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REPORT TO COUNCIL STANDING COMMITTEE OF COUNCIL
OCTOBER 23, 2003 |
A Regular Meeting of the Standing Committee of Council on Planning and Environment was held on Thursday, October 23, 2003, at 2:00 p.m., in Committee Room No. 1, Third Floor, City Hall.
PRESENT: |
Councillor Anne Roberts, Chair
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ABSENT: |
Councillor Tim Stevenson (Leave of Absence - Civic Business) |
CITY MANAGER'S OFFICE: |
Judy Rogers, City Manager |
CITY CLERK'S OFFICE: |
Laura Kazakoff, Meeting Coordinator |
LEAVE OF ABSENCE - Councillor Green (File 1254)
MOVED by Councillor Roberts
THAT Councillor Green be granted Leave of Absence for the afternoon and evening of October 23, 2003, from 4:30 p.m.
CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY
VARY AGENDA
The Committee agreed to vary the Agenda in order to add an additional item Number 5 to hear from members of the public present at this meeting who wish to speak regarding the By-law to Regulate City Land scheduled for consideration at the regular Council meeting immediately following this meeting.
RECOMMENDATION
1. 1945 - 1947 Creelman Avenue (1945 Creelman Avenue)
Warning to Prospective Purchasers (File 2701)
The Committee had before it an Administrative Report dated October 1, 2003, in which the City Building Inspector recommended a 336D Notice be filed against the Title to the property at 1945 Creelman Avenue in order to warn prospective purchasers of by-law violations in relation to this property and also that the Director of Legal Services be authorized to take legal actions at her discretion. The General Manager of Community Services supported the recommendations.
Peter Sweeney, Manager, Building Inspection, with the aid of photographs, provided an overview of the report and rationale for staff's recommendations in this regard.
Don Andrews, owner of 1947 Creelman, spoke in support of staff's recommendations, noting the unapproved alterations to 1945 Creelman have increased its massing and floor space ratio over what is allowed in the neighbourhood.
Gary Leno, owner of 1945 Creelman, spoke in opposition to staff's recommendations, noting the work which has been carried out on his property is in keeping with similar alterations which have been carried out, with approval, on several adjacent properties and advised Council's actions should reflect the reality of the evolution of the neighbourhood.
Mr. Sweeney responded to questions concerning the rationale for Recommendation B.
MOVED by Councillor Louis
THAT the Committee recommend to Council
A. THAT the City Clerk be directed to file a 336D Notice against the title to the strata lot at 1945 Creelman Avenue (Strata Lot 2, District Lot 526, Strata Plan VR557) in order to warn prospective purchasers that there are contraventions of the Zoning and Development and Vancouver Building By-laws.
B. THAT the Director of Legal Services is hereby authorized, in her discretion, to commence a legal action or proceeding in relation to the premises located at 1945 Creelman Avenue and may, in her discretion, seek injunctive relief in that action or proceeding, in order to bring this portion of the building into compliance with City By-laws.
CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY
2. Proposed Video Signs - 798 Granville Street (File 2851)
The Committee had before it a Policy Report dated September 23, 2003, in which the Director of Current Planning, in consultation with the Director of Legal Services, the Director of the Office of Cultural Affairs, the Director of Real Estate, the General Manager of Engineering Services and the Sign Approval Authority, recommended the referral to public hearing of an application by Bonnis Properties Inc. for text amendments to the Sign By-law to permit the installation of two video screens at the northeast corner of Granville Street and Robson Street. It was also recommended that an agreement for a public benefits package be entered into prior to enactment of an amending by-law. The General Manager of Community Services recommended approval.
Michael Gordon, Senior Planner, Central Area Major Developments Group, provided an overview of the report and the rationale for recommending this application be referred to a Public Hearing. Mr. Gordon, along with Sue Harvey, Cultural Planner, responded to questions concerning the proposed public benefits package and the 10% video time put forward as part of that package, cultural and non-profits groups' access to that video time, the timeline of the Sign By-law review process which is currently taking place, and the type of controls there would be over third party advertising on the video signs. Staff, along with Judy Rogers, City Manager and Jacquie Forbes-Roberts, General Manager of Community Services, also responded to questions regarding the Public Hearing referral process.
Several Council members expressed concern regarding the proposed public benefits package, and requested negotiations continue to provide as strong a package as possible, including additional airtime over what is currently proposed for City of Vancouver purposes.
MOVED by the Mayor
THAT the Committee recommend to Council
THAT the application by Bonnis Properties (Robson) Inc. to amend the Sign By-law for 798 Granville Street to permit two oversized automatic changeable copy (video) signs at the corner of Granville and Robson Streets, including third party advertising, be referred to a Public Hearing, together with:
(i) draft Sign By-law provisions, generally as contained in Appendix `A' of the Policy Report dated September 23, 2003, entitled "Proposed Video Signs - 798 Granville Street"; and
(ii) the recommendation of the director of Current Planning to approve, subject to the condition contained in Appendix `B' of the Policy Report;
FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare the necessary amending by-law, generally in accordance with Appendix `A' of the Policy Report, for consideration at the Public Hearing.
carried
POSTPONEMENT MOVED by Councillor Sullivan
THAT consideration of this matter be postponed pending the receipt of additional information from staff.
LOST
(Councillors Bass, Cadman, Green, Ladner, Louie, Louis, Roberts and the Mayor opposed)
The postponement having lost, the Mayor's motion was put and CARRIED with Councillors Bass, Cadman, Louis and Roberts opposed.
3. 1042 Davie Street, Numbers Cabaret (File 2614-1)
The Committee had before it an Administrative Report dated September 2, 2003, in which the Chief License Inspector outlined some of the considerations related to the requested change in the hours of operation for Numbers Cabaret at 1042 Davie Street and recommended Council endorse a portion of the request.
Guy Gusdal, License Coordinator, provided an overview of the Administrative Report.
Phil Moon, Numbers Cabaret, spoke in support of his application for a change in operating hours, noting the cabaret has been receiving temporary approvals for later Sunday night closings for the last two years. Mr. Moon advised he started this operation in 1980 and has never had any problems, and he feels the later Sunday hours are important to the community in order to provide more seats to accommodate the larger events which have been taking place in the last few years.
MOVED by Councillor Louis
THAT the Committee recommend to Council
A. THAT Council, having considered the opinion of area residents and business operators of the community as determined by neighbourhood notification and existing Council liquor policy as outlined in this report, endorse the application by Numbers Cabaret Ltd for a change in hours of operation from 7:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 7:00 p.m. to midnight on Sunday, to 12:00 p.m. to midnight Sunday and 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. Monday through Saturday, for the Liquor Primary license (Cabaret), at 1042 Davie Street, subject to the following conditions:
i) Adherence to clean air principles; and
ii) A signed Good Neighbour Agreement prior to issuing the business license.
B. THAT Council, instruct the Chief License Inspector to support 2:00 a.m. Sunday night closings under a temporary approval until the issue of Sunday hours has been reported to Council.
CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY
4. Eburne Lands Subdivision - Park Conveyance Payment-in-Lieu and Fraser River Waterfront Walkway (File 3258)
This report was withdrawn from this agenda and will be rescheduled to a future Standing Committee meeting.
5. By-law to Regulate City Land - Hearing of Speakers (File 113/4659)
At the commencement of this meeting, the Committee had agreed to vary the Agenda in order to hear from members of the public wishing to speak regarding the above-noted by-law, scheduled for consideration at the Council meeting immediately following this meeting.
The following people spoke in support of the proposed by-law:
Patsy McMillen
Martin Collacott
Zeke Zabolotniuk
Ron Woodhouse
Kevin Mansfield (photographs circulated).
Comments provided by the foregoing speakers included the following:
· The current tent-city on the south side of False Creek is having a negative impact on the lives of adjacent residents of CityGate;
· The False Creek Community Association, which represents 20 buildings in the area, is in favour of the by-law;
· It is felt there are certain criminal elements associated with the tent city at Creekside Park which is cause for concern to nearby residents;
· If the squatters are allowed to remain, their numbers will increase, and it will become more difficult to remove them;
· Important not only to pass the by-law, but also to implement it;
· The Creekside squatters are adding to the problems of an area which is already overly saddled with social problems;
· It is the obligation of the City of Vancouver to resolve this problem.
The following people spoke in opposition to and/or expressed concerns with regard to the proposed by-law:
Darrell Zimmerman
Debbie Krall
Daniel Boyd
Marjory Brown
Laurie Dempster
Jim Leydon
David Cunningham.
Comments and concerns expressed by the foregoing speakers included the following:
· Many of the tent dwellings provide a better level of accommodation than the SROs downtown; SRO housing is not suitable for many people, such as those recovering from drug addiction;
· Land ownership issue is in question; suggest a municipal meeting with native and federal leaders to come up with a solution that works for everyone;
· The squatters at Creekside are not intent on that location and would agree to another appropriate area; they do not want to feel, however, that they are simply being shuffled around;
· Evicting persons from this land is not a solution if they do not have somewhere else to go which is appropriate to their individual needs;
· Homelessness is at crisis levels in the city, and is not just a problem at CityGate;
· Increased crime is a natural spin-off of increased homelessness;
· Residents of the tent city are there due to necessity, not by choice;
· Urge Council not to take action until there is a real solution and a place for these people to go;
· Evidence of increased crime presented by CityGate residents is anecdotal and should be backed up by affidavits and police reports if the allegations are true;
· Many passers-by of the tent city provide positive feedback and are not intimidated by the presence of the squatters;
· Many of the complaints about the unsightliness of the tent city would have been avoided had the site been provided with toilet and garbage facilities;
· Suggest a large community consultation forum be undertaken at the site.
The Committee adjourned at 4:20 p.m.
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