ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: September 23, 2003
Author/Local: A. Molaro - 604-871-6361
R. Segal - 604-873-7476
RTS No. 03650
CC File No. 2609
Meeting Date: October 9, 2003
TO:
Standing Committee on Planning and Environment
FROM:
Director of Current Planning
SUBJECT:
4387 West 10th Avenue
CONSIDERATION
The Director of Current Planning submits the following for consideration:
THAT the Director of Planning be advised that Council would favour the proposed height relaxation and the approval for the construction of a four-storey retail/residential building at 4387 West 10th Avenue, as submitted under DE 407672, and outlined in this report and subject to Director of Planning conditions to be met prior to issuance of the development permit.
GENERAL MANAGER=S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services submits the foregoing for CONSIDERATION.
COUNCIL POLICY
At its meeting on June 2, 1998, Council instructed the Director of Planning to:
· refer all proposed height relaxations under Sections 4.3(a) and (b) C-2 Residential Guidelines to Council for advice;
· delete Section 4.3(c) of the C-2 Residential Guidelines permitting height relaxations over 16.8 m/55 ft. pending a full review of the C-2 zone;
· amend the C-2 Residential Guidelines to add a general clause indicating that projects should have a very good architectural design and should use quality exterior materials and that projects should be referred to the Urban Design Panel (UDP) for advice;
$ proceed with a C-2 review; and
$ instruct staff that the Guidelines take precedence where there is a conflict between the District Schedule and the Guidelines.
SUMMARY
In accordance with Council=s instructions of June 2, 1998, this development application is being referred to Council for advice as the proposal requires a building height relaxation.
The proposed development is for the construction of a four-storey concrete building entailing height from 12.2 m/40.0 ft. to 13.72 m/45.0 ft at the (worst case condition), thereby requesting a height relaxation up to 1.52 m/5.0 ft. The site has a slope of more than 1.5 m /4.92 ft. and thereby qualifies under the C-2 Guidelines for consideration of a height relaxation. Analysis of the additional height confirms that there will be minimal impact on the surrounding sites.
Planning staff feel that this proposal is of high quality in terms of its architectural design, massing and detailing. The Director of Planning is therefore inclined to support the height relaxation and this application. Before making a decision, this application is being referred to Council for advice.
PURPOSE
This report seeks Council=s advice on a development application requesting permission to construct a four-storey building containing retail/residential uses, where the proposed height exceeds the maximum permitted 12.2 m/40.0 ft. under the provisions of the C-2 District Schedule.
SITE DESCRIPTION AND BACKGROUND
This mid-block site is located on the north side of West 10th Avenue between Trimble and Discovery Streets. The RS-1 zoned land across the lane to the north consists of single family residential and accessory buildings. The C-2 context along both sides of West 10th Avenue consists of low-rise (two and three-storey) commercial buildings together with a number of four-storey developments on the same side of the block as the proposed development.
The site and surrounding zoning are shown on the attached Appendix A.
DISCUSSION
The proposal involves the construction of a four-storey concrete building comprised of retail at grade and 10 artist live/work studios incorporating mezzanines. The building contains one level of underground parking having vehicular access from the lane to the north.
Reduced plans, including a site plan and elevations of the proposal have been included in Appendix B.
The proposed development has been assessed against the C-2 District Schedule and C-2 Residential Guidelines and meets the intent, with consideration to be given to the issue of height as discussed below.
Height
A height relaxation of 1.52 m/5.0 ft. above the 12.2 m/40.0 ft. allowable height is requested for this proposed development resulting in an overall height of 13.72 m/45.0 ft.. In accordance with the Guidelines, the maximum building height of 12.2m/40.0 ft may be marginally increased where the site slopes more than 1.5 m/4.92 ft. and where concrete construction is utilized, to a maximum height of 13.8 m/45.2 ft. Increases will only be considered where it can be demonstrated that there is no increased overshadowing or reduction of views to surrounding neighbours. Consideration should also be given to street character, overall building bulk, open space and amenity.
This site slopes down from West 10 Avenue to the lane along the west property line 1.5 m /4.92 ft. and across the lane property line 0.71 m/2.33 ft., resulting in an overall cross slope of 2.45 m /8.03 ft. These slopes contribute to the worst case height condition of 13.7 m /44.9 ft. located within the central east portion of the roof, noting that this condition is set back from West 10th Avenue by 1.1 m /3.6 ft. and occurs for only a third of the front elevation. At the southeast corner, the height is 12.33 m /40.5 ft., with the roof slope increasing to a height of 12.6 m /41.35 ft., 4.2 m /13.8 ft. from the front facade. The proposal meets the outright height requirement of 12.2 m /40.0 ft along the entire length of the rear facade (See Appendix B).
To mitigate overshadowing and overlook onto adjacent low-density residential zones, the Guidelines call for the upper storeys to be terraced back from the rear property line. The stepped massing of this proposal at the rear achieves a setback of 6.6 m /21.5 ft. at the upper floors. As a measure to reduce overshadowing and overlook of neighbours, portions of the roof have been carved out and, at the uppermost floor within the upper volumes of the artist live/work studio, no overlook occurs. Other measures to ensure neighbourliness and privacy include the enhanced treatment of the landscape with planting along the lane property edge and planters at the perimeter of the rear facing patios of the proposed artist live/work units will also contribute to screening and privacy for the single family zone across the lane.
In considering height relaxations, the Director of Planning must also consider the view impacts of the proposed development on neighbouring sites. The view analysis confirms that with the stepped massing, the proposed increase in height along West 10th Avenue has negligible view impacts for the buildings across the street beyond that generated by a conforming 12.2 m/40 ft. high development. With respect to shadowing impacts on the residential zone to the north, the proposed larger rear setback at the upper level of 6.6 m /21.5 ft., generates less shadow impact than an outright 12.2 m/ 40 ft. high development with a rear setback of only 4.6 m / 15 ft.
Massing and Density
An upper limit maximum FSR of 2.0 is identified for residential uses (above the first floor) for mixed use C-2 proposals on mid-block sites in the C-2 Residential Guidelines. This proposal satisfies this Guideline criteria with a residential FSR of 1.85 above the first floor, with a total residential FSR of 2.43. The C-2 District Schedule identifies an absolute maximum residential FSR of 2.5. Staff support the total residential FSR of 2.43 as it has been achieved through an appropriate massing response that addresses the challenges of the specific site conditions and is still within the density described in the guidelines.
The total proposed FSR of this application is 2.74, which is within the permitted maximum of 3.0 FSR in the C-2 zone.
Urban Design Panel
The Urban Design Panel has supported the development proposal, including the design, height, density, the massing response to the site and the quality of materials for the proposal, noting that, Ait was a refreshing departure from typical C-2 projects,@ and it is Aa very innovative and creative solution@.
A copy of the UDP minutes from the July 23, 2003 meeting are attached as Appendix C.
Notification
As part of the review of this development application, 110 neighbouring property owners were notified of the proposal. In response, Planning staff have received a total of 13 letters, 2 letters in support and 11 letters in opposition. The major objections include the proposed height, loss of light and privacy, and concerns with the increase in traffic impacts within the lane and neighbourhood. Other concerns include the street scape and the four-storey massing.
Staff believe the proposal responds to the Council approved Guidelines. Since notification, the applicant has made revisions to improve compatibility and further reduce impacts that address some of the neighbours concerns.
CONCLUSION
The proposed development has been assessed against the C-2 District Schedule and C-2 Residential Guidelines and responds to the stated objectives. Planning staff conclude that this proposal is of high quality in terms of its architectural design, massing and detailing and has incorporated measures to minimize impact on adjacent houses. The applicant is proposing high quality materials and landscaping on both the street and lane facades and an innovative approach to the housing component. Staff recommend support for the height relaxation up to 1.52 m /5.0 ft.
Planning staff, therefore, support approval of this development application, subject to various conditions to be met prior to the issuance of the development permit. However, before making a decision on this application, the Director of Planning is seeking any advice which Council may wish to provide.
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