9. ZONING - 938 WATSON STREET

ZONAGE - 938, RUE WATSON

Committee recommendation

(This application is subject to Bill 51)

That Council approve an amendment to the former City of Ottawa Zoning By-law to change the zoning of 938 Watson Street from I1 (Minor Institutional Zone) to R2C [***] (Semi-Detached House subzone with an exception) to permit the existing detached house to stand alone as a permitted use not associated with the abutting Minor Institutional Zone, as detailed in Document 2.

Recommandation du Comité

(Cette demande est assujettie au Règlement 51)

Que le Conseil approuve une modification au Règlement de zonage de l’ancienne Ville d’Ottawa afin de changer la désignation de zonage du 938, rue Watson de I1 (zone institutionnelle mineure) à R2C [***] (Sous-zone de maisons jumelées assortie d’une exception) en vue de permettre qu’une maison isolée existante reste une utilisation permise non associée à la zone institutionnelle mineure adjacente, comme il est expliqué en détail dans le Document 2.

Documentation

1. Deputy City Manager's report Planning, Transit and the Environment dated 29 January 2008 (ACS2008-PTE-PLA-0021).

Report to/Rapport au :

Planning and Environment Committee

Comité de l'urbanisme et de l'environnement

and Council / et au Conseil

29 January 2008/ le 29 janvier 2008

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 : Grant Lindsay, Manager / Gestionnaire, Development Approvals / Approbation des demandes d'aménagement

(613) 580-2424, 13242 Grant.Lindsay@ottawa.ca

Bay (7)

Ref N°: ACS2008-PTE-PLA-0021

SUBJECT:	ZONING - 938 Watson Street (FILE NO. D02-02-07-0117)

OBJET :	ZONAGE - 938, rue watson

REPORT RECOMMENDATION

That the recommend Council approve an amendment to the former City of Ottawa Zoning By-law to change the zoning of 938 Watson Street from I1 (Minor Institutional Zone) to R2C [***] (Semi-Detached House subzone with an exception) to permit the existing detached house to stand alone as a permitted use not associated with the abutting Minor Institutional Zone, 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 d’Ottawa afin de changer la désignation de zonage du 938, rue Watson de I1 (zone institutionnelle mineure) à R2C [***] (Sous-zone de maisons jumelées assortie d’une exception) en vue de permettre qu’une maison isolée existante reste une utilisation permise non associée à la zone institutionnelle mineure adjacente, comme il est expliqué en détail dans le Document 2.

BACKGROUND

Located at the northwest corner of St. Stephen’s Street and Watson Street, as shown on Document 1, the subject lands are currently owned by St. Stephen’s Anglican Church.

The lands were created as a separate parcel through the May 24, 2007 decision of the Committee of Adjustment to grant a Conveyance and Grant of Easement (Application No. D08-01-07/B-00094). The purpose of this consent application was to create separate ownerships for an existing church (930 Watson Street) and ecclesiastical residence (938 Watson Street).

The subject lands are currently zoned I1 (Minor Institutional), and are occupied by a two-storey detached house, with a one-storey attached garage, that formerly served as an ecclesiastical residence for St. Stephen’s Anglican Church. The church and the ecclesiastical residence were constructed in the 1960s.

An application for minor variance accompanied the application for consent (Application No. D08-02-07/A-00178). The I1 Zone requires a minimum side yard of 4.5 metres. The minor variance was required to permit a northerly (interior) side yard of 1.2 metres, a situation of non-conformity to be created by the severance.

The surrounding lands are zoned R2C (Semi-Detached House Zone), with the exception of a portion of land to the northwest that is zoned R5A (Low-Rise Apartment Zone), and a property on an adjacent street that is zoned R6A H(30.0). In addition to the church, the surrounding land uses include a mix of detached houses, semi-detached house, townhouses, and an 11-storey Condominium apartment building.

Purpose of Zoning Amendment

The purpose of the Zoning By-law amendment is to rezone the subject lands from Minor Institutional (I1) to a residential zone to allow the existing detached dwelling (formerly the ecclesiastical residence) to stand alone as a residential use not associated with the church.

The existing detached dwelling has been used from time to time as an ecclesiastical residence, but over time has become less well suited for this use within the parish. The use of the building became a cause for concern within the community, as it appeared to be functioning as a 24-hour drop in centre for worship and/or humanitarian assistance. The building has been vacant for approximately a year. The Anglican Diocese views the dwelling and surrounding lands as surplus to their needs. The disposal of the lands and premises could provide much needed financial resources to the parish, and provide a residential dwelling unit in an established residential community.

Existing Zoning

The property is currently zoned I1 (Minor Institutional Zone). This zone permits a range of neighbourhood-serving, emergency and institutional uses. While an ecclesiastic residence is permitted within the I1 zone, a detached house is not.

Proposed Zoning

The proposed zoning for the property is a new R2C exception zone. R2 is a Semi-Detached House Zone that permits detached houses. For a detached house, subzone R2C requires a minimum lot width of 15 metres, and a minimum lot area of 464 square metres.

The severed property exceeds these performance standards, with a lot width of 18.41 metres (Watson Street), and a lot area of 530 square metres.

The exception is required as a result of the location of the existing building on the lot. The property is in Residential Height and Yard District “B” (as shown on Schedule 1 to Zoning By‑law 1998). The existing building is below the maximum permitted height (8.0 metres), but does not satisfy the minimum required yards for Area “B”. The required and proposed yards as follows:

	Minimum Required		Proposed	Exception Required
Front Yard	6.0 m		4.90 m
Corner Side Yard	4.5 m		4.81 m
Interior Side Yard	10% of lot width	1.8 m	1.2 m
Rear Yard Depth	25% of lot depth	6.67 m	4.9 m
Rear Yard Area	25% of lot area	132.5 m²	125 m²

DISCUSSION

Official Plan

The subject lands are designated “General Urban Area” in the Official Plan. Lands having this designation are expected to develop with a wide range of residential uses as well as employment, service, cultural, leisure, entertainment and institutional uses.

The current institutional zoning applying to the subject property is consistent with the direction of the Official Plan to provide for institutional uses that support the surrounding community. This zoning reflects the previous use of the property as an ecclesiastical residence associated with the church on the adjacent lands. The adjacent church however, no longer requires the residence for this purpose.

As a result of this obsolescence, and of the severance that was approved to have the site detached from the adjacent church site, the subject lands are no longer suited to accommodating a stand alone institutional use. The site is not of sufficient size to appropriately support a stand alone institutional use, nor is the detached dwelling currently located on the property considered suitable to accommodate an institutional use. While St. Stephen’s could use the subject property for another non-residential use accessory to the church, this would result in eliminating the historical residential use of the property. Removing the historical residential use would change the relationship that the property has had with its urban context.

The proposed rezoning from Minor Institutional (I1) to a Semi-detached House Subzone (R2C) will extend the residential zoning that exists in the area to the subject lands and will support the retention of the existing residential building, and will allow the site to become an integral element of the existing residential community.

A detached house, to be established as a permitted use for the site through the proposed rezoning, also conforms to the General Urban Area Official Plan designation.

In addition to retaining the existing dwelling, the proposal also involves retaining the green space that has been associated with the property and therefore will maintain the physical relationship that the property has had with its urban context.

Zoning By-law

The purpose of the R2 Zone is to permit low-density dwellings, in the form of detached houses, semi-detached houses, linked-detached houses and duplex houses. The zone aims to regulate development in a manner that adopts the existing land use patterns of the community so that the low-density character of a neighbourhood is maintained.

As noted in the background, the property exceeds the minimum lot size requirements of the R2C subzone for detached dwellings. In order to regularise the location of the existing detached house on the property relative to its relationship to lot lines, and to allow the building to stand on its own with no further association with the adjacent church, several modifications to the yard setback performance standards are required. These modifications are detailed in Document 2 – Details of Recommended Zoning.

Given the property’s location on the corner of Watson Street and St. Stephen’s Street, and that it will abut institutional lands, the proposed yard reductions will not have any adverse impacts. The yard modifications are considered minor adjustments that will allow the existing building to be retained so as to maintain the fabric of the property and its physical relationship with the community.

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. Comments received are noted 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, Council and Committee Services to notify the owner, St. Stephen’s Anglican Church, 930 Watson Street, Ottawa, ON K2B 6B9, applicant, Bill Holzman, Holzman Consultants Inc., 1076 Castle Hill Crescent, Ottawa, ON K2C 2A8, 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 I1 (Minor Institutional) zone applying to the property known municipally as 938 Watson Street, and shown as Area A on Document 1, is rezoned to a new R2C [***] exception zone, and the following provisions apply:

- Minimum required front yard: 4.90 metres [4.92 existing / 6.0 m req’d]

- Minimum required side yard: 1.2 metres [1.22 existing / 1.8 required]

- Minimum required rear yard depth: 4.90 metres [4.92 is existing / 6.67 req’d]

- Minimum required rear yard area: 125 square metres [127.59 is existing / 132.5 req’d]

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

The integrity of the neighbourhood has been seriously damaged by the by-law that allows infill within the city. To allow this change will again greatly interfere with the community structure and the environmental impact of the area in general. If I wanted to live in a “Barhaven” type community I would have moved there. But instead I find it coming to me! When will it stop?

Response to Comment: The rezoning application does not propose an increase in dwelling units, and is not a proposal for infill or intensification. The existing dwelling will be retained, and no environmental impact will result.

We are in agreement with this change.

Response to Comment: None required

We are concerned that a further increase in semi-detached houses on St. Stephen’s Avenue will mean more on-street parking, causing traffic congestion, and also with the loss of green space that will result if the property is re-developed.

Response to Comment: No new construction is contemplated as part of this application. The existing detached house has a garage, and is able to provide extra parking in the driveway. Any future new construction would be required to meet the requirements of all municipal by-laws, including zoning. The Zoning By-law requires a minimum of one parking space per dwelling unit in a semi-detached house.

While the grounds of St. Stephen’s Church are private property, following the rezoning, the existing greenspace will remain.