POLICY REPORT
URBAN STRUCTURE
Date: July 8, 1996
Dept. File No. 96022-IS
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Director of Land Use and Development, in consultation with the
Director of Central Area Planning
SUBJECT: Proposed CD-1 Text Amendment - 1599 Coal Harbour Quay
(Sub-Area 1A of Marathon s Coal Harbour Development)
RECOMMENDATION
THAT the application by Busby and Associates Architects, to amend
CD-1 By-law No. 7200 for 1599 Coal Harbour Quay, to permit an
increase in height from six to seven metres for the restaurant in
the marina, be referred to a Public Hearing, together with:
(i) plans received May 29, 1996;
(ii) the draft CD-1 text amendment, as contained in Appendix A;
and
(iii) the recommendation of the Director of Land Use and
Development to approve the application.
FURTHER THAT the Director of Legal Services be instructed to
prepare the necessary by-law for consideration at Public Hearing.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of
the foregoing.
COUNCIL POLICY
Coal Harbour Policy Statement, approved February 1990.
Coal Harbour Official Development Plan, approved November 1990.
Marina Neighbourhood (300 Cardero Street) CD-1 Guidelines for
Marina Development, adopted by Council in October 1993.
SITE
PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
This report assesses an application to amend the text of CD-1 By-law No.
7200 to permit an increase in height from 6.0 m (19.7 ft.) to 7.0 m
(23.0 ft.) for a restaurant in the proposed marina. Staff support the
proposed text amendment providing that this is the only fixed or
floating structure in the marina that increases in height.
DISCUSSION
From the early stages of planning in Coal Harbour, maintaining a
diversity of water uses has been a principal goal.
The retention of small-scale marine uses, charter boats, a restaurant or
marine pub, and a limited number of liveaboards and floating homes was
recommended in the Coal Harbour Policy Statement and later incorporated
in the Official Development Plan.
At the same time the importance of increasing public access and views of
the water was noted, particularly public views down extensions of
existing streets. Street-end views to be retained were identified in
the Official Development Plan.
With regard to the marina, the consideration of views was taken a step
further with a floating home view analysis. These view considerations
were incorporated in the Marina Development Guidelines, which
recommended: orientation of the floats to maximize water views, two
building zones for fixed structures and principles for locating floating
homes as illustrated in Appendix B. While no heights were recommended in
the guidelines for fixed structures within the building zones, floating
homes were limited to the lesser of two storeys or 6.0 m. When drafting
the CD-1 By-law for the Marina Neighbourhood, 6.0 m was set as a maximum
height for the entire marina.
Current Proposal
When preparing the development application for the marina, the
applicants conformed to both the by-law and marina guidelines. The
restaurant was set within the largest building zone with a maximum
height of 6.0 m.
The marina design, including the restaurant received the unanimous
support of the Urban Design Panel. The Panel felt that it was an
exciting project which would be an asset to the area. They also
supported the proposed 1.0 m (3 ft.) increase in height for the
restaurant.
The 6.0 m building height translates into a two-storey building with 2.4
m (8.0 ft.) headroom on each floor. While this represents a sufficient
height for residential space, it is low compared with the normal
commercial standard of 3.0 m (10 ft.). Restaurateurs interested in this
location have expressed serious concerns about the ceiling heights. To
create more generous interior spaces, which the applicant believes are
important in this setting and to facilitate restaurant use, a text
amendment to the By-law has been proposed which would increase the
building height to 7.0 m (23 ft.). Plans are attached as Appendix C.
Staff support this increase, noting that the restaurant is contained
within the building zone and that its width at 16.4 m (54 ft.) on the
street frontage, represents a substantial reduction from the 75.0 m (250
ft.) possible in this zone under the guidelines. This increase in
height should not apply to other fixed or floating structures in the
marina, which staff believe are appropriately limited to 6.0 m. This
height limitation is reflected in the wording of the proposed text
amendment (Appendix A).
This increase has been discussed with developers of the residential
towers directly behind the proposed restaurant, who are also supportive.
Applicant s Comments
The applicant has been provided with a copy of the report and concurs
with both the report and the recommendation.
CONCLUSION
Staff support the proposed increase in height of the proposed restaurant
building from 6.0 to 7.0 m. A taller and narrower building in this
location will increase public views and not adversely affect private
views. Staff recommend that the rezoning application be referred to a
Public Hearing with a recommendation from the Director of Land use and
Development to approve it, subject to the draft CD-1 By-law amendment as
shown in Appendix A.
* * * * *
PROPOSED TEXT AMENDMENT
Amend Section 7.2, Height, of CD-1 By-law #7200, as follows (underlining
indicates amendment):
"7.2 Notwithstanding Section 7.1, the Development Permit Board may
permit an increase in the maximum height in sub-areas 2 and 3
by up to 10 percent and in sub-area 4 by up to 1.0 m for a
fixed restaurant structure, providing that it first considers:
(a) the intent of this Schedule, all applicable policies
and guidelines adopted by Council and the relationship
of the development with nearby residential and
commercial areas; and
(b) the height, bulk, location and overall design of the
building and its effect on the site, surrounding
buildings and open space, the waterfront walkway,
streets and existing views."