ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: July 3, 2003
Author/Local: H. McLean/A. Riley/7056
RTS No. 2948
CC File No. 1401-57
Public Hearing: July 24, 2003
TO: |
Vancouver City Council |
FROM: |
Director of Current Planning |
SUBJECT: |
Heritage Designation of 885 East Georgia Street |
RECOMMENDATION
THAT Council approve the designation of 885 East Georgia Street, listed on the Vancouver Heritage Register in the "B" category, as a protected heritage property.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of Recommendation A.
COUNCIL POLICY
Council policy on heritage designation states, in part, that:
"The City's long term goal is to protect through voluntary designation as many resources on the Vancouver Heritage Register as possible."
PURPOSE
This report seeks Council's approval for the designation of 885 East Georgia Street, listed in the "B" category on the Heritage Register, as a protected heritage property under the Vancouver Charter. The building owners are volunteering designation of their house in exchange for zoning relaxations that the Director of Planning is prepared to authorize.
BACKGROUND
In 1999, the owners of the house at 885 East Georgia Street completed work without permit in contravention of the Zoning & Development By-law. The work in question applied to both the interior and exterior, and included raising the building approximately 2½ feet and reconstructing a garage at the rear of the property. To help guide the owners, staff developed a balanced strategy in early 2000 to reduce the extent of non-conformities and established conditions for obtaining necessary permit approvals. The owners pursued a different direction, submitting a development application which was refused in February 2001 and appealing to the Board of Variance in April 2001, which was also not successful.
In follow-up discussions with staff, two courses of action were jointly considered: either to have the house conform to all by-law provisions, or to pursue heritage designation to facilitate zoning relaxations. The latter approach, heritage designation, was considered by both staff and the owners to be the more feasible and beneficial. The long-term protection of the house would provide the public benefit necessary to justify a number of zoning relaxations. Subsequently, an architect experienced in heritage conservation was hired by the owners to assess the alterations to the house with the objective of reversing those that detracted from its heritage character. They submitted a development application inApril 2002 (see Appendices A to D). The Director of Planning is inclined to support the application, subject to certain conditions being met including heritage designation.
DISCUSSION
Heritage Value: The house at 885 East Georgia Street is listed in the "B" category on the Vancouver Heritage Register. This 2½ storey, wood-frame house was built in 1905 and is located at the east end of Strathcona amongst a variety of older single-family houses. It is of value because it is one of the older houses in this part of Vancouver's oldest residential neighbourhood and is a very good example of the Vancouver Builder style from the Edwardian era. This style is characterized by tall, gable-end massing with a full width front porch with a decorative gable above the front stairs. The house has double hung windows, shiplap siding with decorative shingles in the upper front gable and porch gable. There is simple fretwork adorning the square porch posts.
Compatibility with Community Planning Objectives: The house is located in the RT-3 zoning district. The intent of the RT-3 District Schedule is to encourage the retention of neighbourhood and streetscape character, particularly through the retention, renovation and restoration of existing character buildings. Heritage designation of 885 East Georgia Street supports this intent.
Zoning Considerations: Section 5.7 of the RT-3 District Schedule enables the Director of Planning to relax any of the Schedule's regulations for an existing one- or two-family dwelling, if it is consistent with the pre-1920s neighbourhood character and having regard for Council-approved policies and guidelines. The owners' development application to convert the dwelling from single-family to two units, requires the following relaxations:
· height and number of storeys for the principal building; and
· height and width for the accessory building.
The proposed height and number of storeys of the revised heritage house are 39.2 feet and 3 storeys, while the permitted are 35.1 feet and 2½ storeys. The proposed height is supported by staff as it is compatible with the streetscape of the surrounding buildings and the neighbourhood as a whole, as intended in the Strathcona/Kiwassa RT-3 design guidelines.
The height and width of the accessory building located at the rear of the property are proposed to be relaxed, also at the discretion of the Director of Planning. Staff support these relaxations for the accessory building as it maintains the footprint of the original buildings on this site, provides a roof form that is compatible with the principal building, and is compatible with the surrounding accessory buildings and the immediate neighbourhood.
Condition and Economic Viability of Conservation: The house is in good condition, and the owners have determined the retention of the building and conversion to two units to be economically viable. Given the extent of the relaxations, the Director of Planning has determined that designation should be a condition of development permit approval. The property owners have submitted a letter (on file with the Law Department) requesting the designation of 885 East Georgia Street and waiving any future compensation demands. Therefore, no additional support to achieve appropriate conservation of this building is required. The Vancouver Heritage Commission reviewed this proposal on June 24, 2002, and resolved that the restoration strategy was adequate and considered the restored house to be compatible with neighbourhood character.
The following conservation requirements are specified as part of the development application: restoration of windows and other exterior details including wood frame and sash double-hung windows on the front and rear to replicate the original; and restoration of decorative brackets on front elevation as per original details.
Notification and Public Feedback: The Director of Legal Services has prepared the designating by-law, and requirements have been met for notification as specified by the Vancouver Charter. Four letters were received in response to development permit application notification, and staff responded to these residents with a letter addressing their concerns. One further response was received, and staff also addressed these concerns. Comments received, and staff response, are as follows:
· The principle and accessory buildings are already very tall/big and should not be allowed to be any bigger.
There was confusion over whether the application was to increase the height of the principle and accessory buildings. The development proposal, however, is not to change the already existing condition, but to legalize the previous work completed without permit. The proposal meets the intent of the Strathcona/Kiwassa RT-3 design guidelines, and the height of the buildings are compatible with the streetscape and immediate neighbourhood.
· The second residential unit is being used as a bed & breakfast operation and the "garage" appears to be extension of living space, causing problems with on-street parking.
A condition of the development permit includes the removal of beams in the accessory building to maintain clerestory below and ensure that it is maintained as a garage. In addition, a Property Use Inspector has visited the site and confirmed that neither the house or the accessory building is being used as a bed & breakfast operation. The proposal meets the minimum on-site parking requirement of two parking spaces.
CONCLUSION
An important long-term heritage policy of the City is to protect heritage resources through voluntary designation. The owners of 885 East Georgia Street have agreed to the heritage designation of their house in exchange for zoning relaxations requested as part of a development application to convert the house to a two-family dwelling with new garage. The proposed improvements to this site, which include certain restoration works, are compatible with the community planning objectives and the zoning for the site. Designation will also ensure that the house is protected from inappropriate alterations or demolition in the future. Therefore, it is recommended that Council designate 885 East Georgia Street as a Protected Heritage Property.
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