Report to/Rapport au :

 

Planning and Environment Committee

Comité de l'urbanisme et de l'environnement

 

and Council / et au Conseil

 

31 March 2006 / le 31 mars 2006

 

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 : Karen Currie, Manager / Gestionnaire

Development Approvals / Approbation des demandes d'aménagement

(613) 580-2424 x28310, Karen.Currie@ottawa.ca

 

Bell South Nepean (3)

Ref N°: ACS2006-PGM-APR-0070

 

 

SUBJECT:

ZONING - 2 Laser street, and 20 and 22 gurdwara road (FILE NO. D02-02-05-0168)

 

 

OBJET :

ZONAGE - 2, rue laser et 20 et 22, chemin gurdwara

 

 

REPORT RECOMMENDATION

 

That Planning and Environment Committee recommend Council approve an amendment to the former Nepean Zoning By-Law to amend the MP Block 9 Zone - Business Park Exception Zone for 2 Laser Street to add a retail warehouse, and that the zoning of 20 and 22 Gurdwara Road be changed from MP - Business Park Zone, to MP Block 9 - Business Park Exception Zone, as shown in Document 1 and as detailed in Document 2.

 

RECOMMANDATION DU RAPPORT

 

Que le Comité de l’urbanisme et de l’environnement recommande au Conseil d’approuver une modification au Règlement de zonage de l’ancienne Ville de Nepean afin de changer la zone MP bloc 9, zone de parc industriel assortie d’une exception, du 2, rue Laser en vue d’ajouter un entrepôt de détail, et la désignation de zonage des 20 et 22, chemin Gurdwara de MP, zone de parc industriel, à MP bloc 9, zone de parc industriel assortie d’une exception, tel qu’il est indiqué dans le document 1 et expliqué en détail dans le document 2.

 

 

BACKGROUND

 

This application applies to a vacant parcel of land located at 2 Laser Street, and to two sites at 20 and 22 Gurdwara Road, which are each occupied by one storey multi-tenancy buildings. The vacant site at 2 Laser Street is currently zoned for and used as a private snow disposal site. The site is bounded by West Hunt Club Road on the west, on the north by existing commercial/industrial buildings, to the east by Gurdwara Road and to the south by Laser Street. This area consists of commercial, industrial and office uses.

 

 

DISCUSSION

 

Official Plan Conformity

 

The parcel is designated as "Business Park" in the former Plans of the Regional Municipality and the City of Nepean. The City Council Approved Official Plan designates the site as "Employment Area", however the relevant policies, approved under OPA 28, are under appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board. The existing uses currently occupying 20 and 22 Gurdwara Road were developed in conformity with these designations and the proposed retail warehouse will be developed in conformity with the City Council Approved Official Plan.

 

Details of Proposed Zoning

 

The two properties at 20 and 22 Gurdwara Road are zoned as MP - Industrial Park Zone, which permits a range of industrial, commercial and business uses. The vacant site at 2 Laser Street is zoned as MP- Block 9, which permits a snow disposal facility on this site in addition to the MP zone uses. The surrounding zones within this designation are MS - Industrial Service, ML - Light Industrial and Institutional.

 

The application proposes to add a "retail warehouse" as an additional permitted use in the existing MP Block 9 Zone applicable to 2 Laser Street and rezone 20 and 22 Gurdwara Road to the amended MP Block 9 Zone. This will allow the proponents to market the sites to a wider range of clients whose operations are more in keeping with a business park setting than a typical retail or commercial plaza context. The potential uses may include smaller retail warehouse operations which, given the evolving nature of marketing, involve some extent of manufacture and warehousing on-site, with a sample and showroom to display the products. These types of operations also do not generate frequent vehicular trips and draw from a larger market area. Many of the contemplated uses would include window and door manufacturers and installers, flooring, window and wall covering manufactures and installers, kitchen and bath components, furniture upholsters, fitness products and plumbing operations among others. The current definitions contained in the Zoning By-law, while including a variety of similar uses, establishes performance criteria that have not kept pace with the evolving nature of the economic marketing. For example, a Factory Sales Outlet is allowed in the MP Zone, but requires that the goods being sold, be manufactured entirely on-site. This definition does not accommodate the operations that receive and store large shipments of merchandise in a warehouse with a limited area for sales of the associated merchandise. These types of businesses also provide a valuable function in supplying the trade sector with goods and services.

 

Some of the Zoning By-law restrictions on existing uses also preclude the establishment of smaller specialty improvement stores, which typically have minimal on-site warehouse space that is physically separated from the showroom area. Furthermore, these uses may not assemble products on-site, an additional requirement of the Zoning By-law, but have this done at the place of delivery or by the customer. Similar amendments to the Zoning By-law have been carried out further west along West Hunt Club Road to permit other retail warehouse operations that would ordinarily not be permitted by the existing defined uses in the Zoning By-law.

 

The applicants contemplate no revisions to the approved site plans on file for the existing multi-tenancy buildings as the existing buildings can accommodate the proposed use. With respect to the vacant site at 2 Laser Street, no site plan application has been filed and it is expected that when the zoning is finalized, marketing of the site will yield such an application.

 

The Department supports the addition of the use for the subject properties through this Zoning By-law amendment. The proposal complies with the City Council Approved Official Plan direction to provide opportunities for a variety of services and products to the local economy by non-industrial uses in the Business Park areas. Also in keeping with the Official Plan, the use will increase the employment potential for this particular area of the City.

 

 

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.

 

The Department did receive one letter of objection to the proposal from a landowner within this business park. The arguments presented against the proposed use were in reference to an existing recreational vehicle sales use across the street from this proposal at 1 Laser Street. An automobile sales dealership was added to the zoning for the neighbouring property to allow for recreational vehicle sales. The opponent states that unscreened outdoor storage, excessive neon signage, and the display of recreational vehicles along the Hunt Club Road frontage all contribute a negative image of the park. Staff does not believe this proposal will create similar problems because the types of uses that a retail warehouse encompasses, do not operate like a vehicle sales dealership with significant outdoor displays and storage. The City’s Sign By-law however, regulates signage, and businesses are generally entitled to one sign per frontage. With respect to the outdoor storage and display of vehicles at 1 Laser Street, the Zoning By-law for the property specifically prohibits this. 

 

 

APPLICATION PROCESS TIMELINE STATUS

 

The application was processed by the "On Time Decision Date" established for the processing of Zoning By-Law. The on-time date for consideration of this item by Planning and Environment Committee was March 28, 2006, however, at the request of the applicant, this report is being brought forward to the April 11, 2006 meeting.

 

 

SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION

[U1] 

Document 1      Location Map

Document 2      Details of Recommended Zoning

 

DISPOSITION

 

Corporate Services Department, City Clerk's Branch to notify the owner's agent (Kathleen Willis, Kathleen Willis Consulting Ltd., 6393 Rosslyn Street, Orleans. ON K1C 2Z9), Signs.ca, 866 Campbell Avenue, Ottawa, ON, K2A 2C5 and Ghislain Lamarche, Program Manager, Assessment, Financial Services Branch (Mail Code:  26-76) of City Council’s decision.

 

Planning and Growth Management 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.

 


DOCUMENT 1

 

LOCATION MAP                                                                                                 



DOCUMENT 2

 

DETAILS OF RECOMMENDED ZONING                                                                               

 

1.  That the text of the Industrial Park Zone MP Block 9 zone be replaced with the following:

 

MP Block 9.............................2 Laser Drive and 20 and 22 Gurdwara Road - See Schedule B9

 

     Despite the permitted uses specified in subsection 8:4:1, on lands zoned Industrial Park Zone - MP Block 9, the following additional use is permitted:

 

(a)        Retail Warehouse, which shall mean a type of RETAIL STORE wherein products are    displayed and stored for sale upon the premises, where a single user occupies a minimum        G.F.A. of 139.4 square metres and shall not exceed a maximum G.F.A. of 7,431square   metres and where such products shall not include food and pharmaceutical products. A     DEPARTMENT STORE is specifically excluded from this definition."

 

2.    That Schedule B9 of Zoning By-law 100-2000 be amended to reflect the above noted changes.                            


 [U1]Include the documents that are applicable to this report