Report to: Development Services Committee Report Date: November 20, 2007

SUBJECT: RECOMMENDATION REPORT

Application for Site Plan Approval and Heritage Act Approval to permit the remodeling of the façade

4340-4350 Hwy 7. Unionville

1708250 Ontario Inc.

SC 07 125993

PREPARED BY: Peter Wokral ext. 7955

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the staff report entitled “Application for Site Plan Approval and Heritage Act Approval to permit the remodeling of the façade, 4340-4350 Hwy 7, Unionville, 1708250 Ontario Inc, SC 07 125993” be received;

THAT the Site Plan Control Application (SC 07 125993) be endorsed in principle, subject to standard Conditions (Appendix “D”) and the following revisions (see Figure 6):

• The curvilinear glass wall feature (reflective of the Infiniti Corporate design) be reduced in scale and incorporated into the existing window framework of the east building (not a separate curvilinear glass curtain wall);
• Maintain the position of the masonry pier of the east building so that it is not obscured by the glass wall;
• Use of glass panes divided by exterior metal muntin bars in all window areas (as opposed to modern butt-glazed window panes);
• Use of a wood panel treatment in the entrance;
• Introduction of a front yard landscape treatment to complement the heritage character of the district in consultation with Urban Design and Heritage staff; and
• Change the roof colour to grey and the masonry to beige through a stucco paint finish;

AND THAT site plan approval be delegated to the Director of Planning and Urban Design or her designate, to be issued following execution of a site plan agreement (Site Plan approval is issued only when the Director has signed the site plan “approved”).

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

The owner of the automobile dealership at 4340-4350 Hwy. 7 E. has submitted a Site Plan Control Application for the proposed remodeling of the existing façade to accommodate an Infiniti dealership. The subject property is located at the entrance of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District and is designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act. The proposed new facade is a modern, curvilinear, glass curtain wall that does not comply with the guidelines found in the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan.

There is no objection to certain changes which the applicant wishes to undertake including adding an additional service bay, adding landscaping and changing the colour of the exterior walls and roof. However, Heritage Section Staff and Heritage Markham do not support the remodeling of the façade as proposed, and have held meetings with the applicants in an effort to develop an appropriate alternative to the proposed design concept. Infiniti corporate headquarters insists that any dealership carrying their line of automobiles must employ the official corporate design.

The major issue is the extent of the modern, curvilinear, translucent, glass curtain wall and how this design concept in a modified form can be incorporated into the proposal. Although the applicant has attempted to address some of the identified issues associated with the proposed façade alterations, they are unwilling to fully address the noted concerns. The proposed structural alterations are not compatible with the policies of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan as adopted by Council. In the interest of being clear on what is considered acceptable (keeping in mind that even this option does not meet all the heritage district policies), staff recommends that the site plan application be endorsed in principle subject to standard conditions and the revisions outlined in the recommendations which attempt to minimize the Infiniti curvilinear wall treatment within the existing structure.

1. Purpose 2. Background 3. Discussion 4. Financial

5. Others (Environmental, Accessibility, Engage 21st, Affected Units) 6. Attachment(s)

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to review the proposed alterations to the façade of 4340-4350 Hwy. 7 E. in Unionville to permit an Infiniti automobile dealership.

BACKGROUND:

Property Area and Context

The subject property located at 4340-4350 Highway 7 is the western most property on the north side of Highway 7 located in the Unionville Heritage Conservation District. The existing automobile dealership was constructed in 1995 and contains two single storey commercial buildings. The property is designated under Part V of the Ontario Heritage Act. Surrounding land uses include: the railway line to the west, commercial properties to the south, the CIBC bank to the east, and the residential properties to the north.

The existing structure on the property is compatible with the District

Although the existing building was constructed in 1995 for the modern day purpose of displaying and selling automobiles, it was constructed so that it would be sympathetic to neighbouring buildings and to the historic character of Unionville in terms of its massing, scale, colours, materials and forms. (See Figure 2) The design of the existing automobile dealership was in anticipation of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan which was implemented by Council in 1997.

Proposal is to alter the façade of the building

The current owner proposes to modify the building to accommodate the sale of the Infiniti line of automobiles. The applicant proposes an additional service bay to be added to the existing building and remodeling the existing façade to incorporate the official Infiniti corporate design. A site plan approval application has been submitted which is also considered to be a Heritage application under the requirements of the Ontario Heritage Act.

Zoning and Official Plan amendments are not required

The Official Plan designates the land COMMERCIAL (Commercial Corridor Area). Lands designated COMMERCIAL (Commercial Corridor Area) can include retail uses involving accessory outdoor storage and/or display of merchandise.

The lands are zoned C3 (Highway Commercial) by By-Law 122-72 as amended, which permits automobile sales establishments. There are no zoning or Official Plan amendments required for the proposed use.

The proposed alteration does not conform to the policies and guidelines of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan.

The official Infiniti corporate design proposed for the remodeling of the existing façade is a modern, curvilinear, translucent, glass curtain wall. The design does not comply with the policies and guidelines for new construction found in the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan. (See Figures 3&4)

The initial proposal also includes:

• Changing the colour of the two roofs to metallic grey or silver from blue
• Changing the colour of the existing masonry to a beige colour through a stucco paint finish.

Heritage Markham does not support the proposed alterations

The proposed design for the remodeling of the façade was reviewed by Heritage Markham on September 12, 2007. There was no objection to the proposed service bay. The committee did not support the proposed remodeling of the façade and recommended that the existing building be utilized, making only minor alterations such as appropriate signage. The committee also recommended a meeting between the applicants and the Architectural Review Sub-Committee of Heritage Markham to discuss other design options for remodeling the existing façade. (See Appendix A, September 12, 2007 Heritage Markham Extract).

Alternate designs were explored

In response to comments from Heritage Section Staff and members of Heritage Markham regarding the appropriateness of the proposed Infiniti corporate design, the applicants presented a revised concept to Heritage Section Staff and the Architectural Review Sub-Committee on September 24, 2007. The revised design featured enhanced landscaping of the subject property and the same official Infiniti corporate design, but at a reduced scale that would allow portions of the existing building to be seen above the remodeled façade. (See Figure 5) Heritage Section Staff and the Architectural Review Sub-Committee had no objection to the proposed landscaping, aside from some minor details, but still could not support the proposed Infiniti corporate design.

It was suggested that a compromise might be reached if certain key design elements of the Infiniti Corporate design could be incorporated into the existing structural framework of the existing building (See Figure 6 for staff concept). Members of the Sub-Committee indicated that even this proposed design would still not comply with the guidelines regarding new buildings found in the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan, but that the Sub-Committee was trying to find a compromise solution. (See Appendix B, September 24, 2007 Architectural Review Sub-Committee Notes and Figure 6)

Heritage Markham reviewed the revised submission

On October 10, 2007 the applicants presented the same design concept shown to Heritage Section Staff and the Architectural Review Sub-Committee on September 24^th to the Heritage Markham Committee. Heritage Markham reaffirmed its earlier position and the Architectural Review Sub-Committee pledged its willingness to continue to work with the applicants to achieve an appropriate solution. (See Appendix C, October 10, 2007 Heritage Markham Extract).

The applicants wish to refer the issue to Council.

The applicants have indicated that Infiniti corporate headquarters has little flexibility in their official corporate design and they do not see how the suggestions made by Heritage Markham could be incorporated into the existing structure, without risking their eligibility to sell the Infiniti line of automobiles.

OPTIONS/ DISCUSSION:

The subject property has an important role in the Heritage Conservation District.

The subject property is located at the western edge of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District and acts as a gateway property that lets eastbound traffic know that they have entered a special area within the Town of Markham. The Heritage Conservation District boundary is further reinforced by the adjacent railway line that intersects Highway 7 along the western boundary of the subject property.

The Town is committed to enhancing the heritage character of Highway 7

This busy section of Highway 7 contained within the Unionville Heritage Conservation District has relatively few heritage buildings and is largely comprised of modern retail buildings with front yard parking and large backlit signs that do not contribute to the heritage character of the District. It is important that as re-development occurs in this well traveled and highly visible portion of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District, that new buildings and proposed alterations to existing buildings enhance the heritage character of the District. The Town has committed itself to this goal through initiatives such as the recent Unionville Heritage District Highway 7 Streetscape Study.

The proposed alterations to the façade of the subject property would detract from the heritage character of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District, and may undermine the future willingness of neighbouring property owners to comply with the policies and guidelines contained in the District Plan.

Other corporations have modified their official corporate designs

In the past, the Town has successfully worked with a number of large corporations such as Pizza Pizza, Tim Horton’s, ESSO and the Royal Bank to achieve signage and design concepts that have proven beneficial to both parties. Non compliance with the policies and guidelines of a Heritage Conservation District Plan, adopted by Council, would send the wrong message to other property owners within the Heritage District.

Enhanced landscaping is also requested

Improvements to barrier free accessibility, revisions involving soft and hard landscaping, and further clarification of the submitted landscape plan are also requested.

Changes proposed by the applicant to date

The owners are willing to make the following revisions to the initial proposal as reflected in Figure 5:

• To reduce the scale of the glass curtain wall (official Infiniti corporate design)
• To use glass panes divided by metal muntin bars in their window areas
• To use a wood panel treatment in their entrance
• To use appropriate externally lit signage (yet to be submitted)
• To enhance the landscaping of the property

The owners are not willing to make further changes to their proposal

The applicant has indicated that the revisions outlined in the paragraph above are all they can do without risking the ability to continue carrying the Infiniti line of automobiles. The major issue is the extent of the modern, curvilinear, translucent, glass curtain wall.

Staff can only support the proposal if further changes are introduced

Although the applicant has attempted to address some of the identified issues associated with the proposed façade alterations, they are unwilling to fully address the noted concerns. The proposed alterations are not compatible with the policies of the Unionville Heritage Conservation District Plan as adopted by Council. In the interest of being clear on what is considered acceptable (keeping in mind that even this option does not meet all the heritage district policies), staff recommends that the site plan application be endorsed in principle subject to standard conditions and the following revisions (as shown conceptually in Figure 6):

• The curvilinear glass wall feature (reflective of the Infiniti Corporate design) be reduced in scale and incorporated into the existing window framework of the existing east building (not a separate curvilinear glass curtain wall);
• Maintain the position of the masonry pier of the east building so that it is not obscured by the glass wall;
• Use of glass panes divided by exterior metal muntin bars in all window areas (as opposed to butt-glazed window panes);
• Use of a wood panel treatment in the entrance (generally as proposed by the applicant in the second revision);
• Introduction of a front yard landscape treatment to complement the heritage character of the district in consultation with Urban Design and Heritage staff (generally as proposed by the applicant in the second revision);
• Change the roof colour to grey and the masonry to beige through a stucco paint finish (generally as proposed by the applicant in the second revision).

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS AND TEMPLATE: (external link)

Not applicable

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

The applicant has submitted a preliminary landscape plan which includes additional tree and shrub planting. The shrub plantings are proposed primarily along the west and south property boundaries.

ACCESSIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS:

Not applicable

ENGAGE 21^ST CONSIDERATIONS:

The Town’s Heritage Conservation Districts contribute to achieving a “Quality Community”

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

The application was circulated to all Town Departments and external agencies and there were no objections other than the comments received by Heritage Markham, Heritage Section and Urban Design.

RECOMMENDED BY:

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

ATTACHMENTS:

Appendix “A” September 12, 2007 Heritage Markham Extract

Appendix “B” September 24, 2007 Architectural Review Sub-Committee Notes

Appendix “C” October 10, 2007 Heritage Markham Extract

Appendix “D” Standard Conditions

Figure 1 Property Owner and Location Map

Figure 2 4340-4350 Hwy 7 E. Existing Elevation

Figure 3 4340-4350 Hwy 7 E. Original Proposed Façade Perspective drawing

Figure 4 First Design Concept- Front Elevation

Figure 5 Revised Design Concept – Front Elevation

Figure 6 Preferred Design proposed by Staff and Heritage Markham.

FIGURE 1

Filepath:

Q:\Development\Heritage\PROPERTY\HWY7\4340\Infiniti November 20, 2007 report.doc

OWNER: 1708250 Ontario Inc.

1424 Clearwater Cres.

Oakville, ON

L6J 7J5

AGENT: David Matthews

416-565-7480 Tel

LOCATION MAP: