form what is referred to, in the South Nepean Town Centre Community Design Plan, as the Strandherd Retail District.

The subject site is accessed from Greenbank Road by two driveways: a signalized joint access driveway with the Canadian Tire site at the south end of the subject site, and a northbound right-in/right-out access at the north of the subject site. Another access is proposed, off Berrigan Drive, at the northeast corner of the property. There is also a pedestrian access to the Strandherd Transitway Station at the southwest corner of the subject site.

DISCUSSION

The former City of Nepean Zoning By-law defines Restaurant Fast Food as a use “…characterized by…customer pick up of food at a counter or drive-thru car pick up…” However, the site’s zoning, CC Block 5, permits a Restaurant Fast Food “provided there is no drive-through component.” This site-specific prohibition was put in place mainly due to residents’ concerns about safety and increased traffic, when, in 1998, the lands were rezoned from Rural Zone (RU) to a Community Commercial Zone (CC) to permit the development of a shopping plaza.

The subject site is designated as General Urban Area (“GUA”) in the Official Plan (OP). Section 3.6.1 of the OP directs that the zoning within the General Urban Area will allow those uses “that provide for the local, everyday needs of the residents”. Policy 6 of Section 3.6.1 of the OP encourages the provision, within the GUA, of small, locally-oriented convenience and service uses that complement adjacent residential land uses. In locations along the rapid-transit system, or an arterial or major collector roads with sufficient capacity to accommodate the anticipated traffic generated, and where frequent all-day transit service can be provided, the GUA permits uses that may generate traffic, noise or other impacts to surrounding residential areas, provided that the City can ensure that the impacts can be adequately mitigated or otherwise addressed.

Greenbank Road is classified as an Arterial road in the Official Plan and has a sufficient capacity to support the anticipated traffic generated by the proposed drive through services.

As indicated above, the subject site has two accesses off Greenbank Road: a main entrance equipped with traffic signals and a pedestrian crosswalk, and a second right-in/right out access with a median in place on Greenbank Road in order to prevent westbound left turns from this access driveway to southbound Greenbank. Both intersections function safely, and access from Greenbank Road to the property will not be changed and will continue to be carefully controlled through such measures as shared entrances and turn restrictions.

Greenbank Road, between Berrigan Drive and Strandherd Drive has a right of way of 44.5 metres, which in terms of noise, is a considerable buffer between the plaza (and proposed use) and residential properties on the west side of Greenbank Road. Mature trees along the rear property lines of these homes reduce the noise impact from the plaza and the road. The planned widening of Greenbank Road, between Fallowfield Road and Strandherd Drive, is scheduled to take place in 2008. Together with the widening, sound attenuation walls are proposed along the west side of Greenbank Road, which will further mitigate any negative noise impact of the proposed drive-through uses to the homes backing onto Greenbank Road.

The subject site is suitable for drive-through facilities as it currently benefits from two safely functioning access points on an arterial road, and based on the applicant’s site plan, the proposed development will also have a new access point off Berrigan Drive. A Traffic Impact Study, which was submitted in support of this application considered how the access on Berrigan Drive would operate in relation to the signals at Berrigan Drive and the Transitway and those at Greenbank Road and Berrigan Drive/Wessex Road. The analysis concluded that this proposed access could function well subject to modifications to Berrigan Drive. The applicant is prepared to carry out such modifications to Berrigan Drive as will be deemed necessary through the site plan control approval process.

The development of a drive-through facility on this site is appropriate as drive-throughs are consistent with the types of uses found on Arterial roads throughout the city. There are currently no drive-through restaurant facilities on Greenbank Road between West Hunt Club Road and Strandherd Drive. If the proposed use is approved, residents will not have to travel out of the area to use a drive-through restaurant.

The location of the site, near other commercial uses, institutional uses, and a residential community without any other drive-through restaurant, is suitable for the proposed use. A Traffic Impact Study has concluded that the site and nearby road intersections can accommodate additional traffic generated by the proposed use. The proposed use is unlikely to have any significant negative impact on neighbouring uses. Staff recommends approval of this application.

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. Details of the consultation can be found in Document 3.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS

N/A

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

Document 2 Details of Recommended zoning

Document 3 Consultation Details

DISPOSITION

City Clerk’s Branch to notify the owner/applicant, Crombie Property Holdings Ltd, Attn: Mark Stone, 5955 Airport Road, Ste 200, Mississauga, ON L4V 1R9, OttawaScene.com, 174 Colonnade Road, Unit #33, Ottawa, ON K2E 7J5, 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.

Legal Services Branch to forward the implementing by-law to City Council.

LOCATION MAP DOCUMENT 1

DETAILS OF RECOMMENDED ZONING DOCUMENT 2

“The zone provisions on the lands identified on Document 1 zoned CC Block 5 will be amended by deleting the words

“- provided there is no drive-through component” which follow the permitted use “Restaurant Fast-Food”.

CONSULTATION DETAILS DOCUMENT 3

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.

PUBLIC COMMENTS

Shortly after this rezoning application was made, Ward Councillor Harder posted a notice of the application in a local community paper, seeking the views of the community. The City had also posted notice signs on site as part of the statutory public notification exercise. Staff received no comments from residents whose properties back onto Greenbank Road. However, staff received a signed petition from some residents whose properties are on Berrigan and Edgeware Drives, opposing the proposal on the grounds of traffic congestion that the proposed drive-through facilities might generate. Traffic considerations are discussed in this report.