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4. OFFICIAL
PLAN AND ZONING - 30 HIGHBURY PARK DRIVE PLAN OFFICIEL ET ZONAGE - 30, PROMENADE HIGHBURY
PARK |
Committee recommendations
(This
application is subject to Bill 51)
That Council:
1. Refuse an amendment to the Official
Plan, to amend the designation applying to the property located at 30 Highbury
Park Drive to permit an automobile sales dealership and service establishment,
including accessory uses;
2. Refuse an amendment to Zoning By-law
2008-250, to change the zoning of 30 Highbury Park Drive to permit an
automobile sales dealership and service establishment, including accessory
uses; and
3. Refuse an amendment to the former City
of Nepean Zoning By-law, to change the zoning of 30 Highbury Park Drive to
permit an automobile sales dealership and service establishment, including
accessory uses.
Recommandations du Comité
(Cette demande est assujettie au
Règlement 51)
Que le Conseil :
1. refuse
une modification au Plan officiel visant la désignation s’appliquant à la
propriété située au 30, promenade Highbury Park et destinée à autoriser un
concessionnaire automobile et un centre de service, y compris des utilisations
accessoires;
2.
refuse une modification au Règlement de zonage 2008-250, destinée à modifier
le zonage du 30, promenade Highbury Park afin d’autoriser un concessionnaire
automobile et un centre de service, y compris des utilisations accessoires;
3. refuse une modification au Règlement de
zonage de l’ancienne Ville de Nepean, destinée à modifier le zonage du 30,
promenade Highbury Park afin d’autoriser un concessionnaire automobile et un
centre de service, y compris des utilisations accessoires.
Documentation
1. Deputy City Manager, Planning,
Transit and the Environment report dated 30 July 2008 (ACS2008-PTE-PLA-0121).
2. Extract of
Draft Minutes, 18 August 2008
Report to/Rapport au :
Planning and Environment Committee
Comité de l'urbanisme et de l'environnement
and Council / et au Conseil
19 June 2008 / le 19 juin 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 :
Karen Currie, Manager / Gestionnaire, Development Approvals / Approbation
des demandes d'aménagement,
Planning Branch/Direction de
l'urbanisme
(613) 580-2424, 28310 Karen.Currie@ottawa.ca
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SUBJECT: |
Official Plan and ZONING - 30 Highbury Park Drive (FILE NOs. D01-01-07-0016
AND D02-02-07-0135) |
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OBJET : |
REPORT
RECOMMENDATIONS
That the Planning
and Environment Committee recommend Council:
1.
Refuse an amendment to the Official Plan, to amend
the designation applying to the property located at 30 Highbury Park Drive to
permit an automobile sales dealership and service establishment, including
accessory uses;
2. Refuse an amendment to Zoning By-law
2008-250, to change the zoning of 30 Highbury Park Drive to permit an
automobile sales dealership and service establishment, including accessory
uses; and
3. Refuse an amendment to the former City
of Nepean Zoning By-law, to change the zoning of 30 Highbury Park Drive to
permit an automobile sales dealership and service establishment, including
accessory uses.
RECOMMANDATIONS DU
RAPPORT
Que le Comité de l'urbanisme et de
l'environnement recommande au Conseil
1. de refuser une
modification au Plan officiel visant la désignation s’appliquant à la propriété
située au 30, promenade Highbury Park et destinée à autoriser un
concessionnaire automobile et un centre de service, y compris des utilisations
accessoires;
2. de refuser une modification au Règlement de zonage 2008-250,
destinée à modifier le zonage du 30, promenade Highbury Park afin d’autoriser
un concessionnaire automobile et un centre de service, y compris des
utilisations accessoires;
3.
de refuser une modification au
Règlement de zonage de l’ancienne Ville de Nepean, destinée à modifier le
zonage du 30, promenade Highbury Park afin d’autoriser un concessionnaire
automobile et un centre de service, y compris des utilisations accessoires.
BACKGROUND
This application applies to a vacant site at the southeast
corner of Greenbank Road and the future Highbury Park Drive. Lands for the
extension of Highbury Park Drive from Longfields Drive westerly to Greenbank
Road have been dedicated to the City and will be constructed in the near future
when plans for the surrounding Longfields lands and surrounding subdivision
developments have been completed.
In terms of surrounding land uses, there is a small
one-storey office building and the Greenbank Fire Station immediately to the
south of the site. The future Rapid Transit Corridor with low density
residential development across the Transit Corridor abuts the site to the east.
Medium density townhouses are located across Greenbank Road to the west. A cell
tower installation and vacant residential lands are located to the north and
east respectively.
Purpose of Official
Plan Amendment
An application to amend the Official Plan is necessary to
permit an automobile sales dealership and service establishment, including
showroom, garage and related office space, including outdoor display areas
oriented to Greenbank Road. The proposal is to amend Volume 2A of the Official
Plan – Secondary Plans for Areas 1, 2 and 3, specifically Section 2.3: Mixed
Use designation, by adding a new automotive retail use applied to this site
only.
Existing Official Plan Designation
The site is currently designated General Urban Area in the Official Plan. This designation permits a range of uses. Specific policies relating to the future use of the site are contained in Volume 2A of the Official Plan, Secondary Plan for Areas 1, 2 and 3. The site is designated Mixed Use in this policy document. Specifically, Section 2.3 Mixed Use states that only existing and zoned retail uses and new service commercial uses are permitted for this area. The designation does not permit new retail or commercial uses. Section 2.3 lists a range of uses that this designation contemplates for this area and they include: restaurants, service commercial and personal service uses, financial institutions and services, medium and high density housing, institutional uses, business, professional and medical offices and entertainment and recreational uses.
Proposed Official Plan Designation
The proposal is to amend the list of permitted uses for the Mixed Use designation by adding an automobile sales dealership and its accessory functions specifically for this location.
Purpose
of Zoning Amendment
The Zoning By-law amendment proposes to rezone the site from Future Growth – FG to Commercial Automotive (CA4) Zone in the former Nepean Zoning By-law 100-2000 and from DR – Development Reserve Zone to General Mixed Use Subzone in the new Comprehensive Zoning By-law to add an automobile sales dealership and accessory uses. In addition, a request is being made to reduce the front yards abutting Greenbank Road and Highbury Park Drive to 1.5 metres to accommodate the outdoor car display area.
The subject lands are currently zoned Future Growth – FG Zone in the former City of Nepean Zoning By-law 100-2000 and DR – Development Reserve in the new Comprehensive Zoning By-law. Both of these zones generally apply to lands where future urban development is intended to occur in accordance with approved policies of the Official Plan and relevant Secondary Planning documents.
The applicants are requesting that the site be zoned to a Commercial Automotive - CA4 Zone in the former City of Nepean Zoning By-law 100-2000 and a General Mixed Use (GM) Zone in the new Comprehensive Zoning By-law.
DISCUSSION
There are a number of reasons why the proposed automobile sales dealership is inappropriate in this location. Being a single-use activity, the proposal to amend the Official Plan to allow this use in this particular location is contrary to the Official Plan and Secondary Plan policies overall intent for the Longfields and Davidson Heights communities. Furthermore, even though the use directly abuts the South-West Rapid Transit corridor, it is not a transit supportive land use.
Section 3.6.1.7 of the Official Plan requires that land extensive uses, i.e. those use requiring large outdoor storage areas should be encouraged to locate outside of the General Urban Area. Exceptions to allowing these uses within the General Urban Area are permitted provided the use is compatible with the surrounding area, has access to an arterial roadway, outdoor storage is minimized and no use is made of the municipal right-of-way for display and sale. The proposal does not satisfy these criteria. After the improvements to this section of Greenbank Road are completed, which are presently scheduled for 2013, the site access off this arterial will be limited to a right-in-right-out. The Highbury Park Drive entrance will be the main entranceway allowing full access movements into and out of the site. Having an automobile dealership, a potential automobile-oriented high traffic generator use accessing a neighbourhood collector is not supportable from a land use perspective. The proposed use also relies on outdoor storage, albeit automobiles. In fact, Section 3.6.2. of the Official Plan specifically does not encourage uses that employ a significant amount of outside storage for vehicles in Mixed Use designations. The outdoor storage function, even though it may be screened from the public right-of-way, is also not a desirable use of land in such a prominent location within the community.
Section 4.3 of the Official Plan specifies that high-density employment and residential development should be located close to transit. This use does not address either of these requirements. Even though the applicant contends that the site is not well suited for residential development, recent Community Development Plans approved by Council for the Town Centre lands, and Barrhaven South communities will be encouraging such developments adjacent to Greenbank Road in a mixed-use building format. The latter arrangement will foster the creation of more live-work environments and also create a vibrant community that will have convenient access to a transit system.
The main intent of the Secondary Plan policy is to facilitate residential communities with land uses on the periphery that cater to the daily, weekly and monthly needs of the residents. The Nepean Town Centre, a major shopping destination, is centered around Strandherd Drive and Greenbank Road and includes land uses that draw from the local area as well as the wider city. Locations outside of the Town Centre that front onto arterial roadways and flank the community are appropriate for neighbourhood serving uses in keeping with the plan policies. This approach has been consistently applied to most of the development proposals within this planning area. An automotive sales use traditionally does not cater to the day-to-day needs of the immediate community.
The purpose of the Mixed Use designation in the Longfields Davidson
Heights Community is to create a multi-purpose destination for local residents
and transit users. This is accomplished by encouraging a mix of different land
uses that satisfy the daily needs in the immediate area thereby reducing the
need to travel. Examples of these are contained in the Section 2.3 of the
Secondary Plan and include restaurants, financial institutions and services,
business, professional and medical offices and entertainment and recreational
uses. The mix of different uses can all be within one building and/or within
different buildings within proximity of one another. This site and its
designation are meant to supplement the uses that are located in the wider
serving Town Centre, not expand on the uses already located there. Amending the
plan to allow for a single-use activity such as the automobile dealership will
be contrary to these objectives.
The ‘Mixed Use’ designation is also intended to foster developments that contribute to a vibrant centre of activity and creates a community focus. While the use will add another automotive service to this expanding community, it does not fully capitalize on the offerings of the Mixed Use designation or create a community focal point. An automotive dealership is a use that typically has a wider market than the immediate area, as acknowledged by the applicant and therefore lacks the ability to serve as a community focus. It would be more appropriate from a planning perspective, to have such a use located on the external limits of the community, as opposed to fronting on a local collector street that provides entry into a neighbourhood.
The first land use objective of the Secondary Plan,
specifically Section 1.3.1, states that the plan polices will “encourage
compact urban development forms that are pedestrian oriented and promote
community interaction”. This automobile oriented development proposal promotes
neither of these objectives. The proposal requires a large amount of land area,
as stated in the applicants Planning Rationale, and has a relatively low
employment ratio compared to a potential mixed use building. In addition, the
number of pedestrian trips expected is less than those generated by a
multi-occupancy building, and therefore little or no community interaction will
be supported.
Compatibility is a significant determinant under the Official Plan for assessing a use’s appropriateness. The surrounding land uses to the east are primarily residential. The Planning Rationale submitted by the applicant in support of the amendments, acknowledges that Highbury Park Drive when constructed, will be one of the “main access points to the community’s residential areas and associated uses (parks and schools)…” The City is in the process of obtaining approvals for a smart growth demonstration project for the City owned Longfields Lands, which will include a mix of residential densities, institutional uses, parks and open spaces, and neighbourhood serving uses embracing innovative planning principles and design standards. Having the proposed use in this location will not enhance the focal point and entry into this demonstration community. The Longfields subdivision project will be creating pedestrian scale streetscapes with opportunities for cycling on the municipal right-of-way and pathway links throughout the community. The automotive use is completely incompatible with these objectives and offers no opportunity for integration into such a design plan. There will be a complete lack of synergy between this use and the adjacent land use fabric.
Further incompatibility can be expected between the existing community and the operation of the use. It is a standard operating requirement that the site and outside vehicle storage areas be illuminated at night for security reasons. The overall effect of this will be increased levels of lighting for the surrounding area. The use of sharp cut-off fixtures, even though they are required and used in many designated commercial areas, do generate a higher level of lighting than less intrusive land uses. The Department routinely responds to numerous complaints from residents in nearby neighbourhoods about the levels of lighting used in the nearby commercial establishments. The addition of this use closer to the community could potentially increase this problem and lead to additional complaints about lighting. Even though the applicant has acknowledged that overnight lighting levels will only be for security and not at a “high level”, this is not definable and potentially problematic.
The site enjoys convenient access to the future South-West Rapid Transitway, which will provide direct access from the Barrhaven Town Centre to Downtown in a dedicated corridor immediately to the east of the site. The transit system relies heavily on a critical mass to support its operation and this is generally provided through employment uses and clusters of population. The Official Plan mandates through its policies that adjacent land uses and developments must be transit supportive, a provision which an automotive dealership cannot satisfy. This proposal, compared to a potential mixed-use centre in this location, will under utilize this transportation infrastructure and result in an inefficient use of City services.
The Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Guidelines approved by Council provide further evidence of the inappropriateness of this use in this location. These policies state that:
“Locating uses close to transit that will
either generate or attract a high percentage of riders, or combinations of uses
that will do so throughout the day or night or that will enable people to
perform multiple tasks at one location will enhance the level and frequency of
service that can be provided, and the overall efficiency of the transit system.
Additional efficiencies can be obtained if these uses are built at medium to
high densities, as greater concentrations of people justify higher levels of
transit service.”
The guidelines go on to state that transit supportive land uses should
be encouraged within a 600‑metre walking distance of a rapid transit stop
or station. This site is within the 600‑metre radius of the transit
station and directly abutting the transitway with a potential stop at Highbury.
Examples of transit-supportive land uses include townhouses; apartments;
child care facilities; hotels; medical clinics; restaurants; affordable
housing; libraries; recreational and cultural facilities; fitness clubs and
movie theatres. These types of uses in a mixed-use context promote more viable
and sustainable community focus points because they attract and generate
pedestrian and cycling traffic. Given the locational context of this
site, between the South-West Transitway and Greenbank Road, any of the above noted uses are more
compatible and desirable in this location compared to the proposed use.
No other component land uses are included in the proposal that could benefit
from, or contribute to the adjacent residential community and transit system.
These Transit-Oriented
Development guidelines provide clear examples of land uses that are not
transit-supportive, and discourages
the establishment of uses that are oriented primarily to the automobile. Non
transit-supportive land uses include automotive parts, repair and service; car
dealerships; car washes; drive through facilities; gas/service stations;
commercial surface parking; warehouse storage; among others. These uses
typically generate high levels of vehicle activity and also require extensive
surface parking areas and are oriented towards users arriving by automobile.
The principal access to the site is proposed off Highbury Park Drive. This roadway will need to be constructed in order to serve the development. Future entry to the site off Greenbank Road will be confined to a right-in right-out access thereby making Highbury Park Drive, a collector roadway, the main access to this site. In addition, most traffic exiting the site may be forced to use the local street network east of Highbury Park Drive because of the existing safety issues with access to Greenbank Road, prior to its being widened. The tractor-trailer delivery of vehicles has been flagged as an issue and could present problems if the local collector roadway is used for loading and unloading of vehicles. In addition, the community has raised concerns with the possibility that “test drivers” will use Highbury Park Drive for this particular purpose. There will also be houses fronting onto Highbury Park Drive just west of this site.
Recommendation
The Department does not support locating an automobile sales dealership use in this location. The Department does not believe this use in this specific location meets the intent of the Official Plan with respect to creating vibrant communities and enhancing the quality of life of nearby residents. This site is at a key entry into and out of the Longfields Community, and having a mixed-use building, in conformity with the Secondary Plan, serving the surrounding developing neighbourhoods would be more beneficial to the community than a single use, which targets a specific market. Given the nature and proximity of the surrounding residential developments, staff contends that the use is out of context in this location, does not promote a focal entry point into the surrounding community and does not cater to the day-to-day needs of area residents.
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 City received numerous negative comments and opposition to this application. A summary of the comments is contained in Document 3.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
APPLICATION PROCESS TIMELINE STATUS
The application was not processed by the "On Time Decision Date" established for the processing of Official Plan and Zoning By-law amendments due to the requirement for detailed servicing brief and two community meetings on the application.
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
Document 1 Location
Map
Document 2 Conceptual
Site Plan
Document 3 Consultation
Details
DISPOSITION
City Clerk’s Branch, Council and
Committee Services to notify the owner, Jonathon Donaldson, Dan Murphy Ford
Sales Ltd. Highway #16 at Century Road, Manotick, ON. K4M 1A7, applicant, Mr.
Tim Chadder MCIP RPP, J.L. Richards and Associates Limited, Consulting
Engineers, Architects & Planners, 864 Lady Ellen Place, Ottawa. Ontario.
K1Z 5M2, 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.
LOCATION MAP DOCUMENT
1
CONCEPTUAL SITE PLAN DOCUMENT 2
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 Official Plan and Zoning By-law amendments. Two community meetings were also held to present the proposal and solicit public input. An overwhelming number of responses were in opposition to the proposal, with a few in support. Following is a summary of the public comments:
PUBLIC COMMENTS IN SUPPORT
· This use will allow me to service my vehicle in close proximity to where I live.
· The dealership will provide employment opportunities in the community.
· I live in Kanata, I would certainly welcome the convenience and savings of an abbreviated trip to Barrhaven versus Manotick
· I am very supportive of this proposal because it will make buying and servicing my car a much simpler and efficient activity.
·
PUBLIC COMMENTS IN OPPOSITION
·
A dealership in that location would bring increased
traffic to the area, therefore increasing noise and light pollution from the
cars.
· The car dealership would not "fit in" with the properties already there.
· This is a residential area and the services built should reflect this.
·
Light pollution will greatly affect the
ambiance of our backyard and those of my neighbours. Car dealerships generally need to be lit up all night for
security and advertising reasons. We
definitely do not want to have our backyard lit up by the glare of lights.
·
Concern with noise pollution. The dealership will increase traffic on
Greenbank and Highbury, which will increase the noise problems at the backs of
our homes.
·
Concerns about air pollution. In order to reduce air pollution, public
transit must be used more and car dealerships are not in the business of
creating a public transit-oriented community. At a time when the City is trying to create a better public
transit system, cars are not what the City needs more of.
·
A car dealership does not mix well with the
proposed Transit Corridor because nobody is going to use the bus to get to a
car dealership. The land is better
suited to something that complements the proposed Transit corridor. This would create a healthier community.
·
Loss of a sense of community. We need to build something that promotes a
more pedestrian oriented community. It
is prime land, located on a well-used street, surrounded by people and abutting
a proposed bus route.
· This is a perfect opportunity to create a more vibrant community, not a time to sell out to the highest bidder. The City must think long term and not short term.
COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION COMMENTS (Orchard Estates Community Association)
· The association opposes this application.
· This application violates the Official Plan and Secondary Plan
· Land use is incompatible with the surrounding uses
· Sufficient land has been set-aside in the Official Plan for car dealerships in appropriate locations
· Community market demand for car dealers is not a priority, sufficient coverage is provided elsewhere in the city
· Approval of the application would reward land speculation, when the above are taken into account.
BARRHAVEN BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT AREA (BBIA) COMMENTS
·
The BBIA’s commissioned Marketing Study
identifies a void with respect to automobile sales and service in Barrhaven.
The study recommends that having an automobile sales and service business would
bring value to the community.
·
Apparently the residential complaints regarding
augmented noise and the ‘night sky’ lighting are being implemented in the
design concept.
·
The BBIA
supports the Secondary Plan. It does not support flagrant amendments to this
plan to satisfy capricious self-business related matters.
·
However the
community and BBIA specifically, should not lose sight that each requested
amendment to the Secondary Plan must be evaluated independent of others.
· Regarding the Dan Murphy application, the ‘fathers’ that scripted the original Official Plan and Secondary Plan fully intended that amendments would be the required to establish the automotive sector. As a result, we are witnessing the enactment and process that was intended.
· The BBIA is in agreement with the process that is currently being undertaken to evaluate the amended application.
ADVISORY COMMITTEE COMMENTS – OTTAWA FORESTRY AND GREENSPACE ADVISORY COMMITTEE (OFGAC)
· City of Ottawa should stand behind the Official Plan and Secondary Plan, and reject this proposal.
· The original zoning change would definitely negatively affect the existing forest cover; the site will probably be clear-cut and razed. If an automobile sales dealership and service garage was permitted, the woodlot and greenspace would be replaced with hard surfaces. These types of uses do not have absorbing ground surfaces and are completely paved.
· The maturity of the woodland and possibility of future tree growth would be totally eliminated.
· The possibility of preserving the nationally and provincially endangered Butternut trees would be lost.
· Dealerships, sales centres and maintenance car garages, do not provide natural shading on their property, or have clusters of trees on their sites.
· Other types of land uses (institutional uses, recreational uses) would more likely allow for the retention of significant mature trees, in clusters and/or individual stands.
· Since this site will be in a sea of mixed density residential, patches of green and tree cover will be considered a valuable amenity in the community.
· OFGAC objects to the proposal for an Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment because this site is the location of a mature woodlot, which has yet to be evaluated for species at risk. The nationally and provincially endangered Butternut trees should be given special attention and protection. The natural features of the site cannot be examined at this time of year but should be investigated later and steps should be taken to preserve significant trees.
· Just south of this property the OFGAC, in partnership with the Eastern Chapter Society of Ontario Nut Growers (ECSONG), the City’s Project Manager for the Transitway Extension, have all worked closely together to preserve a Black Walnut and Butternut grove. As part of the project additional nut trees were planted in an adjacent meadow. Further to this work, in the next phase of the project, the City’s Project Manager for the Transitway Extension, has agreed to work with OFGAC and ECSONG to identify tree species along the corridor North of Berrigan and West of Edgeware. OFGAC is waiting for Spring/Summer 2008 when the project for the second phase of the Transitway Extension begins a site evaluation of the existing natural features.
·
A site evaluation for the purpose of identifying the
significant natural features of the property should be conducted prior to any
consideration of razing the trees on this site.
·
The property North of 30 Highbury Park Drive is also
being considered for development, and as such, the information regarding the
neighbouring future land use and its layout should be provided with this
application, in order to give a clear picture of what is being proposed for the
entire area.
·
OFGAC does not agree with looking only at one piece of the puzzle at a time (one property), but advocates
reviewing the entire area when considering altering land use and requesting
amendments to the OP and ZBA.
·
Consideration needs to be
given as it relates to the changing climate, and the possibility of more freak
weather events, e.g. severe rainstorms, in the next few decades. As such, even
more care should be taken about drainage from extensive new developments
and subdivisions, especially when contemplating removing all absorbent ground
surfaces, natural shade, and leaving fewer places for the water to flow, and
surface water discharge.
·
The proposal is directly
across the street from a residential neighbourhood. The light pollution generated from this type of establishment
should be kept with similar types of land use, e.g. in an industrial park or
large commercial/retail area.
·
An automobile dealership and garage service at this
location is not appropriate. The commercial/retail
land use in this area is currently bordering the Strandherd Road, and clustered
around the intersection of Strandherd and Greenbank Roads. The Barrhaven Town
Centre is situated primarily on the South side of Strandherd Road. The
existing large box stores such as Home Depot and Canadian Tire, are more
compatible likely neighbours for a car dealership. Therefore, more appropriate
locations for a car dealership and service garage are along Strandherd Road or,
adjacent/in the South Merivale Business Park, south of Fallowfield.
·
The Mixed Use designation, as described in the
Secondary Plan for Area 1,2 & 3, should be maintained.
Response:
Should this development be approved, a Tree Preservation and Conservation Plan will be required prior to any development being undertaken. This assessment will include an examination of the existence of any Butternut tree species on the site and will provide recommendations for in-situ or off-site preservation.