Agenda Index City of Vancouver

POLICY REPORT
URBAN STRUCTURE

TO: Vancouver City Council

FROM: Director of Community Planning

SUBJECT: C-2 Zoning Review

RECOMMENDATION

GENERAL MANAGER’S COMMENTS

COUNCIL POLICY

Council's current policy is embodied in the C-2 District Schedule and the C-2 Residential Guidelines, which allow 3 to 4 storey all-commercial, or four storey mixed commercial/residential development. Both the Kensington-Cedar Cottage and Dunbar Community Visions call for improvements to design of development in the C-2 zones.

PURPOSE

This report presents a work program and resources required for the first part of the C-2 Zoning Review, which would address issues with the form of development of mixed use and all-commercial development in C-2 zones. The products of the review would be adopted Policy Directions, followed up by revisions to the District Schedule and Guidelines.

BACKGROUND

In June Council considered an information report from the Director of Community Planning which outlined the current C-2 zoning and issues. The concerns have been expressed in reaction to specific developments, as well as during the Vision programs in Dunbar and Kensington-Cedar Cottage. As a result of the report, and delegations heard, Council instructed the Director of Planning to report back on a timetable, work program and resourcing to undertake a C-2 review.

DISCUSSION

The C-2 zoning and issues were described in the report to Council dated May 8, 1998 [available from the City Clerk]. Concerns relate to the neighbourliness and street-friendliness of building height and massing; overall quality of design and materials; monotony of the types of housing provided; and potential for multi-level malls. In addition, local communities are interested in having the developments express more of a sense of local character.

The main challenge for the work program is how to deal with the broad range of issues, without taking a long time to get any revisions before Council; and how to deal with the fact that the zone is city-wide, but many local communities would like to have some "custom character" to their commercial areas. Staff propose breaking the zoning review into two main parts, and are seeking approval now for Part 1 dealing with Form of Development. Part 2 dealing with Housing Types and Commercial Uses would follow later. The discussionbelow also describes how to recognize local design preferences, and other issues.

1. C-2 Zoning Review Part 1: Form of Development - Work Program

The objectives, products, and process are outlined in detail in Appendix A. The scope of the review - the parameters and criteria which form the study’s “goal posts” is also laid out. The roles of planning staff, an Advisory Group, and the public are discussed.

C-2 Zoning Review Part 1 will address most of the issues which have caused recent concern with C-2 developments across the city--impacts of massing on neighbours, bulky appearance and street scale, and general quality of design and construction. The types of changes that could result include revisions to heights, setbacks, floor space ratio, and the guidelines. The review would address both standard C-2 sites, and those sites adjoining R-zoned sites with no lane in between. Both mixed-use and all-commercial developments would be addressed.
The work program proposes developing options for public review, with Policy Directions coming before Council for approval, and then revised District Schedule and Guidelines following. The total time, from filling of the needed staff positions, would be about 13 months. Additional resources required, mainly to hire a 2 person C-2 staff team on a temporary basis, are outlined in Appendix B.

In order to make decisions on the policy directions, Council will need the benefit of input from all the various interests and geographical areas. Broad public review of options, and of draft recommendations, will occur prior to Council consideration of them. Methods will include open houses, meetings with organizations, mailings, informational advertising, and surveys. Specific details of public consultation will be developed when the program starts.

An Advisory Group, with key staff expertise and representatives of the major interest groups [neighbours, C-2 residents, land owners and the development industry] would assist in reviewing information and in creative problem solving. They would not take on the roles of advocates or negotiators, however.

2. C-2 Zoning Review Part 2: Housing Types and Commercial Uses

This part of the review would be undertaken after Part 1 is complete, and a work program will be developed by the C-2 staff team, and forwarded to Council for approval next year. This would address how more housing variety could be introduced into C-2 zones; whether more can be done regarding family suitability; and whether there is excess commercialcapacity in some areas that should be changed.

3. Local Community C-2 Design and Character

Local communities have expressed an interest in "customizing" the basic C-2 design guidelines for their areas. Staff foresee that different communities or local business areas may want to address this in different ways at different times. Some of these studies may be spearheaded by staff, some by community groups assisted by consultants, and some by organizations facilitated by the City's BIA coordinator. Proposals will be put before Council as appropriate.

For example, the Kerrisdale Business Improvement Association already has developed a set of voluntary guidelines, portions of which might be usable in C-2 Guidelines for their area. Dunbar, as part of implementing their Community Vision, may want to undertake a wholistic study of Dunbar Street that looks at street beautification, street design, facade treatments. Kensington-Cedar Cottage residents may priorize a study around the neighbourhood centre at Knight and Kingsway, which could result in locally-specific character. Staff will need to explore alternate methods of incorporating community-specific character in the light of our increasingly complex regulatory environment.

4. Other C-2 Related Issues

As C-2 developments become more numerous, new residents may have impacts on local parking and traffic circulation. The Engineering Department addresses these types of issues on an as-needed basis. The Parking Bylaw sets standards for the provision of parking and loading within the developments in C-2 based on use, as in other multi-family and commercial zones. These are based on research by Engineering into actual parking utilization, which is reviewed from time to time.

New C-2 residents will also be using facilities such as parks, libraries, community centres, and schools. The City is currently undertaking a study on financing growth through measures such as Development Cost Levies, and Community Amenity Contributions. The C-2 staff team will liaise with the staff undertaking this work.

5. Resources and Staffing

Appendix B outlines the resources needed to accomplish the C-2 Zoning Review Part 1: Form of Development work program. A staff team of a full time Planner II and a Planning Assistant III is required, under the part time overall management of a Planner III. Other requirements include funds for public consultation, consultants, and overtime.

Staff recognize that there are budget constraints. However, there are no undeployed staff available, and so temporary full-time staff positions are requested for the Planner II and Planning Assistant III positions for a period of 13 months. (The funding request assumes that, as a result of an anticipated fall report back to Council, the Community Visions program is continued at its present staff resource level. If that proves not to be the case, then staff may be available and the staffing portion of the funds requested in Recommendation B would not be required.)

Council should be aware that approval of Recommendation B will commit expenses to a future year operating budget (1999). An alternative to Recommendation B is for Council to delay the start of this work until approximately mid-1999 when staff would be available from other programs.

Other staff involvement would include a modest amount of time from representatives of the Housing Centre, Permits and Licences Department, Engineering, Properties, and Law.

CONCLUSION

The C-2 zone provides a large portion of the City's future housing capacity, and lines many of its most prominent arterials. Significant concerns have been expressed with the neighbourliness, streetscape qualities, and overall design of some development that has occurred over the past 10 years. It is timely to review the C-2 zoning, with a view to improving the results that are being achieved.

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C-2 ZONING REVIEW PART 1: FORM OF DEVELOPMENT

I. Objectives

For both mixed-use and all commercial development:

1. Revise massing [height, setbacks, density, articulation] to achieve better neighbourliness and streetscape;
2. Address some architectural design aspects related to pedestrian friendliness, quality of design and materials; and
3. Address issues specific to sites adjacent to R-zoned sites with no lane between.

The scope of the review will reflect the list of parameters and criteria that appear at the end of this work program.

II. Products

A. Council-adopted Policy Directions
B. Revised Zoning and Guidelines, Public Hearing, Enactment

[Note: the Policy Directions developed may or may not be suitable for application to the "hybrid" C-2B, C-2C, and C-2C1 zones as well. The review will take into consideration the current regulations and guidelines of these zones, but a decision as to whether to revise and how to them will not be made until the end of Phase 1.]

III. Process

Pre-approval:

- research has begun on recent C-2 projects using staff time when available between projects;

A. Policy Directions 7 months after Step 1. Start-up

1. Start-up

2. Research

3. Establish and Brief C-2 Advisory Group

4. Analysis and Option Development

5. Revise Options and Package for Public Review

6. Public Review

7. Options Refinement

8. C-2 Form of Development Policy Directions: Draft Recommendations Report

9. Public Review

10. C-2 Form of Development Policy Directions: Final Recommendations

B: Revised District Schedule and Guidelines 6 months

11. Draft Revised District Schedule and Guidelines

12. Review Draft

13. Finalize Revised District Schedule and Guidelines

14. Council Referral Report

15. Public Hearing

16. Enactment

IV. Scope: Parameters and Criteria

The following notes define what aspects the C-2 Review Part 1 will address, and form the "goal posts" for the study.

Uses:
- no major changes to the range of uses, other than updates for consistency with other similar zones, to be considered. Altering outright or conditional categories to be considered to achieve appropriate level of control;
- current requirement for commercial at grade, with limited exceptions, not to be reconsidered [sill be subject of C-2 Review Part 2. See below.]; and
- issue of commercial use extending around the corner on streets where R zoned properties are across the street to be considered.

Form of Development:
- for the normal form of development, height options of 3 and 4 storeys to be considered;
- rear and side setbacks to be reconsidered;

- front setbacks at grade not to be significantly reconsidered. Front setbacks above grade to be reconsidered;
- the 3 step height relaxations in the current guidelines to be reconsidered;
- the unlimited height relaxation for all-commercial projects currently in the District Schedule, to be reconsidered;
- all the above aspects of form of development on sites adjoining R-zoned sites, to be specifically reconsidered;
- daylighting, depth of units, courtyard dimensions to be reconsidered; and
- FSR revisions to be considered commensurate with form of development options and control required.

Architectural Design

The following aspects to be reconsidered: overall architectural design quality, building articulation, pedestrian interest, weather protection, location and treatment of parking and loading, exterior materials; landscaping. [ Specific local or contextual design solutions are not being developed at this time. See Council report].

Criteria

The following criteria will be used to evaluate the proposals on the above matters:

- neighbourliness to nearby dwellings: sun/shadowing; overlook and privacy; views;
- livability of units: daylighting; outlook; privacy; opportunity for ground or podium entry and patio space;
- economics: impact on C-2 land values; economics of development; impacts on adjacent land values;
- housing capacity: impact on capacity for new dwelling units;
- attractiveness: pedestrian interest and "friendliness"; overall design attractiveness; durability; and
- other criteria as requested by Director of Community Planning or Council.

V. Planning Staff Role

Planning staff's roles are:

Technical expert: to produce options that address the issues and parameters above; to ensure necessary information and materials are available to generate options, describe them, andevaluate them; to ensure accurate reporting of information.

Facilitator: to facilitate Technical Advisory Group and other city-initiated meetings; to conduct the public reviews.
Council Communicator: to write reports and memos for Council as required.
Manager: to manage the overall process in accordance with the work program and budget.
Recommender: to recommend one or more Policy Directions to Council.

VI. C-2 Advisory Group Role and Composition

The role of the C-2 Advisory Group is to assist planning staff by reviewing analysis and information for completeness and understandability, and to assist in creative problem solving at key points in the process: development of the draft options, the draft Policy Direction recommendations, and the draft District Schedule and Guidelines.

The group is not a negotiating body, nor an advocacy group. It does not recommend options. The role of advocating preferences will remain with the interested community groups, landowners, industry groups, or city departments, through the public review steps.

The Advisory Group will be comprised of staff with needed expertise, and representatives of groups who have an interest in the issue:
- staff experts from relevant departments [e.g., Housing, Permits & Licences];
- 2 C-2 landowners;
- 2 neighbours from different areas;
- 2 residents in C-2 units; and
- 2 development industry reps [architect, developer].

VII. Public Role

The role of the broad public - neighbours, residents, development industry - is to understand the possible solutions to the issues, and to express their preferences.

Public review of options [step 6] will be through a combination of open houses [with feedback forms], meetings with interested organizations, mailings, informational advertising, and surveys. Public review of the draft recommendations will occur through open houses, mailings, and written feedback [step 9] before Council makes a decision on Policy Directions.

After Directions are adopted, feedback on the revisions to the district schedule andguidelines will occur when the referral report is ready for Council [step 14] and at the Public Hearing.

VIII. Consultants

An extensive consultant study was done in 1991 by Neale Staniszkis Doll Architects. A survey of C-2 residents was completed in 1997 by Campbell Goodell Traynor. Much of this information remains relevant to this study.

In addition, there may be a need for outside expertise in several areas, such as surveys, massing studies for sites adjacent to R-zoned sites with no lane, or model making. This will be determined during the course of the study, and if necessary, consultants will be retained.

APPENDIX B

C-2 REVIEW PART A: FORM OF DEVELOPMENT - STAFFING AND COSTS

Staffing Costs

Planner II 2 months $ 11,600 11 months $ 64,430
[temporary 13 month]

Planning Assistant III 2 months $ 7,960 11 months $ 44,220
[temporary 13 month]

Total Staffing Costs $ 19,560 $108,650

Other Costs

Overtime $ 1,500 $ 8,500
Public Consultation -- $ 15,000
Consultants $ 5,000 $ 20,000

Total Other Costs $ 6,500 $ 43,500

Total Costs $ 26,060 $152,150

Notes:
1. Staffing costs are based on 1998 and 1999 salaries, final step, with 12.5% added for benefits.
2. Public consultation costs include a flyer/insert, advertising, displays, and meeting expenses.
3. Consultants could include architectural design, model making, and surveys.

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