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.
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