DEVELOPMENT SERVICES COMMITTEE

 

 

 

 

 

TO:

Mayor and Members of Council

 

 

 

 

FROM:

Jim Baird, Commissioner of Development Services

Valerie Shuttleworth, Director of Planning & Urban Design

 

 

 

 

PREPARED BY:

Shirley Marsh, Senior Planner, Urban Design

 

 

 

 

DATE OF MEETING:

2005-Nov-08

 

 

 

 

SUBJECT:

Variance to the Fence By-Law 277-97 at 94 Country Glen Road

 

 

 

 

 

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the report entitled “Variance to the Fence By-Law 277-97 at 94 Country Glen Road” to Development Services Committee, dated November 8, 2005 be received;

 

AND THAT the request to grant relief from the provisions of the Fence By-Law 277-97 to permit a 2.4 m (8 ft.) high privacy wood fence, whereas 1.8 m (6 ft.) is the maximum permitted fence height in a side yard, be denied.

 

PURPOSE:

To respond to a resident’s request for a variance to Fence By-Law 277-97.

 

BACKGROUND:

The subject property is at 94 Country Glen Road in the community of Cornell. (Figure 1)  The homeowner is requesting permission to extend the height of the existing 1.8m (6ft) wood privacy fence between his property and 96 Country Glen Road to 2.4m (8ft).

 

The homeowner, Adam Znajewski, has advised staff that since June of 2003, he and his family have been “experiencing unusual, unnecessary and excessive noise and vibrations inside and outside their home throughout the day and night”.  The noise source is a swimming pool pump / filter and air conditioner on the adjacent property at 96 Country Glen Road.

 

The homeowner has filed complaints with the Town’s By-Law Enforcement and Licensing Department and investigations have been conducted to determine the extent of the problems and address them.  Although noise control measures were implemented, the homeowner remains unsatisfied with the situation and is requesting relief from the fence by-law to permit a 2.4m (8 ft) fence as an additional noise control measure. (Figure 2 and 3)

 

OPTIONS/DISCUSSION:

Urban Design staff have inspected the subject property, conversed with the homeowner and have the following comments:

  • The neighbour’s pool pump and air conditioning unit are in the usual location in the side yard between the homes; (Figure 4 to 6)
  • The pool pump and air conditioning unit appear to be operating at normal noise level;
  • The neighbour has installed rubber padding under the pool pump unit to reduce noise and vibration;
  • The owner of the subject property advised staff that he prefers to have the window directly opposite the pool pump and air conditioner open, which allows the noise from the pool pump and air condition unit to be carried into the house; (Figure 5)
  • By-law Enforcement staff advises that a noise complaint from Mr. Znajewski was investigated.

 

Urban Design and Engineering staff have reviewed the situation and have the following observations and comments:

  • In compact urban neighbourhoods such as Cornell and the Town’s other new communities, residents cannot reasonably expect that they will be able to leave all of their windows open during the summer without hearing their neighbours’ air conditioners;
  • Extending the height of the existing fence to 2.4m (8ft) would not be an effective noise control measure;
  • A more effective measure would be to replace the existing fence with a noise attenuation fence having thicker boards and no gaps between the boards or between the fence and the ground;
  • The requested 2.4m (8ft) high fence would be unattractive in a residential neighbourhood where all fences are 1.8m (6ft) or lower.
  • Granting the requested relief from the Fence By-law would also set a precedent and may lead to additional requests for fence variances to increase the height.

As a result, urban design staff are not in support of the variance request as a 1.8m (6 ft) high noise fence permitted under By-Law 277-97 is sufficient to mitigate the noise level generated by the neighbouring swimming pool pump and air conditioning unit.

 

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

No financial considerations at this time.

 

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

Complaints by the resident of 94 Country Glen Rd. regarding the noise problem were registered and investigated by By-Law Enforcement and Licensing Department staff. The property was inspected and some measures were taken to address the issues.  However, the homeowner has chosen to pursue the option of requesting a fence variance through a letter to the Clerks Department. The Clerks Department forwarded the request to Urban Design for review and recommendation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Valerie Shuttleworth, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.

Director of Planning & Urban Design

 

Jim Baird, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.

Commissioner of Development Services

 

Q:\Development\Design\EAST\CORNELL\Fences\fence variance report 94 country glen2.doc

 

ATTACHMENTS:

Figure 1                     Location Map

Figure 2                     Site plan

Figure 3                     Photo of the current fence condition

Figure 4                     Photo of the two sideyards from the front of the houses

Figure 5                     Photo of the sideyard condition at 94 Country Glen Rd

Figure 6                     Phot of the sideyard condition with air conditioner and pool pump at 96 Country Glen Rd.

Appendix A               Homeowner’s letter of Variance Application

 

Applicant:                   Adam Znajewski

                                    94 Country Glen Road

                                    Markham, Ontario

                                    L6B 1B5