Report to: Development Services Committee Date of Meeting: December 12, 2006

SUBJECT: PRELIMINARY REPORT

Krashnik Investments Ltd. Application for Zoning By-law Amendment to rezone lands on the east side of Highway No. 48, south of Major Mackenzie Drive from Select Industrial and Warehousing (M.I) to Major Commercial (MJC) Zone

9829, 9833 & 9855 Highway No. 48

File No. ZA 06 128721

PREPARED BY: Nilesh Surti, Planner, ext. 4190

East District Team

RECOMMENDATION:

That a Public Meeting be held to consider a Zoning By-law Amendment application (File No. ZA 06 128721) by Krashnik Investments Ltd. to rezone the lands located on the east side of Highway No. 48, south of Major Mackenzie Drive, municipally known as 9829, 9833 & 9855 Highway No. 48, from Select Industrial and Warehousing (M.I) to Major Commercial (MJC) Zone.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Not applicable

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

Not applicable

The 5.58 hectares (13.8 acres) site is located on the east side of Highway No. 48 between Major Mackenzie Drive and Anderson Avenue (See Figure 1). The property supports two industrial buildings. The building located closest to Highway No. 48 is a multi-tenant industrial building having a gross floor area of 4,640 m² (49,946 ft²). On the easterly portion of the property is another industrial building having a gross floor area of 1,002 m² (10,786 ft²), which is occupied by Box Grove Automotive. There is no significant vegetation on the property. The Mount Joy Creek is piped underneath the subject property.

Abutting the subject lands to the north is a recently constructed commercial development (Hipa Investments) and an existing industrial building occupied by Emerson Electronics Canada Inc. Immediately to the south is an existing industrial building fronting onto Anderson Avenue, as well as vacant lands which were recently rezoned to permit a single tenant retail building (The Brick). To the west, across Highway No. 48, are vacant lands that are zoned for retail/commercial uses. A site plan application has been submitted for the lands at the southwest corner of Highway No. 48 and Castlemore Avenue to permit a large format retail store (Home Depot). To the east, the subject property is bounded by the railway tracks, and across the railway tracks, is a proposed residential draft plan of subdivision (Ninth Line Developments Ltd.) which forms part of the Greensborough Community (See Figure 2 & 3).

Previous Site Plan and Rezoning applications

In 2002, the applicant submitted a site plan application to permit the construction of a new 4,800 m² (51,668.5 ft²) multi-tenant industrial building fronting onto Highway No. 48, located immediately north of the existing multi-tenant industrial building (See Figure 4). At the request of the owner, this application has been held in abeyance to allow the owner to work with the Toronto Region Conservation Authority to ensure the proposed development complies with the approved flood remedial strategy for the Mount Joy Creek for this area. Also, in September 2005, Council approved a Zoning By-law Amendment application to permit one retail store having a maximum gross floor area of 1,500 m² (4,921.3 ft²) on the subject property. It should be noted that the original site plan agreement for the existing building, dated May 15, 1980, included a number of conditions with respect to up fronting the cost of infrastructure improvements in the immediate area. These conditions will need to be further reviewed to determine whether they are applicable, including an outstanding payment of $36,920 for infrastructure improvements (ultimate storm drainage system improvements) in the area.

Proposal to rezone subject lands from Select Industrial and Warehousing (M.I) zone to Major Commercial (MJC) zone

To provide greater leasing flexibility the applicant proposes to rezone the subject lands from Select Industrial and Warehousing (M.I) to Major Commercial (MJC) Zone. This would allow the permitted uses on the subject property to more accurately reflect the more general and wider range of uses permitted in the Major Commercial Area Official Plan designation of this property.

The current zoning on the property permits a variety of industrial uses. The proposed rezoning would eliminate most of the existing zoning permissions for industrial uses and permit a range of commercial uses such as retail stores, business offices, personal service shops, restaurants, repair shops, commercial and private schools, and day nurseries, just to list a few of the permitted uses within the Major Commercial Zone.

Official Plan and Zoning

The Official Plan designates the subject property “Major Commercial Area” (MJC). The intention of this designation is to provide for a large-scale multi-purpose centre or area offering a diverse range of retail, service, community, institutional and recreational uses serving a major portion of the municipality. This designation provides for the proposed land use, subject to the following development requirements:

Siting, massing and scale of development, and landscaping, shall contribute to and reinforce the importance of these lands as a major multi-purpose focus in the Town.
Development shall contribute to an attractive, pedestrian-friendly streetscpe that is not dominated by large surface parking area.
Attractive, safe, convenient and easily-accessible pedestrian connections shall be provided to all adjoining streets and transit facilities and, where appropriate, between on-site facilities and uses.

The subject property is currently zoned Select Industrial and Warehousing (M.I) under By-law 88-76, as amended. The present zoning by-law permits a variety of industrial uses.

Any amending By-law would delete the lands from By-law 88-76, as amended, and rezone the lands to Major Commercial under By-law 177-76, as amended. Under the Major Commercial Zone category motor vehicle repair garages are not permitted.

On October 17, 2006, Development Services Committee authorized staff to prepare, in consultation with affected landowners, Official Plan, Secondary Plan and Zoning By-law amendments to implement the approved land use and urban design vision for the Highway 48 corridor between 16^th Avenue and Major Mackenzie Drive, as established in the Highway 48 Urban Design Study, dated October 2005. Staff are currently preparing these draft amendments, which will be circulated to all landowners in the area for their review and comments, prior to a statutory public meeting being held.

Highway 48 Urban Design Study

In October 2005, Council endorsed the Highway 48 Urban Design Study to be used as a guideline in the evaluation of development applications within the Highway 48 corridor between 16^th Avenue to Major Mackenzie Drive.

The subject lands fall within the identified Commercial and Industrial district. Most of the properties within this district are occupied by low-rise commercial and light industrial buildings. The study envisions that the existing uses within this district would eventually be converted or redeveloped to resemble the type of uses and built form anticipated on the west side of Highway No. 48, with a mix of retail, residential and office uses. Guidelines for this district include:

New buildings and major additions should have a setback of 3 to 5 metres from the front property line.
Parking should be located at the rear of buildings and well screened from the street by landscaping.
At least 70% of the useable street frontage on Highway 48 should be occupied by buildings.

The proposal to rezone the subject lands to Major Commercial and the site plan application to permit a new multi-tenant building will be reviewed in the context of the Highway 48 Urban Design Study as well as the relevant design requirements within the Major Commercial Area designation. Any zoning amendment should reflect the standards set out in the Urban Design Guidelines for this area.

Additional parking spaces required on site to support the proposed rezoning

Rezoning the subject lands from an industrial zone to a commercial zone category will require the applicant to provide additional parking spaces on-site. If the lands are rezoned to Major Commercial, parking for the existing and proposed multi-tenant buildings, located close to Highway No. 48, would be calculated at the shopping centre rate of 1 parking space for every 18.5 m² of leasable floor area (LFA). Parking for the existing automobile repair use, located at the rear of the site, would be calculated at a rate of 1 parking space per 25 m² of net floor area (NFA). A total of 550 parking spaces would be required on-site to support the proposed rezoning; whereas a total of only 301 parking spaces are proposed on-site, for a shortage of 249 spaces. The applicant has indicated to staff that there is sufficient land available at the rear of the site to provide the additional parking spaces on-site. The site plan will need to be revised to show the additional required parking spaces on-site. Alternatively, the zoning could be tailored to reflect a balance between existing and proposed parking and the amount of commercial floor space permitted.

Potential Benefits of Approval of the Proposal:

This proposal would provide the following benefits:

Provide additional commercial services for the growing communities of Greensborough and Wismer Commons.

Concerns/Issues to be resolved

The following is a brief summary of concerns/issues raised to-date. These matters, and any other identified through the circulation and detailed review of the proposal, can be addressed in a final staff report to be presented to Committee at a later date.

A revised site plan showing the minimum required number of parking spaces in accordance with the Parking By-law (By-law No. 28-97).
Engineering Staff to review the original Site Plan Agreement to determine whether an outstanding payment of $36,920 (for ultimate storm drainage system improvements) remains applicable.
An evaluation of the conformity of the proposed development with the urban design guidelines identified in the Highway 48 Urban Design Study
Rezoning request will render some of the existing uses legal non-conforming.
Comments from TRCA to ensure the proposed development complies with the approved flood remedial strategy for the Mount Joy Creek for the area.

Public Meeting is recommended

It is recommended that a Public Meeting be held to obtain public input with respect to the Zoning By-law Amendment application.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

The application has been circulated to the Toronto Conservation Authority for comments to ensure the proposed developed complies with the approved flood remedial strategy for the Mount Joy Creek for this area.

ACCESSIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS:

Accessibility considerations will be reviewed as part of the site plan approval process.

ENGAGE 21^ST CONSIDERATIONS:

Protecting and enhancing Markham’s natural features and green spaces is a key goal set out in “Engage 21^st Century Markham”. The applicant will be required to implement the appropriate measures to protect, enhance and restore the portion of the Mount Joy Creek that is located on the property. In addition, proactive growth management is also an identified goal of the Town and good urban design is seen as critical to this. It is important therefore to review the proposed development with regard to the approved urban design guidelines for the area.

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

The application has been circulated to various Town Departments and external agencies including the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, and is currently under review. Requirements of the Town and external agencies will be reflected in the final report, if one is required, and in the preparation of the Zoning By-law amendment.

RECOMMENDED BY:

_______________________________ _________________________________

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

Director of Planning and Urban Design Commissioner of Development Services