Vancouver City Council

POLICY REPORT
DEVELOPMENT AND BUILDING

Date: December 24, 2003
Author/Local: Alan Duncan/6269
RTS No. 03876
CC File No. 5306
Meeting Date: January 13, 2004

TO:

Vancouver City Council

FROM:

Director of Current Planning

SUBJECT:

CD-1 Rezoning - 5312-5392 Oak Street

RECOMMENDATION

A. THAT the application by Formwerks Architectural to rezone 5312 - 5392 Oak Street (Lots 1 - 4 Block 864 DL 526 Plan 8070 New Westminster District) from RS-1 to CD-1, to permit 21 two-storey townhouses at a floor space ratio of 1.0, be referred to a Public Hearing, together with:

(i) plans received October 2, 2003;

(ii) draft CD-1 By-law provisions, generally as presented in Appendix A; and

(iii) the recommendation of the Director of Current Planning to approve, subject to conditions contained in Appendix B;

FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare the necessary CD-1 By-law generally in accordance with Appendix A for consideration at the Public Hearing.

B. THAT, subject to approval of the rezoning at the Public Hearing, the Noise Control By-law be amended to include this Comprehensive District in Schedule B as set out in Appendix C; and

FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to bring forward the amendment to the Noise Control By-law at the time of enactment of the rezoning by-law.

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of A and B.

COUNCIL POLICY

Relevant Council Policies for this site include:
· Oakridge Langara Policy Statement, approved by Council on July 25, 1995.

PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

This report assesses an application to rezone four parcels from RS-1 to CD-1 to permit development of 21 two-storey multiple dwellings in a townhouse form at a 1.0 floor space ratio (FSR). The site is located within an area identified in the Oakridge Langara Policy Statement (OLPS) where rezoning to this use and density is supported by this policy.

Staff recommend that the application be referred to a Public Hearing and be approved with conditions.

DISCUSSION

Background: The OLPS divides lands into three general categories related to rezoningpossibilities: (a) high-priority sub-areas, which are considered suitable for rezoning; (b) reserve sub-areas, where unanimous support is required of property owners; and (c) remaining areas where no changes are supported.

The subject site is located in a sub-area designated as a high priority for rezoning.

Use: The proposed Multiple Dwelling use in a townhouse form is consistent with the OLPS for this sub-area.

Density and Public Benefits: The proposed density of 1.0 FSR is consistent with the OLPS. The applicant has chosen not to seek an available 20% density bonus for City-desired public benefits. A required Development Cost Levy (DCL) of $3.25 per square foot will be paid towards public benefits at the building permit stage. Generally, proposals with a density of 1.0 FSR or less will not economically be able to pay a CAC in addition to the DCL and this is the case with this application.

Form of Development: (Note Plans: Appendix E) The proposed form of development is four blocks of two-storey townhouses. Pedestrian access to all units will be directly from the streets onto which they front, except for the block of five units parallel to the lane which will be accessed by common walkways from Oak Street.

Parking: The applicant proposes 40 below-grade parking stalls. The access will be from a one-way entrance south of the east-west lane and egress will be from a one-way exit north of the east-west lane. Parking for 26 bicycles is proposed in a bike storage room in the garage.

Public Input: Only one person, a tenant in one of the houses to be replaced by this proposed development, telephoned in his opposition in response to neighbourhood notification, signs posted on the site and an open house held by the applicant.

CONCLUSION

Planning staff conclude that the application is consistent with the OLPS in terms of achieving a compatible and livable ground-oriented townhouse development and recommend that the application be referred to Public Hearing and be approved with conditions.

- - - - -

APPENDIX A

DRAFT CD-1 BY-LAW PROVISIONS

Note: A By-law will be prepared generally in accordance with the provisions listed below, subject to change and refinement prior to posting.

Use

· Multiple Dwellings containing a maximum of 21 dwelling units.

Density

· Maximum floor space ratio of 1.0, based on calculation provisions of the RM-4 District Schedule.

Height

· A maximum of 9.2 m (30 ft.) calculated from existing grade along Oak Street and from building grade along the lane or 2½ storeys.

Setback

· A minimum setback of 4 m (13 ft.) from the rear property line except that bay windows may extend 0.6 m (2 ft.) into the setback.

· A minimum setback of 4.1 m (13.5 ft.) from the Oak Street property line.

· A minimum setback of 4.1 m (13.5 ft.) from the 37th Avenue property line.

· A minimum setback of 4.1 m (13.5 ft.) from the 38^th Avenue property line.

Parking

· Per Parking By-law, except that parking for multiple dwelling uses shall be governed as per section 4.2.1.3 for RM-4/RM-4N sites and the relaxation and exemption provisions of the Vancouver Parking By-law shall be available.

Acoustics

· Per RM-4N District Schedule.

APPENDIX B

PROPOSED CONDITIONS OF APPROVAL

Note: Recommended approval conditions will be prepared generally in accordance with the draft conditions listed below, subject to change and refinement prior to finalization of the agenda for the Public Hearing.

FORM OF DEVELOPMENT

(a) That the proposed form of development be approved by Council in principle, generally as prepared by Formwerks Architectural and stamped "Received City Planning Department", October 2, 2003, provided that the Director of Planning may allow minor alterations to this form of development when approving the detailed scheme of development as outlined in (b) below.

(b) That, prior to approval by Council of the form of development, the applicant shall obtain approval of a development application by the Director of Planning, who shall have particular regard to the following:

(i) design development to better articulate the east end facades, noting they are proud of the single family houses on both 37^th and 38^th Avenues.

(ii) design development to provide a continuous granite stone wall along all frontages.

Note to applicant: Any existing compatible wall sections may be incorporated and upgraded as necessary.

Engineering:

(iii ) design development to parkade access and site servicing as required.

Note to applicant: At the development permit stage, the parkade entries will have to be adjusted to ensure adequate access for vehicles and garbage and recycling storage and pick up space will have to provided on site.

CPTED:

(iv) design development to take into consideration the principles of CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) having particular regard to reducing opportunities for:

- theft in the underground;
- break and enter; and
- mischief and vandalism such as graffiti.

Note to applicant: The walls at the parking entrances should be slightly setback to allow vines and trellis on the wall to reduce opportunities for graffiti.

Landscape:

(v) design development to provide a layered planting strip within the inside boulevard (between the sidewalk and the property line) along 37^th Avenue, Oak Street and 38^th Avenue, as per joint Planning and Engineering policies for "Special City Boulevard Treatment". The planting strip shall be comprised of layered low planting (mature height and width not to exceed 0.9 m x 0.9 m) with a minimum 0.3 m grass or ground cover strip adjacent to the sidewalk.

Note to applicant: All trees 20 cm caliper or greater (proposed to be removed or retained) must be illustrated on the landscape plan with corresponding notations, as should all existing street trees and street utilities, such as lamp posts, hydrants, etc. adjacent to the site. A Certified Arborist assessment of all existing trees 20 cm caliper or greater on site must be provided at the development permit stage. A row of street trees on the front boulevard and a row in the front setback along the Oak Street frontage will be required at the development permit stage.

AGREEMENTS

(c) That, prior to enactment of the CD-1 By-law, the registered owner shall, at no cost to the City:

(i) Consolidate Lots 1 - 4, Block 864, D.L. 526, Plan 8070 New Westminster District;

(ii) Make arrangements to the satisfaction of the General Manager of Engineering Services and the Director of Legal Services for provision of:

(1) paving of the lane adjacent to the site (second lane west of Willow Street) from 37^th Avenue to 38^th Avenue, and

(2) installation of concrete sidewalk and curb ramps on the north side of 38^th Avenue from Oak Street to the 2^nd lane west of Willow Street, subject to review by the Vancouver Park Board of the retention of the existing trees on 38^th Avenue adjacent to the site, noting that the trees are non-standard street trees and are located such that removal may be necessary to provide for a sidewalk; and

(iii) Make arrangements to the satisfaction of the General Manager of Engineering Services for all new Hydro and Telus services to be under-grounded within and adjacent to the site from the closest existing suitable service point, including a review of any necessary overhead cabling to determine any impact, if any, on the neighbourhood.

APPENDIX C

DRAFT AMENDMENTS TO NOISE BY-LAW NO. 6555

Amend Schedule B by adding the following:

"[CD-1 #] [By-law #] 5312 - 5392 Oak Street".

APPENDIX D

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Site, Surrounding Zoning and Development: This 2 897 m² (31,184 sq. ft.) site is comprised of four parcels on the west side of Oak Street. The site has a frontage of 79.25 m (260 ft.) and a depth of 36.58 m (120 ft.).

Directly north of the site and south of Eric Hamber High School is an area of undeveloped City-owned land, part of a former golf course, which is also zoned RS-1. Across Oak Street, north of 37^th Avenue is VanDusen Gardens which is zoned CD-1. Directly across from the site on the west side of Oak Street are Two-Family Dwellings zoned RT-1. To the south and east of the site are One-Family Dwellings zoned RS-1. 37^th Avenue is part of the Ridgeway Greenway.

Proposed Development: The proposed form of development is four blocks of two-storey multiple dwellings in a townhouse form. The density is proposed to be 1.0 FSR, the upper range of the density supported by the Oakridge Langara Policy Statement, achieved through high-quality design.

Pedestrian access to all units will be directly from the streets onto which they front, except for the block of five units parallel to the lane which will be accessed by common walkways from Oak Street. Each unit has some private open space associated with it both in the front and rear.

Parking: The applicant proposes 40 below-grade parking stalls. The access will be from a one-way entrance south of the east-west lane and egress will be from a one-way exit north of the east-west lane. Parking for 26 bicycles is proposed in a bike storage room accessed from the garage.

Public Input: The applicants held an open house at VanDusen Gardens on August 7, 2003. A notification letter was sent to nearby property owners on October 31, 2003 and rezoning information signs were posted on the site on October 22, 2003. One phone call was received, from a tenant of one of the houses to be replaced who was concerned about the proposal since he would be directly affected. No one came to City Hall to view plans and no letters were received from nearby residents.

Comments of the General Manager of Engineering Services: The General Manager of Engineering Services has no objection to the proposed rezoning, provided that the applicant complies with conditions as shown in Appendix B.

Park Board Comments: The Park Board noted that the "park" area to the north of the siteis relatively undeveloped and so there may be additional park activities in the future. Uses being considered may include a BMX bike trail. The applicant may wish to contact Park Board staff to get a better understanding of plans for the future park to better explain it to the prospective purchasers of townhouse units.

Fire Department Comments: The Fire Department wishes to ensure that the townhouse units in the rear will have adequate Fire Department response. This would include locating of annunciator panels at one or more locations near the entrances to rear townhouse units, which would also serve as the access points for responding to fire in the underground parking. A code review may preclude any issues arising at the building permit stage.

Public Benefit: A required Development Cost Levy (DCL) of $3.25 per square foot will be paid towards public benefits.

Urban Design Panel Comments: The Urban Design Panel reviewed this proposal on November 12, 2003 and strongly supported the proposed use, density and form of development for this neighbourhood and offered the following comments:

"The Panel supported the general massing of the project and liked the stone wall and metal fence around the base. The Panel generally thought this was a good method of increasing densification in parts of the city.

The Panel found the architectural style, while skillfully handled for its type, somewhat arbitrary and not reflective of anything in the neighbourhood. The Panel would prefer to see something more contemporary and fitting to this specific neighbourhood, particularly given that this is likely to be a precedent setting development for the area. Some Panel members recommended introducing some articulation to the roof line of the Oak Street building to break up its monotony.

It was suggested that the blank end wall of the end units could be handled more effectively to improve the view down both 37th and 38th Avenues.

There was a recommendation to introduce some natural light into the en-suite of the units facing the lane.

The Panel found the interior courtyard somewhat tight and suggested looking at pulling the rear units a little closer to the lane. The Panel appreciated the enhancement of the lane but thought more could be done to make it more like a street than a lane, possibly including lane addressing for the lane units. Concerns were expressed by one Panel member that these rear units seem like the "poor cousins" of the development, being quite a bit smaller and having little in the way of outlook.

A Panel member observed that this site is in the vicinity of the Ridgeway greenway andrecommended that this project take some cues from this experimental project in terms of treating city lanes differently. Also, to do something different with the landscape on the frontage closest to the Ridgeway, to acknowledge that special condition.

The Panel strongly supported the proposed one-way vehicular access system and, with one exception, thought it would be very workable. Given this arrangement is somewhat experimental, one Panel member recommended that the City consider monitoring its operation. There was support for having parking under each unit.

One Panel member recommended improving the parking access stair to make it more inviting, also questioning whether it needs to be closed off.

There was a recommendation from one Panel member for the City to review its policy with respect to affordable housing if the process that is in place for achieving greater density in return for affordable units is not feasible. It was recommended that more developments like this should be encouraged, with something in place to ensure that some affordable units (to be administered by the City) are included."

Environmental Implications: Nearby access to transit, the Ridgeway Greeenway, schools and recreational facilities may reduce dependence on use of automobiles.

Social Implications: There are no major positive or negative social implications to this proposal. There are no implications with respect to the Vancouver Children's Policy or Statement of Children's Entitlements.

Comments of the Applicant: The applicant has been provided with a copy of this report and has no further comments.

APPENDIX E

8 pages of architectural drawings

APPENDIX F

APPLICANT, PROPERTY, AND DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL INFORMATION

APPLICANT AND PROPERTY INFORMATION

Street Address

5312 - 5392 Oak Street

Legal Description

Lots 1 - 4, Block 864, DL 526, Plan 8070, New Westminster District

Applicant

Robert Cadez, Formwerks Architectural

Architect

Robert Cadez, Formwerks Architectural

Property Owner

Chandler Developments

Developer

Chandler Developments

SITE STATISTICS

GROSS

DEDICATIONS

NET

SITE AREA

2 897 m² (31,184 sq. ft.)

2 897 m² (31,184 sq. ft.)

DEVELOPMENT STATISTICS

DEVELOPMENT PERMITTED UNDER EXISTING ZONING

PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT

RECOMMENDED
DEVELOPMENT (if different than proposed)

ZONING

RS-1

CD-1

USES

One-Family Dwellings

Multiple Dwellings

DWELLING UNITS

4

21

MAX. FLOOR SPACE RATIO

0.6

1

MAXIMUM HEIGHT

9.2 m (30 ft.)

9.2 m (30 ft.)

MAX. NO. OF STOREYS

2.5

2.5

PARKING SPACES

1 Space per D.U.

40

FRONT YARD SETBACK

7.3 m (24 ft)

4.1 m (13.5 ft.)

SIDE YARD SETBACKS

3.7 m (12 ft.)

4.1 m (13.5 ft.)

REAR YARD SETBACK

16.5 m (54 ft.)

4.0 m (13 ft.)

* * * * *


TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	Director of Current Planning
SUBJECT:	CD-1 Rezoning - 5312-5392 Oak Street

Street Address	5312 - 5392 Oak Street
Legal Description	Lots 1 - 4, Block 864, DL 526, Plan 8070, New Westminster District
Applicant	Robert Cadez, Formwerks Architectural
Architect	Robert Cadez, Formwerks Architectural
Property Owner	Chandler Developments
Developer	Chandler Developments

	GROSS	DEDICATIONS	NET
SITE AREA	2 897 m² (31,184 sq. ft.)		2 897 m² (31,184 sq. ft.)

	DEVELOPMENT PERMITTED UNDER EXISTING ZONING	PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT	RECOMMENDED DEVELOPMENT (if different than proposed)
ZONING	RS-1	CD-1
USES	One-Family Dwellings	Multiple Dwellings
DWELLING UNITS	4	21
MAX. FLOOR SPACE RATIO	0.6	1
MAXIMUM HEIGHT	9.2 m (30 ft.)	9.2 m (30 ft.)
MAX. NO. OF STOREYS	2.5	2.5
PARKING SPACES	1 Space per D.U.	40
FRONT YARD SETBACK	7.3 m (24 ft)	4.1 m (13.5 ft.)
SIDE YARD SETBACKS	3.7 m (12 ft.)	4.1 m (13.5 ft.)
REAR YARD SETBACK	16.5 m (54 ft.)	4.0 m (13 ft.)