REPORT TO DEVELOPMENT SERVICES
COMMITTEE
SUBJECT: PRELIMINERY REPORT
Little’s Meadow Lawn Fairway
Application
for Zoning By-law Amendment to permit
a golf driving range as a temporary use on lands located east of Ninth Line, north
of Steeles Avenue.
CONTACT/AUTHOR: Nilesh Surti, Planner, ext. 4190
APPLICATION #: ZA 06 108306
RECOMMENDATION:
That a Public
Meeting be held to consider the Zoning By-law Amendment application (ZA 06
108306) submitted by Little’s Meadow Lawn Fairway, to
permit a golf driving range as a temporary use on lands located east of Ninth
Line, north of Steeles Avenue.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Not applicable
FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS:
There are no financial matters to
be considered in this report.
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Valerie Shuttleworth, M.C.I.P, R.P.P
Director, Planning & Urban Design
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Jim Baird,
M.C.I.P, R.P.P
Commissioner, Development Services
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LINKS TO COMPREHENSIVE INFORMATION
Purpose
Background
Options/Discussion
Financial Template
Environmental Considerations
Accessibility Considerations
Engage 21st Considerations
Business Units Consulted & Affected
Attachments:
PURPOSE:
Property and Area Context
The subject
property is located on the east side of Ninth Line, north of Steeles Avenue and south of
the Canadian National Railway line (See Figure 1). The subject lands comprise a
3.5 hectare (8.6 acres) portion of the 23 hectare (56.8 acres) property. The remaining portions of the lands are
currently used for agricultural purposes.
Recently, the entire property was sold to Remington Steeles
9 Inc. The lands immediately surrounding
the subject property are also in agricultural use with
no significant natural features (See Figures 2 and 3).
Previous Temporary Use By-law has expired
and a new by-law is proposed
On November 12, 2002, Council approved
a temporary use by-law to permit a golf driving range facility on a portion of
the subject property for a period of three (3) years. That by-law expired on November 12, 2005. The Owner has now submitted a new temporary
use by-law application to continue permitting the golf driving range operation
for a period of three (3) years.
Site plan application
At the time of
the original zoning amendment, staff had requested that the Owner obtain site
plan approval for the driving range facility and enter into a site plan agreement
with the Town. A site plan application
was submitted and the plans were found to be generally acceptable. However, the Owner has been working with the
Region of York to obtain the necessary approvals for the driveway access onto 9th
Line and site plan approval could not be granted until the access was approved. The Regional approval for the access was
granted in July 2005, but as discussed below, the as built site layout had
changed from the plans originally reviewed by the Town.
The initial
proposal for the golf driving range consisted of 36 tee blocks and an 89 m2
(958 ft2) portable trailer to be used as a clubhouse. Netting was erected along the north and south
limits of the facility to prevent golf balls from leaving the facility. Also, the owner provided a granular surface
in the parking area, which can accommodate up to 54 parking spaces. After a year of operating the golf driving range
facility, the Owner found that the balls continued to fly over the netting
erected along the south limits of the facility.
To contain all of the balls within the site, netting along the south
limits of the facility was moved approximately 40 metres (131 feet) further
south. This expansion of the golf
driving range allowed the Owner to add an additional 4 tee blocks for a total
of 40 tee blocks. Also, the owner has
provided a smaller portable trailer having an area of 30.3 m2 (326
ft2) to be used as a clubhouse.
The owner has now submitted a revised site plan which reflects the as
built condition for staff review (See Figure 4).
The Parking
By-law (By-law 28-97, as amended) requires that parking for golf driving ranges
be provided at a rate of 1.5 parking spaces per tee. The proposed golf driving range requires a
total of 60 parking spaces. The
submitted site plan shows a total of only 53 parking spaces on-site.
OPTIONS/ DISCUSSION:
Official Plan and Zoning By-law
The lands are
designated “Agriculture Three” in the Official Plan and zoned Agriculture One
(A1) in Zoning By-law 304-87, as amended.
Neither the Official Plan designation nor the current zoning permits the
proposed use. However, the Official Plan
allows Council to pass a by-law to authorize the temporary use of land,
building or structures that are not permitted under the current land use
designation, for a period up to three years.
Council may, if appropriate, extend this permission for further periods
up to three years each.
The Official
Plan requires that the proposed use is temporary in nature and shall not entail
any major construction or investment on the part of the owner so that the owner
will not experience undue hardship in reverting to the original use, if
necessary, upon the termination of the temporary use provisions. Requirements may be made in the by-law for
provisions to restore buildings, site, structures or uses to those in effect
before enactment of the By-law.
The proposed
zoning amendment would add a golf driving range to the list of permitted uses
on the property for three (3) years to accommodate the existing golf driving
range facility.
Potential Benefit of Approval of the
Proposal:
The temporary
use permission for three years would allow the existing facility to continue to
provide a recreational service in the southeast area of the Town, and allow the
property to be utilized for a reasonable interim use.
Concerns/Issues to be resolved
The following
is a brief summary of concerns/issues raised to date. These matters and any others identified
through the circulation and detailed review of the proposal will be addressed
in a final staff report to be presented to Committee, if necessary, at a later
date.
Issues to be
addressed:
- A building permit is required for the
30.3 m2 (326 ft2) club house.
- A revised site plan is required showing
the minimum number of parking spaces to be provided in accordance with the
provisions of the Parking By-law.
- Execution of a site plan agreement.
A Public Meeting is Recommended
It is
recommended that a Public Meeting be held to obtain public input on the
application.
FINANCIAL TEMPLATE
(Separate Attachment):