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

 

 

SUBJECT:                          PRELIMINARY REPORT

                                            Aryeh Construction

                                            8293 and 8303 Warden Avenue

                                            (East side of Warden Avenue, south of Highway 7)

                                            Applications for draft plan of subdivision and rezoning to permit an apartment development      

 

PREPARED BY:               Scott Heaslip, Senior Project Coordinator

                                            Central District

 

 

RECOMMENDATION:

That the report dated November 20, 2007 titled “Preliminary Report, Aryeh Construction, 8293 and 8303 Warden Avenue (East side of Warden Avenue, south of Highway 7), applications for draft plan of subdivision and rezoning to permit an apartment development,” be received;

 

And that staff be authorized to continue discussions with the applicant to address the issues outlined in the staff report;

 

And that upon resolution of the issues outlined in the report, staff is directed to report back to Development Services Committee regarding scheduling a Public Meeting to consider the applications;

 

And that Staff be authorized and directed to do all things necessary to give effect to this resolution.

 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Not applicable.

 

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

Not applicable.

 

1. Purpose                2. Background         3. Discussion             4. Financial         5. Environmental

 

6. Accessibility       7. Engage 21st             8. Affected Units       9. Attachment(s)

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to provide preliminary information regarding applications for draft plan of subdivision and rezoning to permit an apartment development on the east side of Warden Avenue, south of Highway 7.


 

BACKGROUND:

Subject Lands and Area Context

The 1.86 ha (4.6 acre) site is located on the east side of Warden Avenue, directly opposite  the newly completed Clegg Road extension.  The northerly part of the site is vacant.  The southerly part is occupied by two dwellings, one of which (8303 Warden Avenue) is listed in the Town’s inventory of built heritage resources.  

 

 

Official Plan and Zoning   

The subject lands are designated “Commercial” in the Official Plan.

 

The lands are further designated “Community Amenity Area – Major Urban Place” in the Markham Centre Secondary Plan (OPA 21).  The overall policy direction for the lands in the “Major Urban Place” designation is:

 

The lands are currently zoned “Rural Residential 2” by the Town’s Rural Area By-law No. 304-87.

 

Proposal

The Owner has applied for draft plan of subdivision and rezoning.

 

The proposed draft plan of subdivision includes the first section of the east-west collector road opposite Clegg Road, and two development parcels, one to the north and one to the south of the road.

 

The concept plan submitted by the applicant (Figure 4) shows a  20-storey, 313 unit apartment building on the parcel to the north of the collector road, and  a 20-storey, 507 unit and an 8 storey, 125 unit apartment buildings on the parcel south of the road.  The existing heritage dwelling is proposed to be relocated to the front of the south parcel facing Warden Avenue (Figure 4).  No proposed use is indicated for the heritage dwelling.  No commercial component is proposed. All vehicular access to the proposed apartment buildings is from the new collector road.  Access to the relocated heritage dwelling is proposed to be directly from Warden Avenue.     

 

OPTIONS/ DISCUSSION:

 

Potential Benefits of Approval of Proposal

The proposed apartment development is consistent with the Regional Centres and Corridors policies of the York Region Official Plan and is generally consistent with the overall objectives of the “Community Amenity Area – Major Urban Place” designation of the Markham Centre Secondary Plan.

 

Approval of the development would facilitate construction of the first section of the east-west collector road opposite Clegg Road.

 

Identified Concerns/Issues with Proposal

 

The following is a brief summary of concerns/issues raised to date:  

 

Servicing allocation:  No servicing allocation is currently available for the proposed development.

 

Precinct Plan required:  Precincts are smaller geographic areas within the Markham Centre Planning District which are an appropriate scale for detailed planning studies.  The secondary plan requires the landowners within each precinct to jointly prepare a plan for the precinct addressing matters including street, block and lot pattern, type, height and location of buildings, views and focal points, and street and landscape components. Precinct plans are reviewed by staff and vetted by the Markham Centre Advisory Group before being endorsed by Council.

 

The subject property is within the “Centre North” Precinct, the majority of which is owned by Lonsmount Construction Limited (Murphy Hull).  Lonsmount presented  preliminary concept plans for the precinct to Development Services Committee on February 27, 2007. 

 

The applicant needs to work with the other landowners in the precinct to prepare a precinct plan for review and approval by the Town.

 

The applicant will also be required to submit wind/shadow studies and complete the Markham Centre Performance Measures checklist for review by the Markham Centre Advisory Group.

 

Height and density: The applicant is proposing two 20 storey residential buildings and one 8 storey building.  The intended maximum building height in the “Major Urban Place” designation is “generally 8 storeys.”  Where buildings are intended to achieve landmark design objectives and provide focal points, such as at the intersection of Highway 7 and Warden Avenue, the secondary plan allows Council to increase building height to the equivalent of 13 office storeys (16 residential storeys),  provided there is a proper graduation in height and density.   

 

The proposed development has a net site density of  606 uph (245 upa), which is the highest proposed to date in Markham Centre (Majestic Court is second highest at 211 upa). When combined with the proposed development on the Lonsmount lands, the overall density of the precinct would be significantly higher than the development projections contained in Appendix I to the Markham Centre Secondary Plan.   

 

The proposed FSI (floor space index) of 5.1 is also the highest proposed to date in Markham Centre. 

The height, density and built form of the development needs to be addressed in the precinct plan, in an area context, and in accordance with the policies of the Markham Centre Secondary Plan.  A traffic impact study is also required to address the proposed increase in density. 

 

It should be noted that on September 18, 2007, Development Services Committee authorized staff to review and update the Markham Centre Secondary Plan’s density targets and height policies, including specific design criteria relating to taller buildings at “landmark” locations. 

 

Technical reports required:  Town departments have requested a number of technical reports in support of the subject applications, including:

 

The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority advises that they consider the subject applications to be premature until a Master Environmental Servicing Plan which includes the subject lands has been completed.  Given the close proximity of the subject lands to the Rouge River, the TRCA advises that top-of-bank needs to be confirmed and the potential impact of the proposed development on the adjoining valleylands assessed.   

 

To date, none of the required technical reports have been submitted to the Town and the TRCA. 

 

Existing heritage dwelling:  The appropriate use and integration of the existing heritage dwelling into the proposed development needs to be addressed in consultation with the Town’s heritage staff and Heritage Markham.

 

Lonsmount (Murphy Hull)  applications:   As this report was being finalized Lonsmount submitted applications for draft plan of subdivision and implementing zoning for their lands, which extend north and east of the subject lands to the  Sheridan Nurseries property.   The plans submitted with the Lonsmount applications show a total of 4240 residential units and 48,719 m2 of office and retail uses within single use and mixed use buildings ranging from 6 to 20 storeys.  Residential density, building height and built form are also significant issues with the Lonsmount proposal.  Staff will be reporting to Development Services Committee on the Lonsmount applications in the new year.

 

Conclusions

The development program for the subject property needs to be confirmed through the preparation of the required precinct plan before the subject development applications can proceed.  

 

The review of the height and density policies of the secondary plan authorized by Development Services Committee on September 18 will assist in setting the overall height and density parameters which should be reflected in the precinct plan. 

 

Staff has offered to assist the applicant and the other landowners within the precinct to develop a draft precinct plan, including the possibility of arranging to bring in outside  design consultants.   Staff will coordinate a presentation to the Markham Centre Advisory Group to provide input into the precinct plan process.  

 

The applicant is encouraged to work with the other landowners to prepare the required technical studies on a precinct wide basis. 

 

Staff will report back to Development Services Committee to recommend that a public meeting be scheduled to consider the subject applications once a draft precinct plan has been prepared, which is generally acceptable to staff.

 

FINANCIAL TEMPLATE:

Not applicable.

 

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

As noted above, the applicant will be required to submit reports to address the environmental impact of the proposed development. 

 

ACCESSIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS:

None at this time.

 

ENGAGE 21ST CONSIDERATIONS:

The proposed development promotes a number of key goals set out in “Engage 21st Century Markham” including Managed Growth, Quality Community and Infrastructure Management.

 

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

The proposal has been circulated to other Town departments and public agencies for review and comment.

 

RECOMMENDED BY:

 

 

________________________                        ________________________

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

Director, Planning & Urban Design                   Commissioner, Development Services

 

 

 

 

 

ATTACHMENTS:

 

Figure 1 – Location Map

Figure 2 – Area Context/Zoning

Figure 3 – Air Photo

Figure 4 – Site Plan

 

APPLICANT/AGENT:

 

Peter Swinton

PMG Planning Consultants

227 Bridgeland Avenue

Toronto, Ontario

M6A 1Y7

 

Tel:    (416) 787-4935

Fax:    (416) 787-0004

Email: pswinton@pmgplanning.ca

 

File path: Amanda\File 07 118026\Documents\Recommendation Report