April 18, 2006

REPORT TO DEVELOPMENT SERVICES COMMITTEE

SUBJECT: Consideration of the appropriate name for the existing 9^th Line in the Box Grove Community

CONTACT/AUTHOR: Robert Tadmore, Coordinator of Geomatics / GIS Advocate

RECOMMENDATION:

That the report entitled “Consideration of the appropriate name for the existing 9^th Line in the Box Grove Community”, dated April 18, 2006, be received;

THAT the Region of York be requested to transfer to the Town of Markham the portion of the existing 9^th Line, north and south of 14^th Avenue, which will be by-passed by the re-aligned 9^th Line when the re-alignment becomes operational;

That the portion of the existing 9^th Line, north and south of 14^th Avenue, which will be by-passed by the re-aligned 9^th Line, be renamed Old 9^th Line, and a by-law to rename the road be considered by Council at a meeting after the road is transferred to the Town;

AND THAT the Clerk be authorized to provide notice in accordance with notice By-law 2002-275, prior to Council considering the street name change.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Not applicable

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

None at this time.

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

The 9^th Line is a Regional arterial road which extends from the Town’s north boundary to Steeles Avenue. The original Box Grove community (former Hamlet) more or less radiates north, south and east from the intersection of 9^th Line and 14^th Avenue, along the spines of these two arterial roads. The Box Grove Community Secondary Plan provides for the 9^th Line to be re-aligned to by-pass and re-direct traffic around the original Box Grove community. The re-aligned 9^th Line will connect with the existing 9^th Line just south of Highway 407 and run southeast through the new Box Grove developments to the CP Rail Line, then more or less parallel the railway tracks to the southwest (as part of the Markham By-Pass along this stretch) until it re-connects with existing 9^th Line immediately north of the point where the CP Rail, CN Rail and the 9^th Line intersect (see Figure 2). To facilitate this “by-pass” the portion of 9^th Line, which forms part of the original Box Grove community, will be disconnected from the balance of the 9^th Line. Traffic flowing north-south on 9^th Line would flow through the by-pass and will not enter the portion of the 9^th Line within the original Box Grove community. It is intended that the portion of the existing 9^th Line, north and south of 14^th Avenue, which will be by-passed by the 9^th Line re-alignment when it becomes operational, will be transferred by the Region to the Town.

The re-aligned 9^th Line is to be named “9^th Line” in order to ensure continuity of the road name. It was expected that the discontinuous section of the existing 9^th Line would then be renamed in due course. This will require a wholesale re-addressing of the properties on 9^th Line affected by the re-naming.

On July 6^th, 2005 Phase 1A of draft approved plan 19TM-030012 located in the Box Grove Community was registered as plans 65M-3837 and 65M-3838. Plan 65M-3837 contains a portion of the re-aligned road that was registered as 9^th Line. On September 14, 2005 Phase 1 of draft approved plan 19TM-030015 was registered as plan 65M-3853. This plan, which is situated south of 14^th Avenue, contains a large section of the existing road that was also registered as 9^th Line. Some new residential properties have already been addressed onto the re-aligned 9^th Line.

As noted earlier, a portion of the realigned 9^th Line shares the same right-of-way as the Markham By-pass along a portion of the CP Rail Line south of 14^th Avenue (see figure 2). This portion of the road has already been registered under the name “9^th Line”. However, recent discussions have raised the notion that it would be more appropriate to call this stretch of the road “Markham By-pass”. Under this scenario, the realigned “9^th Line” would, from a street name perspective, terminate where it intersects with the CP Rail Line and continue further south when it deviates from the Markham By-pass right-of-way. Signage at appropriate locations where the 9^th Line and the Markham By-pass intersect would indicate that the 9^th Line continues at some point, in one direction or the other, depending on the direction of the traffic. Both these roads are Regional roads and this matter will have to be reviewed with the Region of York prior to any further actions.

On September 19^th, 2005 the Ward Councillor received a letter from a resident of the existing 9^th Line objecting to the renaming of the existing 9^th Line south of Highway 407. In the letter the resident stated that the appropriate name for the re-aligned road would be Box Grove By-Pass. He further stated that any renaming of 9^th Line would be a major inconvenience to the residents of approximately 55 properties addressed on 9^th Line. This resident has subsequently followed up with a further letter to the Clerk’s Department on November 15^th, 2005 regarding this matter. Council addressed the November 15^th Letter at the December 6^th, 2005 Development Services Committee meeting and referred the matter to staff.

Further, the street naming matter was raised at the well attended Box Grove Community Meeting on January 30, 2006 and the majority of the residents supported a proposal by a speaker to retain the name 9^th Line for the existing 9^th Line.

As noted above, significant portions of the re-aligned 9^th Line have been registered on plans of subdivision as “9^th Line”. The Town currently has two public right-of-ways named 9^th Line within the Box Grove Community, although the re-aligned road is not yet operational. Additional phases of development that include more sections of the re-aligned road are nearing registration. In order to resolve pending street continuity and safety issues, an expeditious resolution of this issue is required once the re-aligned 9^th Line becomes operational.

Staff have reviewed the residents’ request, including a suggestion that to solve the continuity issue appropriate signage should be erected at appropriate locations on the by-pass indicating that “the 9^th Line continues ‘X’ metres to the west”. However, staff are concerned that directional signage could result in more traffic on “Old 9^th Line” as a result of confusion, contrary to the purpose of the by-pass, as people who are not familiar with the roads in the area may assume it is necessary to make a diversion to reach 9^th Line in order to continue their trip south to Steeles Avenue, or north to Highway 7 or beyond.

Planning Staff has reviewed the street naming matter with the Fire Department, and we are advised that from a safety point of view the by-pass which serves as an extension of the 9^th Line should be named 9^th Line. The Fire Department is concerned that signage as proposed by the residents could be confusing for emergency vehicles, particularly those emergency vehicles that do not regularly serve that local area. In addition to creating a potentially dangerous situation for emergency services, the resident’s proposal would also lead to unnecessary confusion for the general public who are not familiar with the area and who use the 9^th Line.

Existing roads in the Town have been re-aligned in the past. McCowan Road realignment north of 14^th Avenue, Kennedy Road realignment south of 14^th Avenue, 14^th Avenue realignment at Markham Road, and 16^th Avenue realignment at Highway 48 have all resulted in the portion of the road that was by-passed being called Old McCowan Road, Old Kennedy Road, Old 14^th Avenue and Old 16^th Avenue respectively. The Region of York has verbally indicated that attaching the word “old” to the name of a street that has been by-passed is a common practice across the Region.

Staff has reviewed the residents’ concerns as well as the implications of retaining the name 9^th Line for the existing 9^th Line. We are of the opinion that renaming the by-passed portion of 9^th Line to “Old 9^th Line” would be the most appropriate choice. This would be in keeping with past practice, and have the effect of maintaining a vestige of the historical name for the community’s residents, while properly directing through traffic to the re-aligned “9^th Line”.

If Council agrees with this course of action, the street re-naming process is as follows:

1. Following the staff report on the matter, Council authorizes the Clerk to issue notice of the proposed name change (Clerks Department will advise all residents of the street and also put notices in the newspaper and the Town website), following the transfer of the road in question to the Town by the Region, with a specific date when Council will consider the matter;

3. At the scheduled Council meeting the Mayor will enquire whether there is anyone in attendance to either support or object to the proposed name change;

4. If no objections are received Council will pass the name change By-law at the same meeting (if there are objections Council will provide direction);

5. If and when Council passes the name change by-law the Clerks Department will then ensure that the By-law is certified and take appropriate steps to ensure that relevant departments and agencies are informed of the name change.

Resolution to change street name is included

The re-aligned 9^th Line is expected to be linked with the existing 9^th Line and become operational sometime during the summer of 2006. Since it would be confusing and inappropriate to use the same name for two streets, and subject to Council accepting staff’s recommendation, renaming of the existing 9^th Line within the original Box Grove community would have to be accomplished quickly. In the event Council chooses to proceed in this manner, a resolution to affect the street name change is included in the recommendation.

Region should be requested to transfer the relevant portion of 9^th Line to the Town

As noted above, it would be confusing and inappropriate to use the same name for two streets. However, the street name can only be changed by the Town once the former 9^th Line has been transferred to the Town. It is imperative that the Region transfer to the Town in a timely manner, the affected portion of the existing 9^th Line when the re-alignment becomes operational. Since the process of transferring the road may require some lead time, it is recommended that Council request the Region to initiate the process as soon as possible so that the transfer may take place without delay once the re-aligned 9^th Line becomes operational.