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5. zONING - 1002 Karen Way |
Committee recommendation as
amended
That Council approve an amendment to the former City of Ottawa Zoning
By-Law to change the zoning of 1002 Karen Way from I1 - Institutional Zone
to an R6 with an Exception provision allowing a building height limit of 7
storeys.
Recommandation modifiée du Comité
Que le Conseil approuve une modification au Règlement de zonage de
l'ancienne Ville d'Ottawa afin de changer le zonage du 1002, voie Karen de I1 -
zone institutionnelle à R6 assortie d’une exception permettant une hauteur
maximale de sept étages pour les bâtiments.
Documentation
1. Deputy City Manager's report (Planning
and Growth Management) dated 24 May 2006 (ACS2006-PGM-APR-0055).
2. Extract of Draft Minute, 27 June 2006
to be issued prior to the Council meeting.
Report
to/Rapport au :
Planning and Environment Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme et de
l'environnement
and Council / et au Conseil
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 : Grant Lindsay,
Manager / Gestionnaire
Development Approvals / Approbation des demandes d'aménagement
(613) 580-2424 x13242, Grant.Lindsay@ottawa.ca
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SUBJECT: |
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OBJET : |
REPORT RECOMMENDATION
That the Planning and Environment Committee recommend Council approve an amendment to the former City of Ottawa Zoning By-Law to change the zoning of 1002 Karen Way from I1 - Institutional Zone to an R6 - High-rise Apartment zone with exceptions, as shown in Document 1 and 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
d'Ottawa afin de changer le zonage du 1002, voie Karen de I1 - zone
institutionnelle à R6 - zone de tours d'habitation assortie d'exceptions, tel
qu'il est indiqué dans le document 1 et expliqué dans le document 2.
BACKGROUND
The site is situated north of Montreal Road on St. Laurent Boulevard at the southeast corner of the Karen Way and St. Laurent Boulevard intersection.
The site contained a two-storey building that was formerly used as a school and demolished in 2005. The site area is 5 448.4 square metres. The surrounding uses include, a cemetery and Hydro transformer plant to the west, neighbourhood shopping centre and low-rise, walk-up apartment buildings to the north, semi-detached dwellings to the east and townhouses and low-rise, walk-up apartment buildings to the south.
The property is presently zoned I1 which is a Minor Institutional Zone permitting a range of neighbourhood-serving, emergency and institutional uses. The permitted height limit is 11 metres.
The applicant upon submission of their application was seeking an R6 - High-rise Apartment zone with a height limit of 52.0 metres to permit an 18-storey, 200+ unit, condominium high-rise apartment building with underground parking. The proposal also included townhouses along the eastern portion of the site. The R6 zone permits a mix of medium and high density residential uses.
The initial proposal for the 18-storey, high-rise apartment building was abandoned following a public meeting in the community (January 21, 2004) where strong opposition to the project was voiced by surrounding residents. The applicant is currently seeking approval of a 12-storey apartment building with underground parking and eight townhouses. The apartment building will contain 162 units. The gross floor area of the entire development, including the townhouses, will be 16 652 square metres. This equates to an FSI of 3.0. The apartment building will abut St. Laurent Boulevard, while the townhouses will be situated along the easterly property line. The courtyard between the high-rise building and the townhouses will be dedicated to a drop-off area, visitor parking and landscaping. There will be two separate driveways off Karen Way; one leading to the main entrance of the apartment building and the underground parking garage and the other to the eight townhouses.
The application was placed on hold November 15, 2004, at the request of the applicant who requested deferral of the item to Planning and Environment Committee in January 2005. It was staff's understanding, given the community objection to the 12-storey building that the applicant was prepared to meet with residents and explore development options for the site. These meetings occurred during the last several months. Staff did not participate in these discussions, but has been advised that no agreement with respect to development of the site was reached between the applicant and the community. On May 2, 2006, Richcraft formally requested that their file be reactivated and that the rezoning requested to allow a 12-storey apartment be brought forward to Planning and Environment Committee and City Council.
DISCUSSION
City Council Approved Official Plan
The City Council approved Official Plan
designates the subject site as "General Urban Area".
This
designation permits the development of a full range and choice of housing types
to meet the needs of all ages, incomes and life circumstances, in combination
with conveniently located employment, service, cultural, leisure, entertainment
and institutional uses. This
designation facilitates the development of complete and sustainable
communities. While the City is
supportive of the establishment of a broad mix of uses in Ottawa's
neighbourhoods, this is not meant to imply that all uses will be permitted
everywhere within this designation as location, scale and type of land uses
will continue to be regulated by the Zoning By-law, in accordance with the
provision of the approved Plan.
The City supports infill development and other
intensification within the "General Urban Area" in a manner that
enhances and complements the desirable characteristics in the surrounding area,
and ensures the long-term vitality of many existing communities that make up
the city. The Plan encourages denser,
more compact and balanced development and promotes communities in which car
ownership is not required. When
considering a proposal for residential intensification through infill or
redevelopment, the policies for this designation recognize the importance of
new development relating to existing community character so that it enhances
and builds upon desirable established patterns and built form, as well as
require that developments be reviewed in the context of Section 2.5.1,
Compatibility and Community Design that addresses compatibility of form and
function of new development with the surrounding properties. The Department must further consider the
proposal's contribution to the maintenance and achievement of a balance of
housing types and tenures, as well as assess the requirement for
ground-oriented housing forms for established low-rise residential communities.
It is the Department's opinion that the
proposed rezoning meets the general intent and spirit of the Plan as it will
permit a development that satisfies the policies of a "General Urban
Area" designation by providing residential intensification at an
appropriate location along an arterial road and at the edge of an existing
community, providing a mix of housing types that incorporate ground-oriented
housing forms into the proposal and by providing a building design that is
sensitive to the surrounding residential neighbourhood. Although the proposed high-rise apartment
building might not be the same land use as the abutting uses, the City Council
Approved Plan recognizes that compatible development means development that
might not necessarily mean the same as or similar to the existing buildings in
the vicinity. If a development/building
can enhance an established community and co-exist with existing development
without causing undue adverse impact on the surrounding properties then it can
be considered compatible development.
Staff believes that the proposed high-rise apartment building and the
eight townhouses have been designed to fit well within their physical context
and work well among those functions that surround them, without being "the
same as" the existing development.
How compatible development has been achieved is discussed in detail
below.
Former City of Ottawa Official Plan
The former City of Ottawa Official Plan
designates the site "Residential Area" which permits a full range of
dwelling types and contains policies by which to evaluate residential
intensification to achieve the goal of environmentally sustainable urban
development.
The subject site is a former institutional site
that contained a building that was deemed surplus by the School Board. There are policies in the Institutional
Chapter of the Plan, Section 10.3.2 b) that speak to the review of rezoning
requests of former school sites and the establishment of a new zoning and land
uses that are compatible with the adjacent uses. The Plan also contains objectives in the Housing Supply and
Compatible Development, Section 3.6.1, of the Plan that also speak to making
efficient use of underutilized services through intensification measures to
satisfy future housing demands, as well as Policies 3.6.2 i) and j) that set
out locational requirements and factors for considerations when assessing the
acceptability of moderate residential development proposals. The factors considered include, adequate
transportation and hard service capacities; the proposal results in a gradual
transitional form; minimal shadowing on adjacent properties etc. These locational requirements and factors
for consideration are intended to ensure that new infill development or
redevelopment is compatible with the surrounding area.
The development proposed under the requested
zoning constitutes a moderate residential development that is situated on an
arterial road, at the edge of an established residential community, and on an
underutilized site that is adjacent to community-serving uses. The combination of permitted uses,
performance standards and the proposed exception provisions in the recommended
zoning in Document 3 will ensure the fulfillment of the compatibility policies
of this Plan. It is the Department's
opinion that the proposed Zoning By-law amendment is in keeping with the intent
of the former City of Ottawa Official Plan.
Compatible Development and Exceptions to
Proposed Zoning
The subject site is located across the street
from an existing local shopping centre zone containing a small neighbourhood
plaza. North of this site exists
another small plaza within a general commercial zoning. While the site is adjacent to existing low
profile, ground-oriented housing to the east, the surrounding area to the south
along St. Laurent Boulevard south of Brittany Drive has significant non-ground
oriented housing ranging in height from eight to 28 storeys. Given the subject site's proximity to
commercially zoned land and commercial activity, as well as high-profile
buildings, the Department can support intensification of this site to permit
not only ground-oriented houses, but greater intensification of the site near
St. Laurent Boulevard. This
intensification, in the form of a high-rise apartment building at the St.
Laurent Boulevard frontage, constitutes an appropriate and desirable use of the
land, provided the building's scale/mass is suitably sited near St. Laurent
Boulevard and architecturally designed to achieve compatible development with
the surrounding properties.
The Department's decision to support higher
intensification adjacent to St. Laurent Boulevard is conditional upon the
inclusion within the project design of a low-profile housing block abutting the
existing low-rise, neighbourhood homes to the east of the site. The recommended zoning in Document 3 will
contain such a provision requiring a low-profile housing block that creates a
desirable transition in building form/height between the existing neighbourhood
and the new development. This transitional
housing will be limited to a low-profile height limit of 10.5 metres and be
required to have back yards facing the back yards of the existing homes in the
abutting R2 zone. This will satisfy the
Official Plan policies with respect to the requirement for ground-oriented
housing forms within established low-rise residential communities and provide
the ability to design and integrate the proposal within the existing community.
It is recognized that the proposal will
intensify development of this site and the neighbourhood. To lessen the impact of the 12-storey
height, the zoning exceptions will ensure that the apartment building is
situated close to St. Laurent Boulevard (no more than 4.6 metres from the boulevard
right-of-way) away from the community facing a four-lane undivided arterial
road currently accommodating OC Transpo buses.
The placement of the building at the western edge of the site near to
St. Laurent Boulevard will achieve an acceptable setback (minimum 58.0 metres)
from the low-rise neighbourhoods to the east and south and result in minimum
impacts on these areas. To ensure that
the apartment building height does not exceed the applicant's design proposal,
the portion of the site near St. Laurent Boulevard will be restricted to a 35.4
metre height limit. To lessen the
visual impact of the building's height at street level the rendered plans of
the tower show a structure containing two-storey glazed windows with the upper
two storeys recessed from the main building wall and comprised of a
light-coloured surface material.
Although these architectural design elements can contribute towards
greater compatibility and acceptance, they cannot form part of the Zoning
By-law. The Department, nevertheless,
will endeavor to ensure at the Site Plan Control stage that the proposed
building design elements remain consistent with the current rendered plans.
The applicant at the request of staff undertook
a sun/shadow analysis. The analysis
shows that the proposed 12-storey apartment building will have minimum impacts
on the adjacent properties/dwellings, with respect to loss of sunlight. Properties not abutting the site will have
little to no impact during the Spring and Fall Equinoxes. A three-dimensional modeling has been
completed that confirms the project's "fit" into the existing
community.
Traffic Considerations
A Traffic and Transportation Impact Study was
undertaken by the applicant and its findings are supported by staff. An Addendum Report to this study was
requested by staff to address the traffic and pedestrian generation produced by
the Educarium School located at 417 St. Laurent Boulevard and address the need
for traffic signals at the St. Laurent Boulevard/Karen Way intersection to
accommodate pedestrian concerns.
The conclusions of the traffic analysis
determined that the proposed development is anticipated to result in negligible
incremental change to the traffic circulation patterns and the level of service
within the study area. The Report,
however, did recognize that within the study area, several individual
intersection movements experience lower levels of service than would be
considered desirable. The Report
additionally addressed the community's concern about the extent of cut-through
traffic through the neighbourhood to the east, as well as the need for a
signalized intersection at Karen Way and St. Laurent Boulevard. The Report findings determined that the
amount of cut-through traffic (40-50 vehicles over three hours) was a negligible
amount for the local streets. With
respect to signals at Karen Way and St. Laurent Boulevard, the Report concluded
vehicles entering St. Laurent Boulevard from the westbound left-turn movement
at Karen Way during the peak period will have sufficient gaps to successfully
complete the turning movements.
The Report analysis further determined that the
above issues (other intersections experiencing low levels of service and
cut-through traffic) will not constrain the proposed development in that its
total traffic generation component was determined to be less than 70
vehicles-per-hour (two-way) and about 40 vehicles-per-hour in the peak
direction assuming no reduction for transit usage. Once distributed through the roadway network the impact of this
site was anticipated to have a nominal effect on the local community.
The Addendum Report concluded that the impacts
of the Educarium School have little to do with the proposed development in that
the traffic generated by this development during the morning peak hour on Peach
Tree Lane was estimated to be less than 10 vehicles-per-hour; parking
associated with the school along Peach Tree Lane is a very short duration
during the morning peak hour; and that the afternoon traffic associated with
the school does not coincide with the afternoon peak hour of travel
demand. In recognition of the continued
growth of the Educarium and the perceived need to improve traffic operations
along Peach Tree Lane, the Addendum Report recommended the erection of a STOP sign
facing southbound traffic at the Peach Tree Lane/Karen Way intersection in the
southbound direction, as well as implementing parking restrictions on the east
side of Peach Tree Lane. Staff agrees
with the findings of the Addendum Report.
The Department, however, is suggesting that a sidewalk be built on the
south side of Karen Way along the frontage of the site. This will be requested at the Site Plan
Control approval stage.
Site Specific Zoning Amendment
The recommended zoning is a zoning to
accommodate the applicant's development proposal for the site. Any changes in the future to the design that
are not accommodated within the recommended zoning will require further amendments
through either a further rezoning or the Committee of Adjustment process; both
of which are public processes. The
proposed zoning exceptions, as detailed in Document 3, will ensure that the
high-profile development on site occurs adjacent to St. Laurent Boulevard,
thereby accommodating a building height that is compatible with the cluster of
higher-rise buildings south along St. Laurent Boulevard, yet still ensuring an
acceptable and compatible development with the ground-oriented housing in the
surrounding area. The new zoning also
will provide for a low-profile component along the eastern portion of the
site. This creates a housing form that
is sympathetic to and similar with the existing housing pattern in the
surrounding community, as well as acts as an appropriate transition to the new
development.
CONSULTATION
Notice of this application was carried out in accordance with the City's Public Notification and Consultation Policy. Information signs were posted on-site indicating the nature of the application. The Ward Councillor is aware of this application and the staff recommendation. A number of comments in opposition to this application were received. Two public meetings occurred in the community on January 21, 2004, and May 5, 2004.
Detailed responses to the
notification/circulation are provided in Document 5.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
N/A
APPLICATION PROCESS
TIMELINE STATUS
This application was not processed within the
timeframe established for the processing of Zoning By-Law Amendment
applications. This was due to the
applicant modifying their proposal midstream in the review process to respond
to public concerns with the initial proposal
The applicant requested that the application be
placed on hold to allow for additional dialogue with the community for their
modified proposal for a 12-storey building.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Document 1 Location Map
Document 2 Details of Recommended Zoning
Document 3 Proposed Development - Site Plan
Document 4 Consultation Details
DISPOSITION
Department of Corporate Services, Secretariat Services to notify the owner (Richcraft Homes, 2280 St. Laurent Boulevard, Ottawa, ON, K1G 4K), applicant (Rod Lahey Architect, 200-1501 Carling Avenue Ottawa, ON K1Z 7M1), All Signs, 8692 Russell Road, Navan, ON K4B 1J1, and the Program Manager, Assessment, Department of Corporate Services 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.
Department of Corporate Services, Legal Services Branch to forward the implementing by-law to City Council.
DOCUMENT 1
LOCATION MAP
DOCUMENT 2
DETAILS OF RECOMMENDED ZONING
That the following exceptions be added to the recommended R6 zoning:
1. Require that a minimum of eight, planned unit development, townhouse dwelling units be constructed along the eastern edge of the site and that the rear yard requirement of these units be provided between the units and the abutting rear yards of the homes in the adjacent R2A zone;
2. The setback between an apartment building high rise and:
(a) the lot line, front (line abutting St. Laurent Boulevard) be no more than 4.6 metres, and
(b) the lot line, rear (the easterly lot line) be a minimum of 58.0 metres;
3. The building height for an apartment building near St. Laurent Boulevard be a maximum of 35.4 metres, while the height of the townhouses on the eastern portion of the site be a maximum of 10.5 metres.
DOCUMENT 3
PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT–SITE PLAN AND
LANDSCAPE PLAN
DOCUMENT 4
CONSULTATION DETAILS
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. Two public meetings were held in the
community.
PUBLIC COMMENTS
I am the owner of a private school which is
located in the Karen Way Plaza. We use
half of the plaza and presently school 125 children. Our drop-off/pick up area, at the back of the school on Peach Tree
Lane, may be jeopardized by the parking and passing through on Peach Tree Lane
by visitors and owners to this new building.
This increased traffic will endanger the safety of our students.
Our house is already bounded on the south side
by a number of large apartment buildings that obscure a significant portion of
the southern sky. If another large
building is constructed to the west of our house, both the southern and western
skylines will be dominated by large apartment buildings. This will have a significant and negative
impact on the amount of sunlight our street receives.
Richcraft's current proposal would accommodate
between 200-300 people. Riviera Drive
is already heavily used as a shortcut in both directions between St. Laurent
Boulevard and Montreal Road (via Brittany Drive). This cut-through traffic will only get worse with the addition of
200-300 residents at Karen Way and St. Laurent Boulevard.
Manor Park is a very special community with a
unique feel and a high degree of cohesiveness and spirit (e.g., embassy issue
for the Mile Circle, and the more recent inter-provincial bridge issue). I sincerely hope that you and your
colleagues will vote to protect this special quality of life.
I believe we can have intensification without
destroying existing communities. I also
believe that the developer can make a profit without building 200+ units. Like any investor, Richcraft is trying to
make as much money as possible.
Unfortunately, the extra profit may be at the expense of others.
Please tell me what benefits Richcraft is
bringing to our community? I understand
that they are trying to maximize the land use for their own profit, but what
benefits are they giving our community other than an apparent sidewalk they say
we need.
On the two perspectives completed by Richcraft
- I think these two perspectives by themselves do not paint a complete picture
(just the opposite) to the city planning staff who may not know the area, or
understand that they are looking at two very specific perspectives only. Both look away from the surrounding
neighbourhood most impacted by the proposed development; with the Highlands
tower in the background. I would want
the city to demand similar renderings from the northeast and northwest
perspectives showing the surrounding residential neighbourhoods of Manor Park
in the background.
A 12-storey high-rise apartment does not relate
to the character of the surrounding community, which consists of a low-rise
residential community. The residential property
abutting the Karen Way site is currently zoned R2A (on the east), R5 (on the
south), and R4 (on the north). The
buildings in this surrounding area are a mix of 2-storey buildings that include
semi-detached houses, rows and apartments.
Non-ground-oriented housing would not fit into the surrounding
community.
The proposed high-rise traffic would reach into
the surrounding residential streets and transform Karen Way into an access
route for a different type of community.
This feature does not occur in the high-rises south of Brittany. They are accessed from non-residential
streets: St. Laurent, Montreal Road and Brittany.
It is worth noting that St. Laurent Boulevard
north of Montreal Road is not designated as a main street in the Official Plan,
but as an arterial road. The
recommendation for the intensification on main streets in the Plan does not
apply at the Karen Way site.
Such high-rise development destroys any sense
of human scale and accentuates the transformation of this city street into a
concrete-lined speedway that excludes pedestrian and cycle traffic.
The high-rise portion between Montreal Road and
Brittany is an exception that should not be extended any further. These towers constitute an intimidating wall
of high-rises stretching from just north on Montreal Road to Brittany. A similar development on Karen Way would
aggravate this effect and disrupt the existing transition from high-rise
development south of Brittany to low-rise development to the north.
There is no justification for additional
high-density development on the Karen Way site.
The Cast Shadow study submitted by Richcraft
with respect to the current re-zoning application is inadequate, consisting of
a limited number of carefully crafted renderings presented from angles and at
the timings most complementary to the Richcraft proposal.
The entrance to the complex should be from St.
Laurent (to discourage over-use of the Manor Park Hill residential streets for
the comings and goings for that complex).
Response to Comments
The issues expressed by the community as they pertain to intensification, compatible development, building height, cut-through traffic, loss of sunlight, traffic volumes, the impact of the proposal on the Educarium School are discussed in the DISCUSSION section of this report. In this section the Department provides a rationale in support of the 12-storey apartment building including eight townhouses.
SUMMARY OF PUBLIC INPUT
All comments received to this application are opposing the Zoning By-law amendment. Approximately 35 written submissions were received. The principal concerns deal with the proposed high level of intensification, the 12-storey apartment building height, loss of sunlight to surrounding residents, the lack of ground-oriented housing throughout the site, and the existing and anticipated increase in traffic volumes to the area and the negative impacts on the community caused from additional cut-through traffic.
PUBLIC MEETING COMMENTS - January 21, 2004 and May 5, 2004
Two public meetings took place in the community. The initial meeting was held January 21, 2004, to discuss the original proposal for an 18-storey apartment building and the second meeting was held May 5, 2004, to discuss the current 12-storey apartment building, including 8 townhouses. The first public meeting was attended by approximately 85 residents, while approximately 120 people attended the second meeting. These meetings were hosted and chaired by Councillor Legendre.
The comments raised at the two meetings are generally summarized under the Public Comments section of this Document
At least two subsequent meetings occurred between Richcraft and the community after the application was place on hold by the applicant. Staff was advised that no agreement was reached between these two parties.
COUNCILLOR’S COMMENTS
The City's Official Plan calls for intensification, but intensification that is compatible with the surrounding community. The difficulty of this site has a lot to do with defining the relevant community and understanding its surroundings.
I believe that the only way to approach reasonable rezoning on this site is to properly recognize its principal characteristics. The site fronts on an arterial road, but at a location where that arterial is close to losing its arterial nature and becoming a collector. The other characteristic of the site is that it is adjacent to an area characterized principally by single-family homes. This site needs to be compatible along two separate axes.
Along St. Laurent Boulevard, compatibility would need to take into consideration that this roadway, designated as an arterial, connects two well-established communities. Approximately 330 metres to the north, St. Laurent Boulevard changes its character and becomes a collector road with low-rise attached and single-family residences on both sides. This is an established, stable community. That portion of St. Laurent Boulevard that includes the subject property should be treated as a transition zone between the high-rise residential buildings south of Brittany and the low-rise residential community north of Hemlock. Spot re-zoning is particularly inappropriate at this location. Development along St. Laurent Boulevard, between Hemlock and Brittany, should effect a transition between the existing high-rise (29, 25 and 12 storeys) as one moves north from Montréal Road toward Brittany and the single-family homes north of Hemlock. I believe that a mid-rise (5 storeys) development, fronting along this portion of St. Laurent Boulevard, would best achieve the twin goals of the Official Plan of intensification and community compatibility.
In order to achieve compatibility with the surrounding residential community at this location, as well as along the entire stretch of St. Laurent Boulevard between Brittany and Hemlock, zoning should only be approved for building heights that closely match the adjacent low-rise community to the east, largely single-family homes. In this respect, the proponent is proposing a site plan that meets this test. Zoning on this site should reflect the intended height transition, 5 storeys fronting St. Laurent and 2-3 storeys (with appropriate backyards) for the portion of the property adjacent to the residential community to the east.
Unlike the two established communities, one-low-rise to the north, the other high-rise to the south, this intermediate portion of St. Laurent Boulevard, east side, between Brittany and Hemlock, is on the verge of redevelopment along its entire length. Whatever happens at this site will likely be viewed as precedent setting, with significant effects in the very near future.
Response:
The comments expressed by the Councillor Legendre have been note and addressed in the DISCUSSION section of this report.
COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION COMMENTS
The Manor Park Community Associated submitted a
16 page brief with appendices that detail their reasons for objection to the
Zoning By-law amendment application.
Some of their rationale for refusal is documented in the Public Comments
section of this Document.
Response:
The issues raised by the community in their
submission have been addressed in the DISCUSSION section of this report.