POLICY REPORT

URBAN STRUCTURE

Date: July 14, 1998

Author/Local: PBurch/7486

CC File No. 5300

TO:Standing Committee on Planning and Environment

FROM:Director of Community Planning

Subject: Interim Zoning Program - Final Report

RECOMMENDATION

THAT Council adopt the RS-5/RS-5S Design Guidelines for the RS-3 zone on a permanent basis.

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.

COUNCIL POLICY

On May 19, 1994, Council adopted the RS-5 Design Guidelines for the RS-3 zone on an interim basis, pending completion of the South Shaughnessy/Granville Zoning Review.

On May 3, 1996, Council approved the RS-1/RS-1S Interim Zoning program for RS-1 and RS-1S areas in Vancouver in advance of CityPlan’s Neighbourhood Visioning program.

SUMMARY AND PURPOSE

This report constitutes the final report on the RS-1/RS-1S Interim Zoning Program. It summarizes the rezonings completed to date, recommends not proceeding to Public Hearing for the Clinton Park and Blenheim Street study areas, and asks for Council approval to adopt the RS-5/RS-5S Design Guidelines for the RS-3 zone on a permanent basis. Staff will report back on a RS-5/RS-6 monitoring program, and a proposed review program for the RS-2/RS-1A zones, including a consultant study for Buffalo Hill.

BACKGROUND

On May 3, 1996, Council approved the RS-1/RS-1S Interim Zoning program for RS-1 and RS-1S areas in Vancouver in advance of CityPlan’s Neighbourhood Visioning program. This program provided interested neighbourhoods with the opportunity to change their current RS-1/RS-1S zoning to either RS-5/RS-5S or RS-6/RS-6S in response to concerns about the external design of new houses and site landscaping.

RS-5 and RS-5S zones encourage new houses and additions to be compatible with existing houses and landscaping by providing a floor space increase in exchange for going through a design guideline review process. Buildings which meet design guidelines derive their design from adjacent houses and site landscaping. RS-6 and RS-6S zones require/prohibit certain design features, and encourage site landscaping in order to establish a minimum standard of design quality and foster a greater variety of design than under RS-1 zoning.

For neighbourhood residents or resident groups who express an interest in a rezoning, the Council-approved planning process for the interim rezoning program involves three phases:

·320·Phase I - This phase determines the general level of neighbourhood support for a change in zoning. A post-returned "expression of interest" survey is conducted among all area residents and property owners. If the survey achieves a 25% response rate, and if 60% of the respondents to the survey support a change in zoning, then staff proceeds with Phase II.·320

·320·Phase II - This phase determines the type of single-family zoning which the neighbourhood supports. Staff distribute more detailed information on RS-1/RS-1S, RS-5/RS-5S and RS-6/RS-6S zoning to all area residents and property owners and hold open houses. Following this, an independent consultant is used to conduct the Phase II survey as a multi-language random sample telephone survey. A 60% support rate for a new zoning is adequate for staff to refer a rezoning report to Council.·320

·320·Phase III - Staff report back to Council on the Phase II survey results with a recommendation on the area zoning and, where appropriate, referral to Public Hearing.·320

DISCUSSION

1.Program Results

Since the adoption of the program by Council in May of 1996, sixteen separate areas (constituting roughly 10,500 sites) have been surveyed (including Clinton Park and Blenheim Street--areas discussed later in the report). Fourteen areas have completed the program, with 10 showing enough support to change their RS-1/RS-1S zoning to RS-5/RS-5S or RS-6 (see chart below and Figure 1):

NEIGHBOURHOOD	RETAINED RS-1, RS-1S		CHANGED TO RS-5, RS-5S		CHANGED TO RS-6
Dunbar (RS-1 and RS-1S areas)			x	x
West Kerrisdale North (RS-1 and RS-1S areas)			x	x
West Kerrisdale Central			x
West Kerrisdale South			x
Mackenzie Heights			x
West Southlands (note: 1 survey)			x		x
Kitsilano				x
Douglas Park				x
West Pt. Grey	x
West Marpole	x
Cedar Cottage		x
Glen Park		x

2.Outstanding Areas

(a)Clinton Park

The Clinton Park RS-1S study area is located on the east side of the city and is bounded by Charles Street, Renfrew Street, East 1st Avenue, and Nanaimo Street (see Figure 2). It is composed of approximately 500 lots.

·320·Phase I Resident Surveys·320

Phase I resident surveys were conducted in Clinton Park in January of 1998. The responses to the survey - when plotted on an area map - had a distinctive pattern, and can be summarized as follows:

Which option do you prefer?	a) Retain the current RS-1S zoning	b) Seek an alternative zoning	c) Undecided
West of Penticton Street	28%	72%	0%
East of Penticton Street	60%	37%	3%

The response rate was 22% for an area west of Penticton Street and 19% for an area east of Penticton Street Six responses were returned without block addresses; these could have been mailed from any part of the study area. Including the six responses in the total responses for the area west of Penticton Street would result in a response rate of 25%. On balance, the results of the Phase I survey indicated that there was sufficient support in the area west of Penticton Street to proceed onto Phase II.

·320·Phase II Telephone Surveys·320

In February of 1998, staff distributed detailed information on zoning alternatives to all residen ts and property owners in the Clinton Park West RS-1S area (see Appendix A). Contained in the information package were staff phone numbers in order that questions could be asked and responses given. Multi-lingual "call back" lines were set up for people with English as a second language. All distributed material was translated into Chinese. An open house (with translation services) was held in the area to answer questions and display additional, more detailed information about the zoning.

The telephone survey of all area residents and property owners was conducted by an independent consultant in late February/early March. With 105 completed phone surveys in the Clinton Park West RS-1S area, the accuracy of the resulting statistics is roughly plus or minus 5.1% at a 95% confidence level. The survey results are as follows (a full detailed report is available from the Clerk):

Which option do you prefer?	a) Retain the current RS-1S zoning	b) Seek an alternative zoning	c) No opinion
	41%	57.1%	1%

The Phase II survey indicates approximately 57% support for a zoning change (note: of those that supported a change, 2/3 preferred RS-5S zoning). The Council-approved planning process for Phase II of the program requires a 60% support rate for new zoning for staff to send a report to Council recommending a Public Hearing. As with other areas which did not achieve the minimum support rate, staff recommend no further action be taken in Clinton Park.

(b)Blenheim Street

The Blenheim Street RS-1 study area is composed of 10 lots running down the east side of the street between the 5900 and 6100 blocks (see Figure 2). This area was not included in the West Kerrisdale and Dunbar study areas in earlier zoning reviews conducted under the Interim Zoning Program.

·320·Phase I Resident Surveys·320

Phase I resident surveys were conducted in the RS-1 zoned area of the 5900-6100 block of Blenheim Street in February of 1998. The results of the phase I survey can be summarized as follows:

Question 1: Which option do you prefer?	a) Retain the current RS-1 zoning	b) Seek an alternative zoning	c) Undecided
5900-6100 Blenheim Street	33%	67%	0%

The survey response rate was 30% and the results indicated that there was sufficient support to proceed onto Phase II.

·320·Phase II Mail-out Surveys·320

On May 28th, 1998, staff hand-delivered detailed information on the zoning alternatives to all residents and property owners in the area (see Appendix B). Attached was a letter that contained staff phone numbers in order that questions could be asked and responses given, and a note that complete copies of the RS-1 and RS-5 zoning documents were available in Chinese. A survey response form and a business reply envelope were also included.

Prior to the deadline for the survey return, staff called the owners to ask if they have received the survey package, answered any questions and reminded them to return the survey; only one owner was not contacted. Only four surveys were returned to the Planning Department, three supporting a change to RS-5.

The Phase II survey indicates that the RS-1 zoned area of the 5900-6100 block of Blenheim Street has only 30% support for a zoning change to deal with concerns about the design of new houses and landscaping. Staff recommend that no further action be taken in this area.

3.Design Guidelines for the RS-3 Zone

The RS-3 area in South Shaughnessy is bounded by West 41st Avenue, Granville Street, West 49th Avenue, and Cypress Street (see Figure 2). The RS-5 Guidelines were adopted on an interim basis for the area in 1994 while consultation proceeded on the RS-3 zoning. This work has since been completed, resulting in no changes to the RS-3 zone.

Since adoption of the guidelines, discretionary house designs have been generally compatible with the existing neighbourhood character, and research conducted by Real Estate Services showed no zoning-related change in property values. Notices were also sent out to all property owners outlining the prospect of permanently adopting the guidelines, and 10 telephone calls and 1 letter were received in response, all in support. Staff recommend the adoption of the RS-5 Design Guidelines on a permanent basis in the RS-3 area.

4.Other Work - Monitoring of RS-5/5S and RS-6 Zoning

Community Planning has made a practice over the last several years of monitoring new zonings for purposes of understanding impacts and evaluating performance. Monitoring RS-5 and RS-6 zoning will enable staff to obtain feedback regarding the impacts of new single-family houses and large additions to existing single-family houses - in terms of the neighbourliness, compatibility, and design quality - and the zoning and guidelines in general, including timing and processing of permits.

The monitoring will include all the areas rezoned as part of the Interim Zoning program and will focus on surveying applicants for development permits, architects/designers, notified neighbours, and neighbourhood groups. Other aspects of the monitoring will include:

·320·tracking all permit activity in the newly-rezoned RS-5/RS-5S and RS-6 areas; and·320

·320·staff field checks when new construction/renovations are completed or nearing completion.·320

Staff will report the results of the monitoring to Council in the fall.

5.The RS-2/RS-1A Zoning Review

When the RS-1/RS-1S Interim Zoning program was approved by Council in May of 1996, staff noted that residents from RS-2 areas had contacted the City about including their areas in the program. Given the nature of RS-2 zoning - where duplexes, multiple conversions and, in some cases, infill and multiple dwellings are allowed, and all permitted floor space can be built above grade - staff felt that the options of offering RS-5/5S or RS-6/6S were not necessarily viable for these areas and a special zoning analysis would need to be conducted. It was agreed that RS-2 areas would be considered for review after all interested RS-1 or RS-1S neighbourhoods have been served. During the course of conducting the program, many other residents from RS-2-zoned neighbourhoods came forward requesting a zoning review. Again, staff advised residents to wait until the completion of the Interim Zoning program, when staff resources might become available to conduct a zoning review in all RS-2/RS-1A areas.

Pockets of the RS-2 and RS-1A zoning exist in Kitsilano, Douglas Park, Sunnyside, Riley Park, Grandview-Woodlands and Kensington-Cedar Cottage, including Buffalo Hill (see Figure 3). Historically, RS-2 and RS-1A constitute two of Vancouver’s oldest zones. RS-2 zoning remains largely intact from when it was originally drafted in 1954. At the time, RS-2 permitted one-family dwellings on an outright basis and multiple conversion dwellings (MCDs) on a conditional basis. Two-family dwellings and multiple dwellings were permitted conditionally on larger lots (infill has since been added to this list). RS-2 regulations still retain a 7.3 m (24 ft.) front yard, a 10.7 m (35 ft.) rear yard and 10% side yards; the height of a building can be no more than 10.7 m (35 ft.) or 2 1/2 storeys. The FSR has been increased from the original 0.45 to 0.60 (presently sites with multiple dwellings or with infill housing can achieve 0.75 FSR).

RS-1A zoning, drafted in 1977, has most of the same regulations as RS-2 but does not permit duplexes, multiple dwellings and infill as uses. RS-1A does permit MCDs provided there are no building additions, no housekeeping or sleeping units created, and the number of dwelling units is limited to two. This zone was originally created to offer the opportunity for a "secondary suite" (i.e., in this case an MCD unit) in a single-family zone.

The RS-2 and RS-1A zones have not been subject to many of the amendments made to the RS-1 (later RS-1/RS-1S) zoning in the middle 1980s to early 1990s. Thus no secondary suite program has been conducted in these areas, no major changes have been made in response to siting, parking and building envelope (bulk) issues, and there have been no recent initiatives to offer additional design control.

One of the RS-2/RS-1A areas, Cedar Cottage, has already been involved in planning programs where further work on the RS-2/RS-1A zoning is called for. The Cedar Cottage Planning Program, approved by Council in May of 1995, included as part of the proposed program a survey of residents’ perspectives on new house design issues in the RS-1A and RS-2 Districts of Cedar Cottage to determine if there is support for addressing any design issues through zoning changes or design guidelines. This program has been delayed due to other work priorities, including the RS-1/RS-1S Interim Zoning program and CityPlan. Subsequently, the neighbourhood vision for Kensington-Cedar Cottage developed through CityPlan supported the need for a review of the RS-2 and RS-1A zoning.

As a result of the expressed interest in a review of the RS-2/RS-1A zones by residents - both those that participated in the Visioning process and those in areas that have yet to be visioned - and the outdated nature of these zones, staff recommend proceeding with an RS-2/RS-1A zoning review program. The program would review issues brought to staff’s attention such as:

·320·permission for secondary suites·320

·320·houses and garages covering-over rear yards·320

·320 ·paved-over lots and no landscaping·320

·320 ·design issues including-·320

no front porches and first floor at grade

garage door" facades on small lots

little or no design "quality" in new construction

Staff will report back after preliminary community consultation on a recommended approach to this work.

Two RS-2/RS-1A-zoned areas which merit special consideration are in Buffalo Hill and Kitsilano:

·320·Buffalo Hill is roughly bounded by East 15th Avenue, Commercial Drive, 18th Avenue, and Knight Street (see Figure 3). It has approximately 110 sites zoned either RS-2 or RS-1A, many of which are larger than 10,000 sq. ft. The area is mostly composed of single-family homes. Under the RS-2 zoning, 10,000 sq. ft. lots can be redeveloped as multiple dwellings or as infill (at a slightly higher density than one-family dwellings and two-family dwellings), so many of these properties will be redeveloped in the future, in form of development much different than what already currently exists. The sub-division pattern is also irregular: most of the lots are long and thin (e.g., 50' x 180', 40' x 190'); and few of the lots are serviced by lanes, some with access solely from Commercial Drive. Given then uniqueness of the area, and recently-expressed neighbourhood concerns about the loss of heritage character and trees, staff suggest that Buffalo Hill be looked at separately from the other RS-2 and RS-1A areas, and will report back to Council, after consultation with the community, with a terms of reference for a planning program.·320

·320·The RS-2 area north of Point Grey Road in Kitsilano (between Alma and Bayswater) is located along English Bay (see Figure 3). It is a unique location--set between the waterfront and a busy street--with few similarities to the other RS-2 areas in the city, including the types of development issues they face. For example, while rear yard issues are key to other RS-2 areas, the lots along Pt. Grey Road all have individual building lines beyond which owners cannot build, thus preserving rear yards and existing view corridors. Issues in this area have been resolved on a site-by-site basis and there has been little communication from Point Grey Road residents/property owners about issues that have concerned other areas, so it is unclear if they share any of the views of residents from other RS-2 areas. Given the above, staff recommend that Point Grey Road not be included in the general RS-2/RS-1A zoning review. However, at the end of the RS-2/RS-1A zoning review, staff will consult with Point Grey Road residents to see if any of the proposed zoning changes could apply to their area. ·320

Finally, there is other work being undertaken by staff which involves RS zoning, including the "RS- Rethink" program. This project was put on hold due to other Council priorities, but some initial work has now begun. However, the RS-2/RS-1A review will not run counter to the intent of this planning program which deal with the overall zoning framework and land use. The RS-2/RS-1A zoning review will deal immediately with long-expressed, specific concerns of RS-2/RS-1A area residents.

CONCLUSION

This report constitutes the final report on the RS-1/RS-1S Interim Zoning Program which resulted in 10 areas choosing to rezone to achieve better quality of design. It summarizes the rezonings completed to date, recommends not proceeding with the Clinton Park and Blenheim Street zoning reviews, and asks for Council approval to adopt the RS-5/RS-5S Design Guidelines for the RS-3 zone on a permanent basis. Staff will report back on a RS-5/RS-6 monitoring program, a proposed review program for the RS-2/RS-1A zones, including a consultant study for Buffalo Hill.

ATTACHMENTS TO THIS DOCUMENT THAT DO NOT HAVE ELECTRONIC COPY ARE AVAILABLE ON FILE IN THE CITY CLERK'S OFFICE

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver