P1 POLICY REPORT DEVELOPMENT AND BUILDING Date: September 25, 1996 Dept. File: 95040-RW TO: Vancouver City Council FROM: Director of Land Use and Development SUBJECT: Rezoning Application - 3001 Wall Street (CD-1) RECOMMENDATION THAT the Director of Land Use and Development be advised to process the application by Baker McGarva Hart Inc. (Architects) to rezone 3001 Wall Street from CD-1 (Industrial) to a new CD-1 (Residential) in the normal manner. GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing. COUNCIL POLICY Hastings Sunrise Plan On May 28, 1985, Council approved a plan for the Hastings-Sunrise local area which sought to preserve and improve the residential, commercial, industrial, recreational and social environments of the community. Industrial Lands Strategy On March 14, 1995, Council adopted a framework to guide future decisions on the use of industrial land. Among the area-specific policies, the Burrard Waterfront industrial area (which extends from Gore Avenue to Boundary Road) was confirmed as an area to be retained for port and port-related industrial uses. Concerning the rezoning of industrial land, the policy states that if an inquiry/rezoning application is submitted, it will be reported to Council with staff's assessment of its merits according to adopted criteria, resources required to process the application, and a direction for Council consideration. CityPlan On January 18, 1996, Council approved that rezoning requests which would prejudice future possibilities for neighbourhood centres not be considered until a Neighbourhood Vision is approved for the area in question, and also subject to several criteria. On July 30, 1996, Council approved the "CityPlan Community Vision Pilot Program". Greenways Plan On July 18, 1995, City Council approved the Vancouver Greenways Plan, which includes a city-wide network of 14 greenways. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY In accordance with Council policy, staff are seeking advice on whether or not to process an application to rezone an industrial site at 3001 Wall Street (zoned CD-1), which would result in the replacement of an existing storage warehouse with a 135-unit multiple dwelling development. While the site is situated on the southerly edge of the Burrard Waterfront industrial area, on the basis of the Hastings-Sunrise and Greenways Plans and an initial assessment of the proposal, staff recommend that the application be processed in the usual manner. BACKGROUND Site and Surrounding Zoning: This long and narrow site, 1.14 ha (2.82 acres) in size, lies between the CP Rail line and Wall Street (see Figure 1 on the following page for site location and context). Situated at the eastern end of the Wall Street escarpment, the site is sloped with a drop of about 9.1 m (30 ft.) from Wall Street to the foot of the slope. The site is developed with a large warehouse building (Maple Leaf Storage) and has access from both Wall and McGill Streets. The site and adjoining industrial lands are zoned CD-1 (#258). This by-law is based on M-2 zoning except that height above 9.1 m (30 ft.) and floor space ratio (FSR) above 2.0 are conditional, to 30.5 m (100 ft.) and FSR 5.0 respectively. A CP Rail line runs along the north edge of the site. New Brighton Park is located to the north-east beyond the rail line and Hastings Park is situated south of McGill Street. Adjoining the site to the west is a site zoned C-2 and occupied by a vacant office building. To the south-west of Wall Street is an area of one-family dwellings zoned RS-1S. Figure 1 Proposed Development: The application proposes 135 apartment and townhouse dwellings units in "mews" development ranging in height from two to four storeys. About half the units would be accessible at grade from Wall Street while the other half would be situated toward the foot of the slope above a level of parking. An illustrative site plan is shown in Appendix A. The FSR of proposed development would be 1.03 after the property owner or developer obtains an unutilized portion of Wall Street from the City, 3 m (9.8 ft.) to 13 m (42.7 ft.) wide, along the site's south-west property boundary. The development which is proposed in this application could not be undertaken without this additional land, as some of the proposed development would encroach onto Wall Street. The proposed development on the present site area would have an FSR of 1.20. DISCUSSION Industrial Lands Strategy: The site is part of the Burrard Waterfront industrial area which was confirmed in the Industrial Lands Strategy as an area to be retained for port and port-related industrial uses. Council, in accordance with the following criteria, has indicated a willingness to consider the rezoning of industrial land where a proposal is: (a) based upon CityPlan or other City-initiated planning process; or (b) located in a "let go" area; or (c) located in an area designated as Highway-Oriented Retail/ Industrial, and consistent with large-scale retail use; or (d) located within the False Creek Flats and within the context of the City-initiated planning study (now underway). Criterion (a) would apply in this case as a result of policies adopted following a City-initiated planning process (Hastings-Sunrise Plan). Hastings-Sunrise Plan: Recommendations regarding the site were contained in the Hastings-Sunrise Plan, approved by City Council in 1985: - discourage commuter traffic from Wall Street (Policy 2.3, Action 1); - identify and implement an alternative to the use of the Renfrew Street overpass (Policy 2.4, Action 2); - develop New Brighton Park into a major waterfront facility, including a westerly entrance to the parking lot (Policy 4.7, Actions 1-7); - phase out hazardous goods movement by rail or road (Policy 7.3, Action 1); - redevelop the Westroc Industries Ltd. site (3001 Wall Street) on the southerly side of the CP rail line, in the future, with housing (Policy 7.4, Action 2); and - protect the cliff face (Policy 7.6, Actions 1-2). The plan identifies the site and the abutting C-2 site as suitable for future housing development: "The 3.5 +/- acre parcel ... between the railway tracks and Wall Street would best be taken out of industrial use in order to provide a strong visual linkage between the residential community and the park. The area should be used for multiple family housing, low in scale and stepped down the hillside." (Page 111) While this rezoning application does not include the C-2 zoned parcel to the west, future development potential of that commercial parcel is important in the assessment of the application. Issues of design and use compatibility will need to be addressed. A number of initiatives are underway as a result of the plan: - The City and the Vancouver Port Corporation will proceed this fall with construction of a new overpass at McGill and Wall Streets to improve truck access to port lands. This will result in the closure of the Renfrew Street overpass. - As part of Engineering Services' program of traffic control measures and arterial improvements to discourage commuter traffic from local streets and redirect it onto arterial streets, Wall Street will end in a cul-de-sac at McGill Street. This project will also start this fall. Direct access to Wall Street from McGill Street will no longer be possible, eliminating truck and commuter traffic from this section of Wall Street. - The Board of Parks and Recreation is working to improve New Brighton Park, including expansion, improved access, increased parking and direct access to the water. - The phase-out of hazardous goods movement by rail on the eastern portion of the Vancouver waterfront, agreed to in 1983, is expected to occur in the near future as hazardous goods destined for Vancouver Island pulp mills are rerouted to Tilbury Island. The overall effect of all the initiatives is as follows: 1. this site is generally becoming less accessible, particularly to truck traffic, which will make it less attractive and marketable for industrial purposes; 2. the general intent of the new overpass and changes to Wall Street is to reduce the level of truck traffic through the area, particularly as it affects residents on Wall Street; and 3. the expansion of New Brighton Park to the west results in the site becoming progressively more isolated from adjoining industrial activity. These initiatives make the site increasingly more suitable for residential purposes, consistent with the proposed rezoning. CityPlan: On January 18, 1996, City Council approved the following recommendation in considering the report titled "Rezoning During Neighbourhood Visioning Process - CityPlan Implementations": "THAT Council's policy on neighbourhood rezonings be as described in Appendix A of the policy report dated January 18, 1996 that is to continue to consider rezonings that conform to existing city-wide and neighbourhood plans and policies, but not to consider rezoning requests which would prejudice future possibility for neighbourhood centres, until a Neighbourhood Vision is approved for the area." The proposed rezoning is generally consistent with the Hastings-Sunrise Plan s recommendations for the site. Furthermore, it is most unlikely that the area surrounding the Wall Street site will serve as a focus for a neighbourhood centre because of its location at the most northerly edge of the Hastings-Sunrise community. Consequently, staff are of the opinion that this proposal will not set "significant new directions and/or precludes options for the neighbourhood process...". Greenways: Wall Street is identified as a link in the potential "Harbour Route" Greenway which would extend from Boundary Road to Portside Park and which would overlook the Burrard Inlet waterfront. The rezoning could assist in implementing this greenway as part of the redevelopment, as a bonafide public benefit. Staff Resources: While the application is complex and the amount of community interest has yet to be determined, it is not expected that undue staff resources will be required to process this application as compared to other similar CD-1 rezonings. No additional staff resources would therefore be required. CONCLUSION Subject to assessing the applicant's recommendations for remediation measures for the effects of rail noise and vibrations (which the applicant's consultant believes can be managed), staff recommend that the rezoning for 3001 Wall Street be processed in the usual manner, including notification of surrounding property owners and respective community groups. * * *