Report
to: Development Services
Committee Report Date: April 21, 2009
SUBJECT: RECOMMENDATION
REPORT
Cottonlane Estates Inc.
Zoning
By-law amendment and Site Plan applications to facilitate a mixed-use building
and stacked townhouse development with a park, and amendments to conditions of
draft approval of the Plan of Subdivision.
158,
168 & 178 Old Kennedy Road
Milliken
Main Street
File
Nos: ZA 07 133824, SC 07 133898 & SU 05 023993
PREPARED BY: Stacia
Muradali, ext. 2008
Planner,
Central District Team
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1)
That the report
dated April 21, 2009 titled
“RECOMMENDATION REPORT, Cottonlane
Estates Inc. Zoning By-law amendment and Site Plan applications to facilitate a
mixed-use building and stacked townhouse development with a park, and
amendments to conditions of draft approval of the Plan of Subdivision. 158, 168
& 178 Old
Kennedy Road.
Milliken Main
Street (ZA
07 133824, SC 07 133898 & SU 023993),” be received;
2)
That the record
of the Public Meeting held on March 18, 2008 regarding the proposed Zoning By-law amendment be
received;
3)
That the Zoning
By-law amendment application (ZA 07 133824) submitted for 158, 168 & 178 Old Kennedy Road be approved, and that draft implementing Zoning
By-law (ZA 07 133824) to amend Zoning By-law 177-96, as amended, be finalized
and enacted by Council;
4)
That the Site
Plan application (SC 07 133898) be endorsed in principle, subject to the
conditions attached as Appendix ‘A’;
5)
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;
6)
That servicing
allocation for the 78 stacked townhouse units and the mixed-use building
consisting of 28 residential units, be granted by Council and allotted through
the Trustee of the Landowners Group;
7)
That the Council
resolution dated June 12, 2007 (Appendix ‘B’) be amended to delete the requirement
for a No Pre-Sale Agreement, prior to the issuance of draft plan approval;
8)
That the revised
conditions of draft approval for the Plan of Subdivision (Appendix ‘C’), which
incorporates recommendations from Heritage Markham to address the demolition of
the previously existing house of heritage significance located at 158 Old
Kennedy Road, be approved;
9)
That the revised
draft plan of subdivision (19TM-05019), (Figure 6), be approved;
10)
And that Staff
be authorized and directed to do all things necessary to give effect to this
resolution.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Zoning By-law amendment and Site Plan
applications have been submitted by Cottonlane
Estates Inc. to facilitate the development of a mixed-use building and stacked
townhouse development at 158, 168 & 178 Old Kennedy
Road (the “subject lands”) in Milliken Main
Street. The
subject lands are located south of Denison Street,
east of Kennedy Road (Figure 1).
Cottonlane Estates is
proposing to develop a mixed-use building consisting of 28 residential units
with ground floor retail, fronting onto Old Kennedy Road. 78 stacked townhouse units and a public park
are also proposed to the west of the mixed-use building. A future public road, Street A (the extension
of Aldergrove Drive) is proposed
along the northerly portion and a second future public road, Street B will be
provided along the most westerly portion of the subject lands (Figure 5).
A Zoning By-law amendment is required to implement
new development standards to facilitate the proposed development (Appendix ‘F’).
The proposed uses are permitted in the
Official Plan and Zoning By-law. There
is a Hold provision which will remain in place until the prescribed conditions
for the Hold removal have been satisfied.
In June 2007, Council approved a draft plan of
subdivision for the proposed development. The Owner has been working with Town staff to
satisfy the conditions of draft approval and address technical and design
issues such as grading, block configuration, vehicular turning movements, site
circulation, delineation of parking for the mixed-use buildings, building
elevations, environmental site assessment and servicing, road configurations,
and a potential future connection with the property to the south, among other
things.
The Owner has re-designed the proposed
development to appropriately address Town staff concerns. This has resulted in changes to the site plan
and draft plan. Staff recommend that Council endorse
the site plan (Figure 5) and approve the revised draft plan (Figure 6). Amendments to the conditions of draft
approval of the plan of subdivision with respect to demolition of the house at 158 Old Kennedy
Road which was listed as having heritage significance, are also addressed through this report.
The proposed development requires servicing
allocation. Staff are recommending that
servicing allocation for the 78 stacked townhouse units and mixed-use building
containing 28 residential units be assigned.
As a result, the previous condition of draft approval of the plan of
subdivision requiring the execution of a No Pre-Sale Agreement will no longer
be required and this condition from the previous Council resolution (Appendix
‘B’) will need to be waived. The Owner
has confirmed that LEED silver will be achieved for
both the mixed-use building and the stacked townhouse development. Provisions to ensure the attainment of LEED
silver will be addressed in, and secured through the site plan agreement.
The purpose of this report is to discuss and recommend
approval of the Zoning By-law amendment application and recommend endorsement
in principle, of the Site Plan application to permit the mixed-use building and
stacked townhouse development at 158, 168 & 178 Old
Kennedy Road, within the Milliken
Main Street area. This report also recommends amending the
conditions of draft approval of the Plan of Subdivision (19TM-05019) which was
endorsed by Council in June 2007.
Subject lands
and area context
158, 168 & 178 Old
Kennedy Road (the “subject lands”) are located
north of Steeles Avenue,
east of Kennedy
Road. It extends westerly from Old Kennedy
Road to the GO rail line (Figure 1). The collective area encompasses approximately
2.4 hectares (5.9 acres). The subject
lands are comprised of three previously separate properties, which had each
contained a detached dwelling. All three
dwellings have recently been demolished, including the house having heritage
significance located at 158 Old Kennedy Road. A mix of uses surround the subject lands, including
a lumber yard to the north, residential uses and a place of worship (Logos
Baptist Church) to the east, across Old Kennedy Road, an active GO Rail line to
the west, and a bowling alley and commercial uses to the south (Figure 2).
Draft Plan of
Subdivision
In June 2007, Council approved a draft plan of subdivision
(19TM-05019) to facilitate the creation of a park block, medium density and
mixed-use blocks and road blocks. The
plan contemplated 82 stacked townhouse units and 28 residential units with
retail at grade in the mixed-use building.
The Owner has been working with staff on resolving design and technical
issues prior to finalizing the zoning amendment and draft plan.
Proposal for
a mixed-use building, stacked townhouse development, park and future public
roads
The Owner is proposing a three-storey mixed-use building
consisting of 28 residential units with grade related retail/commercial units
fronting onto Old Kennedy Road. The Owner is also proposing eight (8) blocks
consisting of 78 stacked townhouse units. The Owner is providing it’s
portion of a future public road running east to west, Street A (extension of Aldergrove Drive) along the
northerly portion of the subject lands. Another
future public road, Street B, running north to south will also be provided
along the westerly portion of the subject lands. A 0.1 hectare (0.25 acre) public park will be
centrally located within the stacked townhouse units (Figure 5).
Milliken Main Street Secondary
Plan
The easterly portion of the subject lands fronting onto
Old Kennedy Road is designated Community
Amenity Area-Main Street and the remainder of the lands are designated Urban Residential Medium Density in the
Milliken Main Street Secondary Plan, OPA No. 144, (the “Secondary Plan”). The Secondary Plan identifies the previously
existing house at 158 Old Kennedy Road as having
heritage significance. The Secondary
Plan identifies the proposed park and future extension of Aldergrove Drive in the
proposed locations. The proposed
development is consistent with the Secondary Plan policies.
Zoning
amendment required
The easterly portion of lands fronting onto Old Kennedy
Road is zoned Community Amenity Two [CA2(H)] with
site-specific and Hold provisions
(Figure 3). This is a mixed residential/retail/office use zone which permits
the proposed mixed-use building use. The
remainder of the lands are zoned Residential
Three [R3(H)] with site-specific and Hold provisions (Figure 3). This zone permits the proposed stacked
townhouse use.
The proposed Zoning By-law amendment (Appendix ‘D’) will
delete the existing site-specific provisions on all of the subject lands and
apply the appropriate development standards such as setbacks, height, and
parking standards to facilitate the overall development as proposed. A Hold
(H) provision will remain on all of the subject lands until the Owner executes a subdivision agreement and site
plan agreement, and the Town is satisfied that the required road rights-of-way,
open space, community facilities, transportation network and environmental site
remediation can support the proposed development.
Site Plan and
Draft Plan
Town staff had a number of concerns respecting the
original site plan (Figure 4). These concerns included the following:
§
The relationship between finished floor elevations of
the stacked townhouses and the grade of the public sidewalks, and the slopes of
the proposed walkways and landscaped front yards.
§
The relationship of the proposed development with the
park.
§
Overall site grading and drainage.
§
Lack of appropriate delineation and design of the
parking areas for the mixed-use building.
§
Vehicular turning movements at the end of laneways
and dead-end laneways.
§
Boulevard grades between the street curb and the
property line.
§
Relationship with the abutting property to the south.
§
Retaining walls surrounding the subject lands.
The Owner has worked with Town staff to address the above
concerns. The stacked townhouse blocks
and laneways have been reconfigured to function more effectively. Blocks 2, 3, 6 & 7 have been re-oriented
towards the park to enhance the relationship between the proposed development,
the park, and the users of the park.
The parking areas for the mixed-use building have been
more appropriately designed for use by the residents, visitors, and customers
of the commercial/retail units, and are more accessible for pedestrians and
physically disabled persons. Surface
parking for the mixed-use building will be provided at the rear of the
building, and individual garages and parking pads will be provided for the stacked
townhouse development. 24 visitor
parking spaces will be provided along the south property boundary for the
stacked townhouse development. Parking
for the residents of the mixed-use building will be controlled and visitor
parking will be integrated with the parking for the commercial/retail parking
(Figure 5).
Parking for the commercial component of the mixed-use
building is provided at 1 per 30 m2 rate which provides for commercial and retail
uses, but not restaurants. Restaurants
are currently permitted on the portion of the subject lands comprising the
mixed-use building. The proposed by-law amendment will permit one restaurant
with a maximum floor area of 96 m2 (1,033 ft2) which is the approximate size of
one of the proposed commercial/retail units.
The parking reduction can be supported given the local nature of the
restaurant and future on-street parking on Old Kennedy
Road.
The restaurant use will be associated with the proposed patio. The
applicant will be required to erect visitor parking signs. The final site plan must reflect the required
dimensions of the parking spaces.
The site plan shows enhanced vehicular and pedestrian
connections and movement throughout the site.
A future connection to the property to the south has been added to
facilitate north/south connections with future development and to the proposed
public park (Figure 5). The Owner will
be required to convey an access easement to the Town. The Owner has generally addressed grading,
drainage and servicing issues, and matters related to the retaining walls. It is recommended that Council endorse the
site plan, in principle, subject to the conditions in Appendix ‘A’.
The original draft plan has been revised to reflect
changes to the road blocks and residential blocks as a result of changes to the
site plan. The size of the mixed-use
block has increased and the medium density residential block has
decreased. A turning circle road block
has been added to at the south-east corner of Street ‘A’ and Street ‘B’ and
minor changes have been made to the sizes of the road blocks. The park block remains unchanged. Staff recommend that
Council approve the revised draft plan (Figure 6), which is still in keeping
with the originally approved draft plan.
Urban design
and landscaping
The Owner has worked with Town staff on the design of the
proposed buildings to enhance the visual attractiveness of the project and the
quality of the pedestrian environment through appropriate massing and built
form. The buildings have been designed to be located in close proximity to the
public streets to create a more interesting urban edge. The buildings will incorporate different
textures and colours of brick and variations of glass
windows (Coloured renderings attached).
The two masonry pillars near Old Kennedy
Road flanking the entrance to a proposed
patio will add visual interest. These
pillars will be clad with the reclaimed brick from the demolished house at 158 Old
Kennedy Road. A patio associated with an open
landscaped area or restaurant along Old Kennedy
Road will help animate the street.
1.2 metre (4 feet) high
decorative masonry walls and plantings will be provided to screen the parking
areas which abut the public streets. The
same treatment will be provided where the terminations of private lanes are
visible from the public streets.
Plantings will be provided along the walkways to the park. Landscaping, including decorative paving
bands, trees and shrubs will be integrated throughout the site to soften the
appearance of the proposed laneways.
Approval of a tree inventory and preservation plan will be required
prior to site plan approval.
Plans showing pedestrian scale lighting, screening of
utility boxes, enclosures, gas metres, and AC units
will be finalized prior to execution of the site plan agreement. Landscape plans and building elevations will
require final approval prior to execution of the site plan agreement (Appendix
‘A’).
Delivery of
public roads
The Owner will be conveying lands to the Town for the
delivery of the proposed public park, and Streets ‘A’
and ‘B’. The Owner will be constructing his
portion of the westerly extension of Aldergrove Drive (Street ‘A’).
This entails a standard right-of-way of
15.5 metres for a single loaded street which will be
widened as part of future development of the property to the north. The conveyances of land to accommodate the
proposed public roads will occur prior to registration of the plan of
subdivision. The Owner will construct
its portion of Street ‘A’, however, Street ‘B’ will
not be constructed at this time. The
Owner will construct a private road in the interim, through the Street ‘B’
right-of-way, until the Town can appropriately construct Street ‘B’ in the
future. The Town will secure for the
construction of Street ‘B’ in the subdivision agreement.
Proposed public park
The Owner is required to convey approximately 0.1 hectare
(0.25 acre) of land to the Town for the public park (Block 3, Figure 6). Conditions in the site plan agreement and
future condominium declaration will ensure that the future condominium
corporation maintains these public walkways within the public park, to the
satisfaction of the Town. The Owner will
also be required to enter into an agreement for maintenance responsibilities
for any transition areas between public park and the private lands that abut
the park where appropriate (Appendix ‘A’).
The land conveyance of the park will occur as part of the registration
of the plan of subdivision.
Staff recommends that the Owner design and construct the
park, with the Owner to be reimbursed for an agreed upon amount from
Development Charges, upon completion of the park, to the satisfaction of the
Town. Staff are
working with the Owner to determine the most appropriate method of delivering
the park. A separate report to Council
will be required, should the Owner agree to “up-front” the construction of the
park.
Demolition of
house having heritage significance at 158 Old Kennedy Road
The house located at 158 Old
Kennedy Road was identified as having heritage
significance in the Milliken Main Street Secondary Plan and as a result, conditions of draft
approval of the Plan of Subdivisions were endorsed by Council in June 2007,
with clauses to preserve this house. Notwithstanding
these requirements, the house was demolished in November 2007. The house was not designated pursuant to the
Ontario Heritage Act, nor was it listed in the Town’s Inventory of Heritage
Buildings and the Owner was able to obtain a demolition permit. Heritage staff had scheduled the house to be
added to the 2007-2008 Markham Register of Property of Cultural Heritage Value
or Interest endorsed by Development
Services Committee in January 2008.
Town staff conducted a site visit immediately after being
advised of the demolition. Following
the site visit, staff requested that the Owner salvage the bricks from the
house, which will be used to construct a decorative wall or columns as
recommended by Heritage Markham.
Heritage Markham has
recommended that the following conditions be imposed as a result of demolition
of the house:
- That the Owner shall provide and
install, at its cost, an interpretive baked enamel plaque for the
demolished house, in a publicly visible location on the property (Old
Kennedy frontage). The plaque is to
be designed and manufactured according to the specifications of the
“Markham Remembered” program, and is to outline the history of the house
and its community context. Details
and location of the plaque are to be submitted for review and approval by
the Town’s Heritage Planning Section prior to manufacture and
installation. The plaque is to be
mounted on a decorative wall faced with brick salvaged by the Owner from
the demolished house at 158 Old Kennedy Road, and this feature is to be
shown on the Landscape Plan, along with construction details and
specifications; and
- That the Owner provides a Letter
of Credit in the amount of $5000.00 to ensure completion of condition 1.
It is recommended that Council approve the revised
conditions of draft approval (Appendix ‘C’), which incorporates the new
heritage conditions noted above.
Servicing
allocation is required
Council has assigned servicing allocation to the Milliken
Main Street Landowners Group (the “Landowners Group”). Town staff are in receipt of a letter from
the Trustee of the Landowners Group in support of assigning servicing
allocation for a total of 110 units for the proposed development (a total of
106 units is proposed), however, the Trustee has not issued a Final Release to
date.
Staff recommend that Council assign servicing
allocation for the 78 stacked townhouse units and the 28 residential units in
the mixed-use building as the Owner will be delivering municipal infrastructure
including two public roads and a public park.
Servicing allocation will be conditional upon written confirmation and
Final Release from the Trustee of the Landowners Group.
In June 2007, Council approved conditions of draft
approval of the Plan of Subdivision.
Condition 1.8 required the Owner to enter into a No Pre-Sale Agreement
as servicing allocation had not been assigned to this development at that
time. Staff recommend
that Council delete condition 1.8 as the No Pre-Sale Agreement will not be
required once servicing allocation is assigned to the proposed development,
through the current approval.
LEED
certification
The Owner has committed to achieving LEED silver on
both the mixed-use building and stacked townhouse development. The Owner will be required to agree to attain
LEED silver for the proposed buildings and
secure this through the site plan agreement (Appendix ‘A’).
Milliken Main
Street Landowners Group
The Owner will be required to provide written confirmation
from the Trustee of Milliken Main Street Landowners Group indicating that they
are in good standing with the Group and have fulfilled their obligations under
the Landowners Agreement, and that they support the allocation of servicing for
106 residential units for the proposed development.
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
The proposed development aligns with the strategic
priorities by making efficient use of infrastructure, and by providing
transit-supportive land use patterns through compact, mixed-use development.
These applications have been circulated to the
appropriate departments and external agencies and their requirements have been
incorporated into this report.
RECOMMENDED BY:
______________________________ ____________________________
Biju Karumanchery, M.C.I.P.,
R.P.P James Baird, M.C.I.P., R.P.P
Senior Development
Manager Commissioner, Development
Services
Figure 1- Location
Map
Figure 2- Aerial
Photo (2007)
Figure 3- Area
Context/Zoning
Figure 4- Original
Site Plan
Figure 5- Revised
Site Plan
Figure 6- Revised
Draft Plan of Subdivision
Coloured Renderings
of Building Elevations
Appendix ‘A’- Conditions
of Site Plan Endorsment
Appendix ‘B’- Council
Resolution (Draft Plan of Subdivision)
Appendix ‘C’- Revised conditions of draft plan
approval
Appendix ‘D’ Proposed
Zoning By-law amendment
AGENT
Attn: Scott Kapuscinski
Plantactics
15 Glenmount
Park Road
Toronto, ON, M4E 2M8
Tel: 416-694-4959
Fax: 416-694-4958
File path: Amanda\File 07 133824\Documents\Recommendation
Report
APPENDIX A
CONDITIONS OF SITE PLAN ENDORSEMENT
1.
That the Owner executes a subdivision agreement prior
to site plan approval.
2.
That the Owner enters into a site plan agreement with
the Town, containing all requirements of the Town, GO Transit, the Region of
York, and other public agencies, including providing any financial securities,
conveyances or land, and easements.
3.
That this endorsement shall lapse and site plan
approval will not be issued, after a period of three years commencing April 28, 2009, in the
event that the site plan agreement is not executed within that period of time.
4.
That prior to site plan approval, the Owner shall
address any concerns identified by the Town, GO Transit, Region of York, and
other public agencies, and revise any studies or plans accordingly, and execute
any necessary agreements, to the satisfaction of the Town.
5.
That prior to site plan approval, the Owner shall
submit final drawings, including but not limited to, site plan and elevation
drawings, landscape plans, grading and servicing plans, composite utility
plans, pavement marking and signage plans, and drainage plans that comply with
all requirements of the Town, GO Transit, Region of York, and other public
agencies, to the satisfaction of the Town.
6.
That the Owner convey an
access easement to the Town for vehicular and pedestrian access over the future
connection with the property to the south.
7.
That the Owner enter into an agreement with the Town
for maintenance responsibilities for any transition areas between public and
private lands and for the public walkways surrounding the perimeter of the
park, and including a clause in the condominium declaration, prior to site plan
approval.
8.
That the Owner agree in the
site plan agreement, to attain LEED silver for the mixed-use building and
stacked townhouse units and provide appropriate securities.
9.
That the Owner agree in the site
plan agreement, that Street B will not be maintained by the Town until the
future road (part of Street B) is fully constructed. The Operations Department
will maintain only Street A up to the cul-de-sac.
10.
That the Owner agree in the
site plan agreement, to satisfy the requirements of Heritage Markham and the
Town’s Heritage Planning Section, including those clauses identified in this
report.
11.
That prior to site plan endorsement, the Owner
provide a clearance letter and final release including servicing allocation, from
the Trustee of the Milliken Main Street Landowners Group.
12.
That prior to site plan approval, amendments to
Zoning By-law 177-96, as amended, to implement this site plan, shall have come
into effect in accordance with the provisions of the Planning Act.
13.
That prior to site plan approval, the Owner pay all
applicable charges including, but not limited to, development charges,
cash-in-lieu of parkland and recoveries.