Report to/Rapport au :
Planning Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme
and Council / et au
Conseil
April
26, 2012
26 avril 2012
Submitted by/Soumis par : Nancy Schepers, Deputy City Manager/Directrice municipale
adjointe, Planning and Infrastructure/Urbanisme et Infrastructure
Contact Person / Personne ressource:
Contact Person/Personne-ressource : John Smit,Manager/Gestionnaire
Development Review-Urban Services, Inner Core/Examen des projets
d'aménagement-Services urbains, Unité du Centre intérieur Planning and Growth
Management/Urbanisme et Gestion de la croissance
(613) 580-2424, 13866 john.smit@ottawa.ca
SUBJECT:
|
OBJET :
|
ZONAGE – 422,
rue slater |
REPORT
RECOMMENDATION
That the recommend Council approve an amendment to Zoning
By-law 2008-250 to change the zoning of a part of 422 Slater Street shown on
Document 1, from Minor Institutional (I1A) to a Minor Institutional exception
zone with a schedule (I1A-[xxxx] SXXX) as detailed in Documents 2 and
3.
Recommandation
du rapport
Que le Comité de recommande au Conseil
d’approuver une modification au Règlement de zonage 2008-250, en vue de
faire passer le zonage d’une partie du 422, rue Slater, illustré dans le document
1, de Zone de petites institutions (I1A) à Zone de petites institutions
assortie d’une exception et d’une annexe (I1A-[xxxx] SXXX), tel qu’exposé en détail dans
les documents 2 et 3.
Background
In 2011, City
Council approved the East-West Segregated Bike Lane Pilot Project on Laurier
Avenue West. This Pilot Project was implemented in accordance with the City’s
Cycling Plan, which was approved in July 2008.
With the implementation of the Pilot Project, approximately 122 of the
existing 166 on-street paid parking spaces along Laurier Avenue were relocated
to Gloucester and Nepean Streets to accommodate the segregated bike
lanes. This included all of the
approximately 46 parking spaces along Laurier Avenue, between Bronson Avenue
and Bay Street. Within the same blocks
between Bronson Avenue and Bay Street, the City provided approximately 30 new
on‑street parking spaces along Gloucester and Nepean Streets.
In addition to the
foregoing, City Council also approved a motion whereby City Staff continue to
be involved in the process of identifying parking opportunities near Laurier
Avenue West, between Bronson Avenue and Bay Street. This proposal, which is a direct result of
that Council Motion, involves City Staff and the Ottawa Carleton District School
Board to allow 10 of the existing parking spaces on the Ottawa Technical High
School Lands to be used for public parking.
It is the intent of the City to enter into a Licence Agreement with the
School Board to provide the parking. A
similar situation has occurred with the Adult High School located at 300
Rochester Street.
Purpose of Zoning
Amendment
On the subject
property, there are currently approximately 133 parking spaces to accommodate
the use of the school. None of these
spaces are required by the City’s Zoning By-law as a minor institutional use
in the Central Area does not need to provide any parking. Through an agreement with the City, the
School Board is intending to lease 10 of the existing parking spaces (surface
spaces located under existing building) to the City, who will designate them
for public parking. The City will
provide a pay and display machine and the parking will have a two hour
maximum. This rezoning is required as a
parking lot, which would allow parking not associated with the school, is not
a permitted use on the property.
DISCUSSION
Official Plan
Transportation
- Section 2.3.1.
As part of the
City’s Transportation policies, Section 2.3.1. of the Official Plan contains
policies related to parking. These
policies indicate that there should be adequate short‑term parking that
supports the needs of local businesses, residents, institutions and tourism
destinations. Long-term parking should
be limited in a manner that balances transit ridership objectives and the
needs of automobile users. The parking
that was removed from Laurier Avenue between Bronson Avenue and Bay Street was
used primarily to meet the short-term parking requirements of residents in the
area, such as visitor parking. The
parking to be provided at the school will be a two hour maximum and is
intended to offset that short-term parking loss.
In addition to the
foregoing, the Official Plan also indicates that the City will ensure the
overall coordination and management of municipal parking needs and
supply. The introduction of the
segregated bike lanes has resulted in a loss of municipal parking spaces on
Laurier Avenue and this proposed rezoning satisfies this policy by responding
to a need for additional parking.
Compatibility
with Surrounding Land Uses
In an effort to
manage the amount of parking in the Central Area, it should also be mentioned
that the proposed rezoning will not result in the conversion of lands from another
use, or the loss of current green space.
The subject parking spaces already exist and instead of being used by
the school, they will now be available to the public.
Escarpment Area
District Plan
While Escarpment Area District concentrates on the redevelopment of the Study Area, of which the subject property is a part, the proposal is in keeping with general parking polices, which are to consolidate and to conceal parking. As the proposal is to share an existing parking lot and spaces, as opposed to expanding it for the construction of additional spaces, the proposed rezoning satisfies this intent. As well, as the municipal parking would only occur as long as the property is owned by the School Board, the proposed rezoning would not delay the possible future redevelopment of the property in accordance with the Escarpment Plan.
RURAL IMPLICATIONS
There
are no rural implications associated with this report.
CONSULTATION
Notice
of this application was carried out in accordance with the City's Public
Notification and Consultation Policy.
The City did not receive any negative comments or opposition to this
application.
Public
Works Department
The
Parking Operations, Maintenance & Development (POMD) Branch of the Public
Works Department is in support of the report recommendation and will work with
the Real Estate, Partnerships and Development Office (REPDO) and the Planning
and Growth Management (PGM) Department to implement the recommendation subject
to approval by Council.
Under
delegated authority REPDO will execute a licence agreement with the school
Board that has been agreed to by Councillor Holmes, PGM, REPDO and the School
Board that will include the following conditions:
- POMD will provide the pay and display
machine and operate the spaces which includes collections and maintenance
activities, setting the rate structure and operating hours via the
contracts with the Precise Parklink, the City’s parking service provider.
- POMD will retain the revenue to
off-set the capital cost of the pay and display machine and monthly
charges from the parking service provider.
- The School Board will continue to
maintain the facility including paving, pavement markings, snow removal
repairs at their cost.
The
initiative aligns with the service mandate of the Municipal Parking Management
Program stated in the Municipal Parking Management Strategy.
Comments by the Ward Councillor
Councillor
Diane Holmes indicated the following:
I am
fully in support of the rezoning to allow for 10 additional parking spots.
There is a need for nearby parking due to the loss of on-street spots at this
end of Laurier resulting from the segregated bike lane.
LEGAL IMPLICATIONS
There
are no direct legal implications associated with this report.
RISK MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS
There are no risk management implications
association with the recommendation in this report.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
ACCESSIBILITY
IMPACTS
Environmental
Implications
There are no
environmental implications associated with this report.
Technology
Implications
There are no
technology implications associated with this report.
TERm of council
priorities
GP3 –
Making Sustainable Choices
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 Parking Schedule
Document 3 Details of Recommended Zoning
Document 4 Consultation Details
DISPOSITION
City Clerk and
Solicitor Department, Legislative Services to notify the owner, applicant, Ottawa Scene
Canada Signs, 1565 Chatelaine Avenue,
Ottawa, ON K1Z 8B5, Ghislain Lamarche, Program Manager,
Assessment, Financial Services Branch (Mail Code: 26‑76) of City Council’s decision.
Planning
and Growth Management to
prepare the implementing by-law, forward to Legal Services and undertake the
statutory notification.
Legal Services to
forward the implementing by-law to City Council.
LOCATION MAP DOCUMENT 1
PARKING SCHEDULE DOCUMENT
2
DETAILS OF RECOMMENDED ZONING DOCUMENT
3
Proposed Changes to the Comprehensive Zoning By-law
Additional Uses Permitted:
- Rezone the subject lands from I1A to
I1A[XXXX] SXXX
- Add a new exception, I1A[XXXX] SXXX, to
section 239 – urban exceptions with provisions similar in effect to the
following:
- In column II the text “I1A[XXXX]SXXX”;
- In column III the text “- parking lot”
- In column V the text:
“- A parking lot as a principal use is only permitted within Area A on
Schedule XXX and may not exceed 10 parking spaces
- A principal use parking lot may share its driveway and aisle with
other parking lots on the same lot”
- Add Document 2 to Part 17 as a new
schedule.
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. Six
comments were received from the posting of the on-site sign and three comments
were received from the circulation to concerned community groups. Of the six public comments received, four
people expressed concerns while two wanted more information. All three of the community groups expressed
concerns. A summary of the public
comments received, the comments from the community groups and a response to
them are provided below.
SUMMARY OF PUBLIC INPUT
1. I am alarmed that
the City is changing the Council approved Escarpment Plan without consulting
the community.
Response
The proposed rezoning does not change the Council Approved Escarpment
Plan or delay its implementation. The
part of the property subject to this rezoning is already being used for
parking.
2. The proposed rezoning will result in turning
the property into a hot, ugly and noisy asphalt tract that will lead to its
commercial development.
Response
The area where the parking will take place is already covered by
asphalt. This proposal does not increase
the amount of hard surface.
3. Parking should be returned to Laurier Avenue
from November to April and then it can be used by cyclists from May to October.
Response
The City has looked into the possibility of eliminating the bike lane on
the south side of Laurier Avenue during the winter months and determined that
this is not possible. The reasons for
this were recently provided to Transportation Committee and are presented as
follows.
Removing the bike lane on the South side of
Laurier Avenue during the winter months would not allow for additional
on-street parking or loading zones as the lane width would still be too
narrow. This would also require
additional funds for the removal of signs, paint markings, curb buffers, and
signal adjustments that would be in the order of $100,000 plus similar costs to
reinstate the bike lane in the spring of 2013.
There is also safety concerns associated with
driver expectations if the lane arrangements, signs, signals and paint markings
change frequently. This would also
likely shorten the full cycling season and would negate the winter cycling
evaluation portion of the pilot study. It should be noted that approximately
250 daily bike trips were counted on Laurier Avenue near Metcalfe Street during
the month of January. These winter
volumes will likely increase over time if the lanes are extended further to the
east or west. It should also be noted
that the winter volumes represent approximately 10 per cent of the observed
summer volumes which is similar to the winter cycling retention rates for
Montreal’s winter bike routes.
4. Why would we need a rezoning for parking when
public parking is already permitted on the property?
Response
If public parking
is currently occurring on the property, it is in contravention of the City’s
Zoning By-law. This rezoning is required
to allow it to happen legally.
COMMUNITY
ORGANIZATION COMMENTS
The Dalhousie Community Association provided the following comments.
The Dalhousie
Community Association is opposed to the creation of additional public parking
lots in the downtown. Too much of the downtown area is already given over to
the movement and storage of automobiles. We should be moving towards better
uses of parking lots that make our city more liveable and attractive.
Response to
Comments from the Dalhousie Community Association
The proposed
rezoning does not add any additional parking spaces on the subject
property. Spaces that already exist will
now be available to the public.
The Bay/Bronson
Residents’ Action Group for Fair Access to the Road (BBRAGFAR) provided the
following comments.
- The
proposal represents a piecemeal and insufficient attempt by the City of
Ottawa to offset the loss of 69 parking spaces on Laurier as a result of
the Segregated Bike Lane Pilot Project.
- The
reassignment of ten (10) existing spaces for public parking in the Ottawa
Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) school yard in no way constitutes
an appropriate or acceptable response by the City of Ottawa to the major
loss of 69 parking spaces on Laurier Avenue.
- The proposal goes against the Escarpment
Area District Plan (EADP) approved by Council in December 2008, which
calls for considerable green spaces on the land and does not include any
surface parking.
- Adding public parking opens the door for
additional deviations from Council’s approved plan as demand continues to
increase in the future - and it will.
- The proposal in no way addresses the need
for parking within close proximity of most of the buildings for residents
with mobility problems or seniors who would not feel secure walking that
distance, especially at night.
- Finally, the proposal lacks forethought in
that it does nothing to address the upcoming demand for on-street parking
that will occur when more than 450 new condo units are built at Gloucester
and Lyon Streets within the next two years. Both buildings will provide much fewer
visitor parking spaces than required by the by-laws.
Response to Comments from BBRAGFAR
- In response to the 46 parking spaces that
were removed from Laurier Avenue, between Bronson Avenue and Bay Street,
the City provided 30 extra parking spaces on Gloucester and Nepean
Streets. The proposed rezoning will
take 10 existing parking spaces and make them available to the public,
similar to as if they were provided on the City’s road allowance.
- The 10 additional parking spaces will
augment the 41 additional spaces provided on Nepean and Gloucester
Streets. A motion was passed by
City Council, whereby City
Staff continue to be involved in the process of identifying parking
opportunities near Laurier Avenue West, between Bronson Avenue and Bay
Street. This proposal is a direct
result of that Council Motion and may be one of other future
opportunities.
- The
Escarpment Plan is a long range plan that speaks to how the entire site
may be developed in the future. The
proposed rezoning does not add any additional parking to the site and is
not anticipated to delay any possible future redevelopment of the
site. As well, the proposal
satisfies the parking policies of the Escarpment Plan.
- As stated, the proposed development is in
keeping with the parking policies of the Escarpment Plan.
- The proposed development provides 10 spaces
to serve residents of the area who may have mobility problems or who don’t
feel secure in walking too far of a distance.
- Each of
the two development proposals mentioned was approved on its own
merits. While visitor parking for
the Condominium on Lyon (the Gotham) has been lowered, it has only been
amended to the rate that has been applicable to other condominiums in the
downtown area since 1964. The
Development at Gloucester/Bay and Nepean is providing visitor parking in
accordance with the new provisions in the City’s Zoning By-law.
The Carleton
Condominium Corporation NO. 289 provided the following comments:
The Board of
Directors of the Carleton Condominium Corporation No.289, located at 556
Laurier Avenue West, wishes to express its support of the submission being
presented by the Chairperson of the Bay-Bronson Residents’ Action Group for
Fair Access to the Road (BBRAGFAR) regarding the above noted rezoning proposal.
We also believe
that it is important that citizens and residents who live on Laurier West be
informed very rapidly on what the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and the
City of Ottawa have in mind in terms of the future use of the school yard.
Our Board of
Directors is aware of the City’s proposed Escarpment Area District Plan as
approved by the Council in December 2008, which does not provide for any
surface parking. We share the concerns
expressed by BBRAGFAR that this rezoning proposal could open the door to more
future changes thus setting aside the approved plan for this property and
without consultations with stakeholders.
Please consider
this letter as our endorsement of BBRAGFAR’s submission to the Planning and
Growth Management Development Department of the City of Ottawa on the rezoning
of 422 Slater.
Response to Comments
from CCC No. 289
As presented in
this submission, the proposed rezoning does not result in any additional
parking spaces on the property nor the loss of green space. The Escarpment Plan provides a long range
development plan for the site and the proposed rezoning does not delay or
forego the recommendations or the implementation of this plan for the subject
property.