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CITY OF VANCOUVER

SPECIAL COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES

JULY 6, 1999

A Special Meeting of the Council of the City of Vancouver was held on Tuesday, July 6, 1999, at 7:45 p.m., in Committee Room No. 1, Third Floor, City Hall, for the purpose of holding a Public Hearing to consider proposed amendments to the Zoning and Development By-law.

PRESENT:	Mayor Philip Owen Councillor Don Bellamy Councillor Nancy A. Chiavario Councillor Jennifer Clarke Councillor Alan Herbert Councillor Lynne Kennedy Councillor Daniel Lee Councillor Don Lee Councillor Gordon Price Councillor George Puil *Councillor Sam Sullivan
CLERK TO THE COUNCIL:	Tarja Tuominen

* Denotes presence for part of the meeting.

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Cllr. Puil,
SECONDED by Cllr. Kennedy,

THAT this Council resolve itself into Committee of the Whole, Mayor Owen in the Chair, to consider proposed amendments to the Zoning and Development By-law.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

1. Text Amendment: 400 Great Northern Way

(St. Francis Xavier Church and School)

An application by Raymond Ching Architect was considered as follows:

Summary: The proposed text amendment would allow for the construction of a church, school, day care and playground for St. Francis Xavier Church and School.

The Director of Current Planning recommends approval, subject to the following conditions as proposed for adoption by resolution of Council:

(a) THAT the proposed form of development be approved by Council in principle, generally as prepared by Raymond Ching, Architect, stamped “Received City Planning Department, May 14, 1999" provided that the Director of Planning may allow minor alterations to this form of development when approving the detailed scheme of development as outlined in (b) below.

(b) THAT, prior to approval by Council of the form of development, the applicant shall obtain approval of a development application by the Director of Planning, who shall have particular regard to the following:

(i) overall design of the church and the school be assessed to improve the relationship of these buildings to both East 5th Avenue and Great Northern Way;

(ii) the interface between the open space and East 5th Avenue be further developed to provide better integration and potential for future community access;

(iii) further design development of open and covered play areas to maximize the site’s recreation potential;

(iv) design development of the open space at the west end of the site to commemorate Brewery Creek, in keeping with Council guidelines;

(v) further design development and construction of a pedestrian-oriented neighbourhood greenway along the East 5th Avenue sidewalk;

(vi) the proposed church and rectory are to be set back (both above- and below-grade) so that they do not encroach in to the 15 ft.-wide utility right-of-way at the east end of the site; and

(vii) design development to take into consideration the principles of CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design) having particular regard for:

- provision of a detailed operation program for the school and the church. Provide clarification of access requirements for the local community that may walk to use the school or church;

- provide clarification of any phasing for the church in terms of safety and security of undeveloped lands;

- design development to reduce opportunities for theft and mischief in the underground;

(Note to Applicant: This can be achieved by securing the underground during non-operating hours.)

- design development to reduce opportunities for graffiti particularly on Great Northern Way and on the St George Street right-of-way;

(Note to Applicant: Graffiti is prevalent and its removal is an expense to building owners and strata councils. Opportunities for graffiti can be mitigated by reducing areas of exposed wall, by covering these walls with vines, hedges, lattice or steel mesh or by using a protective coating material. Contact Helen Chomolok, Graffiti Coordinator at 873-7927 for further information and resource.)

- design development to reduce opportunities for cutting through the site while enhancing the Right of Way directly to the east as a visibly open pedestrian link to Great Northern Way; and

- provision of more detailed information on the edge treatment on Brunswick Street with the objective to reduce opportunities for crime.

(viii) further design development related to general vehicular access to the site, taking into account future plans for a median on Great Northern Way;

(ix) further design development to consider on-site detention/absorption to minimize off-site storm runoff (refer to landscape comments in Section E of the report);

(x) make arrangements to the satisfaction of the Director of Social Planning for community access to facilities;

Phase 1:

(xi) design development of a suitable temporary landscape and parking plan;

Phase 2

(xiii) further design development to decrease or eliminate vehicular use and/or access to play area;

(xiv) further design development to outdoor play areas for the child day care facilities.
(Note: Plans for the child day care will have to be submitted for approval to C.C.C.F.);

(c) THAT, prior to enactment of the CD-1 By-law, the registered owner shall:

(i) make arrangements to the satisfaction of the City Engineer and Director of Legal Services for the following:

- upgrading of the sewer system to serve the site;

- provision of a pedestrian crossing signal for Great Northern Way at 50% owner’s cost within 10 years of occupancy of the school;

- provision of a future left turn bay or break in the proposed median on Great Northern Way to facilitate west to southbound access to the site;

- provision of concrete sidewalks adjacent the site on Great Northern Way, Brunswick Street, East 2nd and 5th Avenues;

(Note: street work on East 5th Avenue will be designed in the context of the existing neighbourhood walkway system in the area.)

- provision of curb, gutter and pavement to centre line of the road adjacent the site on Brunswick Street, East 2nd and 5th Avenues;

- provision of street trees adjacent the site where space permits;

- provision of a pedestrian connection between East 5th Avenue and Great Northern Way over the existing 4.6 m (15 ft.)-wide right-of-way at the east end of the site. This will require modification of the existing right-of-way agreement;

- removal of the inappropriate hedging along the south side of the site (East 5th Avenue). The existing hedging will obstruct the installation of a sidewalk and is of a variety that will cause damage to any sidewalks that may be installed on East 5th Avenue; and

- clarification of the charges shown on title. A charge summary should be provided.

(ii) make arrangement for all electrical and telephone services to be undergrounded within and adjacent the site from the closest existing suitable service point;

(iii) enter into an agreement to the satisfaction of the Manager of Environmental Protection and the Director Legal Services for a soils covenant; and

(iv) make arrangements to amend the Noise By-law to include this CD-1 zoning in Schedule B.

Staff Comments

Rob Whitlock, Planner, explained the application to amend the existing CD-1 By-law to permit the building of a church, school and day-care facility on the site. The site is not generally suited for industrial use. Staff believe traffic will not detrimentally affect the neighbouring community as the vehicular access to the site is only from Great Northern Way.

However, staff will monitor traffic impacts. Staff recommend approval subject to the conditions in the agenda before Council. Mr. Whitlock also circulated the following minor rewording to condition (b) (xiv) to ensure it meets the child care design guidelines:

further design development to the indoor and outdoor play areas for the child day care facilities.

(Note: Plans for the child day care will have to be submitted for approval to C.C.F.L. to determine whether the proposal meets the criteria of the Vancouver Childcare Design Guidelines).

(Italics indicate additions and/or changes.)

Applicant Comments

Adrian Ching, representing the applicant, described the history of the application and the proposed development. The construction will be completed in two stages: the school first, then the church and daycare facility. Underground parking for 250 cars will be provided. The applicant will provide a significant landscape feature on the west side of the site and street trees along Great Northern Way. The applicant also has two requests: an extension to the building permit deadline of January 2000 to avoid having to pay Development Cost Levies; and that the city undertake the responsibility of improving the existing 15-foot utility right-of-way.

Summary of Correspondence

Council was advised the following correspondence was received:

· letter, attaching 827 petitions, in support of the application

Speakers

Mayor Owen called for speakers for and against the application.

The following speakers spoke in support of the application:

· Dr. K.K. Wan
· Edison Wan
· Peter Lomas
· Jeremy Wong
· Louis Tchang
· Therese Leung

The foregoing speakers supported the application based on one or more of the following points:

· the new school will contribute significantly to the quality of life of the students and Vancouver;
· the school is known for its academic excellence; over 80% of the graduates go to university; in addition, the school helps prepare good citizens and provides an enriched program, including community service and cultural programs;
· the development will revitalize the neighbourhood and will bring added investment to the city;

· the current school has very crowded conditions; the future students will benefit mentally and physically from the additional room, a gym and other facilities such as computer labs;
· the parents of the students are deeply involved in school activities and are actively involved volunteers; the school will provide a diverse, open environment to the community.

The following speakers supported the development of the school and church on the site, but expressed some neighbourhood concerns:

· Lorne Milne
· Michael Apostolides
· Salvatore Vetro

The following are some of the comments made by the foregoing speakers:

· the neighbours have concerns about the traffic; the proposed second level of parking should alleviate some of those concerns;
· the community would like to see the school offer the use of the playground during off-school hours;
· there needs to be better access for pedestrians and the congregation to move from buses to the development;
· the proposed superstructure on top of the gym roof affects views - it should be kept to the absolute lowest height and taken away after the church is built;
· hopefully the building of cairns to mark Brewery Creek will be reinstituted;
· the intersection of Brunswick and Great Northern Way should be a controlled intersection;
· the development seems to be very closed - would like it to be more a part of the neighbourhood, more open to the public;
· the row of bushes on East 5th Avenue should be kept and incorporated with the design of the development.

Norine Colvin spoke against the application.. The view will be disrupted; parking is a concern; the playground will be fenced off; the development will not be open to the community.

Applicant Closing Comments

Arthur Lam, representing St. Francis Xavier School and Church, expressed concerns about graffiti, vandalism and potential expenses with civil liabilities if the grounds were left open for public use outside of school hours. The Church will be glad to provide limited access to meeting rooms and the playground after consultation with the neighbours. Adequate parking is proposed; the Church will have four masses with approximately 700 people per mass. Christmas and Easter will be the only times the Church will be filled.

The Church reiterates its two requests: exemption from the condition to provide a pedestrian connection between East 5th Avenue and Great Northern Way over the existing right-of-way because of the Church’s limited resources; and, an exemption from Development Cost Levies if the Church is unable to meet the deadline of January 28, 2000 for a building permit.

A representative for the architect of the development advised the proposed structure on top of the gym has not been finally designed.

Staff Closing Comments

Rob Whitlock advised staff will work with the applicant to expedite the application for Phase 1 in order to proceed in advance of the Development Cost Levy deadline; Phase 2 will be exempted from any Development Cost Levies. Staff will further explore reducing the bulk of the building in keeping with the comments from a member of the community. The hedge on the City’s right-of-way is a significant barrier separating 5th Avenue from the site, but staff will look at way to get more access to open space. Staff will discuss arrangements for community access to the site and facilities. Staff will also look at pedestrian access and report back at the time of enactment. In addition, Engineering staff have advised of a minor adjustment to the Draft By-law regarding parking spaces: the minimum number should be 255 not 225.

MOVED by Cllr. Chiavario,

THAT the application by Raymond Ching, Architect, to amend the CD-1 By-law No. 4559 for 400 Great Northern Way (Lot 1, Blocks 4, 90 and 91, DL 200A & 264A, Plan 14083) to permit development of a church, school and related uses, be approved, subject to:
· the conditions as set out in this minute of the Public Hearing;
· the following amendment to condition (b) (xiv): further design development to the indoor and outdoor play areas for the child day care facilities. (Note: Plans for the child day care will have to be submitted for approval to C.C.F.L. to determine whether the proposal meets the criteria of the Vancouver Childcare Design Guidelines);
· the following amendment to Section 5.1 of the Draft By-Law: ....except that a minimum of 255 off-street parking spaces are to be provided.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

(Councillor Sullivan not present for the vote)

RISE FROM COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Cllr. Bellamy,

THAT the Committee of the Whole rise and report.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

ADOPT REPORT OF COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

MOVED by Cllr. Bellamy,
SECONDED BY Cllr. Don Lee,

THAT the report of the Committee of the Whole be adopted, and the Director of Legal Services be instructed to prepare and bring forward the necessary by-law amendments.

- CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY

The Special Council adjourned at 9:00 p.m.

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver