Vancouver City Council |
POLICY REPORT
URBAN STRUCTURE
Date: November 26, 2002
Author/Local: MWhite/7094
RTS No. 03114
CC File No. 113Council: January 28, 2003
TO:
Vancouver City Council
FROM:
Director of City Plans in consultation with the Subdivision Approving Officer
SUBJECT:
Amendment to the Zoning and Development By-law - Relaxation for Burned Buildings
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT the Director of City Plans be instructed to make application to amend the Zoning and Development By-law, generally in accordance with Appendix A, so that the Director of Planning must relax the provisions of the RT-3, RT-4/4A/4N/4AN, RT-5/5A/5N/5AN, RT-6, RT-7, RT-8 and RT-9 District Schedules to permit the reconstruction of developments containing Multiple Conversion Dwellings and/or Infill in cases where destroyed by fire, and that the application be referred to a Public Hearing;
FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services prepare the necessary by-law for consideration at the Public Hearing.
B. THAT, if the amendment is approved at the Public Hearing and enacted, the Director of Legal Services then be instructed to remove the restrictive covenants on title of some properties, as noted in this report.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.
COUNCIL POLICY
Incentives, such as increased Floor Space Ratio (FSR), greater unit densities, or relaxation of regulations are available to Multiple Conversion Dwellings and Infill Uses to encourage renovation and retention of character buildings in RT-3, RT-4/4A/4N/4AN, RT-5/5A/5N/5AN, RT-6, RT-7, RT-8 and RT-9 District Schedules.
Purpose
The purpose of this report is to recommend an amendment to the Zoning and Development By-law to permit reconstruction of developments containing Multiple Conversion Dwellings and/or Infill where they are destroyed by fire. As well, this report recommends the removal of restrictive covenants that have been placed on some properties to warn prospective purchasers of this restriction in the By-law.
Background
The intent of the RT-3, RT-4/4A/4N/4AN, RT-5/5A/5N/5AN, RT-6, RT-7, RT-8, and RT-9 district schedules is to encourage retention of neighbourhood and streetscape character through the retention, renovation and restoration of existing character buildings. Incentives such as increased FSR or unit densities and relaxations are granted for Multiple Conversion Dwelling (MCD) and Infill developments to achieve this intent. These uses combined with the associated incentives are only permitted if an existing building is retained. However, if the development containing the existing building burns down, (i.e. destroyed to the extent of 60% or more of its value above its foundations) the Director of Planning cannot issue a permit for reconstruction of the same form of development. It is consistent with the intent of these district schedules and accompanying design guidelines to allow reconstruction in such circumstances.
Discussion
Staff have not yet encountered a situation where an MCD and/or Infill development with a bonus or relaxation has been destroyed by fire and required reconstruction. However, Council has, on the advice of staff, placed restrictive covenants on some titles at the time of a strata conversion, warning prospective purchasers there is no guarantee that the building could be rebuilt to create the same number of dwelling units in the event of a total loss by fire. Several developers have expressed concern about this restrictive covenant, saying it hinders the financing and marketing of their developments.
The Vancouver Charter enables Council to enact by-laws to provide for a relaxation of a zoning by-law where enforcement would result in unnecessary hardship. Section 3 of the Zoning and Development By-law contains a number of cases in which the Director of Planning or Development Permit Board can relax the By-law based on hardship. Staff recommend that Section 3 be amended, as outlined in Appendix A, to include a provision that the Director of Planning must relax the By-law to permit the reconstruction of developments containing Multiple Conversion Dwellings and/or Infill approved with bonuses or relaxations in cases where the developments have been destroyed by fire. This amendment would apply to the RT-3, RT-4/4A/4N/4AN, RT-5/5A/5N/5AN, RT-6, RT-7, RT-8, and RT-9 districts. Staff also recommend that if this amendment is approved at the Public Hearing and enacted, the Director of Legal Services then proceed to remove the restrictive covenants that have been placed on title of some properties.
Conclusion
The proposed amendment to Section 3 of the Zoning and Development By-law to permit the reconstruction of Multiple Conversion Dwellings and Infill developments approved with bonuses or relaxations resolves a problem in districts where retention of character buildings is the intent of the zoning, but where reconstruction would not be permitted if the developments were destroyed by fire.
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Appendix A
Proposed Amendment to the Zoning and Development By-law
"3.2.6 If an owner applies to replicate a Multiple Conversion Dwelling or Infill use damaged by fire to the extent of 60% or more of its value above its foundations, and the Director of Planning has previously given a bonus or relaxation under the RT-3, RT-4, RT-4A, RT-4N, RT-4AN, RT-5, RT-5A, RT-5N, RT-5AN, RT-6, RT-7, RT-8, or RT-9 District Schedule in respect of such Multiple Conversion Dwelling or Infill use, and the replication will be in accordance with the most recently issued development or building permits for the Multiple Conversion Dwelling or Infill use, as the case may be, then, to the extent necessary to permit the replication, the Director of Planning must relax the provisions of the applicable District Schedule."
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