RECOMMENDATION:
That the report dated July 7 2003, entitled “Application by The Townhomes of
Thornhill Village Inc. for Zoning By-law Amendment and Site Plan Approval to
permit a mix of medium and high density residential and commercial
redevelopment on the Thornhill Square property at 300 John Street, north side
of John Street, east of Bayview Avenue. Files ZA 02 111342 and SC 02 116402”,
be received;
And
that the by-law to amend By-law 1767, as amended, attached as Appendix “A” to
this report, be enacted;
And
that water supply allocation for 278 units to permit Phase 1 of the proposed
development be granted from the Town’s reserves;
And
that the Town reserves the right to revoke or reallocate such water allocation
should construction of the proposed Phase 1 development not proceed in a timely
manner;
And
that site plan application SC 02 116402, for the redevelopment of the Thornhill
Square site at 300 John Street as a mixed use medium and high density
residential and commercial development, be approved, subject to the following
conditions:
1. That
the Owner shall enter into a site plan agreement with the Town of Markham
containing all standard provisions and requirements of the Town and public
agencies and including the specific requirements identified in the staff
report;
2. That
site plan approval shall lapse after a period of three years commencing July 7,
2003, in the event that the site plan agreement is not executed within that
period;
3. That
prior to final approval of the site plan, the Owner shall:
a) Revise the site plan and elevation
drawings, if required, to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Development
Services, the Fire Department, CN Rail, and GO Transit;
b) Revise the Environmental Noise
Analysis: Thornhill Square Redevelopment, prepared by Valcoustics Canada Ltd.,
to the satisfaction of the Director of Engineering, CN Rail, and GO Transit;
c) Provide the Town with clearance letters
from CN Rail and GO Transit, indicating that the site plan and noise impact
study are satisfactory;
d) Revise the servicing study to the
satisfaction of the Director of Engineering;
e) Revise the Thornhill Square
Redevelopment Traffic Impact Study, prepared by BA Group to reflect final
revisions to the site plan, to the satisfaction of the Director of Engineering;
f) Provide the Town with an executed copy
of a shared parking and access agreement with St. Lukes Church, or revise the
proposal as outlined in Condition 4 below;
g) Submit drawings, to the satisfaction of
the Director of Environmental Services, showing the location, size and
construction of all refuse storage area(s) for waste and recyclable materials
within the proposed residential development;
h) Meet with the Fire Department to
finalize the location(s) of the Fire Department Connection, private hydrant(s),
fire access route signage location, rapid entry key box, and the design of fire
routes accessing interior townhouse blocks.
4. That
in the event that the Owner and St. Luke’s Church cannot reach an agreement on
shared parking and access, prior to final approval of the site plan, the Owner
shall:
a) Submit a revised site plan, to the
satisfaction of the Commissioner of Development Services, that retains existing
access arrangements for the St. Luke’s Church property, and provides
alternative access to Green Lane from the subject property, to the Town’s satisfaction;
b) Submit a revised traffic study, to the
Town’s satisfaction, assessing the traffic impacts of the site plan revisions
addressed in Condition 4a);
5. That
prior to execution of the site plan agreement, the Owner shall:
a) Prepare detailed design drawings for
the proposed John Street sanitary sewer main, to the satisfaction of the
Director of Engineering;
b) Enter into a Development Agreement with
the Town, which will address among other matters, requirements, timing and
securities for the provision of off-site servicing and infrastructure
facilities, including, but not limited to, a new sewer line on John Street,
relocation of the Green Lane traffic signals from the Landmark entrance to the
proposed shared entrance to the site, road improvements to Green Lane and
improvements to John Street at the main entrance to the site, as required for
the proposed development;
c) Submit a landscape plan, prepared by a
Landscape Architect having OALA membership, to the satisfaction and approval of
the Director of Planning and Urban Design;
6. That
the site plan agreement shall:
a) provide for payment by the Owner of all
applicable fees, recoveries and development charges;
b) contain provisions for satisfying Town
Departments and outside agencies including all requirements of the Director of
Engineering, the Fire Department, Waste Management, Roads and CN Rail;
c) contain provisions requiring that
appropriate clauses addressing potential noise impacts from the CN Rail line be
inserted in all offers to purchase, and agreements of purchase and sale or
lease for all dwelling units on the site located within 300 metres of the rail
line, to the satisfaction of CN Rail;
d) contain a clause whereby the owner
agrees that any proposed alterations to the existing drainage pattern affecting
CN rail property must receive prior concurrence from CN Rail and be
substantiated by a drainage report to the satisfaction of CN Rail;
e) contain a clause that the safety berm,
fencing and vibration isolation measures implemented along the CN Rail corridor
shall not be tampered with or altered and further that the Owner shall have
sole responsibility for and shall maintain these facilities to the satisfaction
of CN Rail;
f) contain a clause whereby the owner
agrees to grant CN Rail an environmental easement for operational noise and
vibration emissions, registered against the subject lands in favour of CN Rail;
g) contain a clause whereby the owner
agrees to enter into a side agreement with CN Rail, stipulating how CN Rail’s
concerns will be resolved, and to pay CN Rail’s reasonable costs related to
preparing and negotiating the agreement;
h) contain provisions whereby the owner
agrees to phase development of this site as follows:
·
Phase 1 consisting of the
non-residential component plus 162 townhouse or multiple dwellings and 109
apartment dwellings;
·
Phase 2 consisting of 58 townhouse or
multiple dwellings and 116 apartment dwellings;
i) contain a clause whereby the owner
agrees that phase 2 cannot proceed until Council has granted additional water
allocation to this development;
j) contain a clause whereby the owner
agrees to provide cash-in-lieu of parkland, to the satisfaction of the
Commissioner of Development Services;
k) contain a clause whereby the owner
agrees to not install fencing, gates or other physical barriers that would in
any way impede public access over the walkways and the private open space area
located within the residential portion of the proposed development.
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this report is to evaluate and
provide recommendations regarding applications for zoning by-law amendment and
site plan approval to permit development of 220 stacked townhouses, 225
apartments and a new 2,105 m2 retail pad on the Thornhill Square
property located at 300 John Street in the Thornhill Community.
BACKGROUND:
Property and
Area Context
The Thornhill Square
property comprises approximately 6.2 ha (15.3 acres) with frontage on John
Street to the south and Green Lane to the north. The property is bounded by a CN Rail main line on the east and
the Thornhill Community Centre on the west.
The property does not front directly onto Bayview Avenue (see Figures 1,
2 and 3).
Currently, a mixed-use office and retail
development is located on the property, which totals approximately 25,628
square metres (275,867 sq. ft.) of leasable area. The retail component covers some 19,788 square metres (213,003
sq. ft.) in an enclosed, two level mall.
A large percentage of this space is now vacant. The office component covers approximately
5,840 square metres (62,863 sq. ft.) in four storeys located above, but fully
integrated with, the retail mall. The
total height of the office building is 6 storeys. Other facilities on-site
include a stand-alone restaurant located in a heritage building. Parking is provided on two surface lots and
a partly underground parking structure.
The mall property is surrounded by a mix of land
uses. The north eastern portion of the
subject property is located adjacent to St. Luke’s Church and seniors
residence, which overlooks the mall and its parking lots. Uses on the north side of Green Lane include
a neighbourhood retail plaza, a fire station, as well as a grouping of high
rise condominium apartments located further to the north. Thornhill Community Centre, which includes
an arena, library, meeting rooms and recreation facilities, is located
immediately west of the subject property and has direct frontage on Bayview
Avenue. The Shouldice Hospital which
has potential to redevelop as a high density residential area over the
medium-term, is located on the west side of Bayview Ave. A large, medium density townhouse
development is located on the south side of John St. opposite Thornhill Square
and the Community Centre. A variety of
industrial uses are located east of the railway tracks which form the eastern
boundary of the subject property.
Previous applications
In June 2000, the previous owner of Thornhill Square submitted an
application to demolish the mall east of the office building, and redevelop
this portion of the site with a large format home improvement store of
approximately 11,150 m2 (120,000 sq. ft.). Applications to amend both the Official Plan and Zoning By-law
were required, as both documents limit the size of individual stores to a
maximum of 6,000 m2. Staff
had a number of serious concerns with the proposed development, including:
- conformity of the proposal with the
planned function of Thornhill Square as a community-oriented mixed use
centre;
- the appropriateness and compatibility of
the proposed home improvement centre with surrounding residential
areas;
- lack of integration between existing and
proposed development on the site;
- lack of connectivity with adjacent
properties;
- poor pedestrian environment and lack of
pedestrian amenities;
- poor internal
vehicular and pedestrian circulation;
- few landscape
amenities.
In accordance with staff recommendations,
Council denied these applications and the proposed development was referred to
the Ontario Municipal Board by the owners.
In January 2001, the Board also denied the applications.
Detailed Urban Design Principles applying to this site were
incorporated into the Thornhill Secondary Plan
In response to the concerns
raised by the “big box” proposal, and to provide further guidance for the
redevelopment of this site, planning and urban design staff prepared a detailed
set of site-specific urban design principles, which were adopted into the
Official Plan and Thornhill Secondary Plan in September 2002 as Official Plan
Amendment No. 95. These urban design
principles address a variety of key physical planning issues, including:
• Reducing the visual impact of the parking deck
• Reducing the visual impact of surface parking areas
• Improving connections and
linkages (both within the site and to adjacent properties)
• Providing at least one
open space area in the development
• Ensuring adequate buffering and screening from the CN rail
line
• Integrating existing and new development through high quality
design
.
A preliminary report regarding the current
proposal was submitted to Development Services Committee on September 10,
2002. In this report, staff provided a preliminary review
of the proposed development, and identified a number of issues to be resolved
including:
- traffic impacts, particularly as they
relate to traffic conditions on Green Lane and John Street, the Green
Lane/Bayview/Royal Orchard intersection, as well as impacts on surrounding
uses. A detailed traffic impact
study was required to address these, and related, issues;
- noise and vibration impacts from the CN
Rail line on proposed residential development. A detailed noise and vibration study was required in this
regard;
- the adequacy of the proposed residential
parking supply (the parking by-law requires 1.5 spaces per unit for
apartments and multiple dwellings; the applicant was proposing a total of
1.3 spaces per unit for the stacked townhouses and apartments, however,
the residential parking ratio has now been increased to 1.43 spaces per
unit for the stacked townhouses and 1.55 spaces per unit for the
apartments, which is more in line with the requirements of the parking
by-law;
- the adequacy of existing sewer and water
services, and any improvements required to accommodate the proposed
development;
- refinements to the development concept
plan, to further resolve a variety of issues including the location of the
Green Lane entrance, the interface between the townhouses and the western
edge of the parking deck, the relationship between the new retail pad and
the main north-south driveway entrance in the site;
·
the
need for additional opportunities for public participation in the review and
refinement of this application. In this
regard, the Development Services Committee recommended that staff organize
additional meetings with the applicant, residents and the Thornhill
Subcommittee to ensure that residents are kept informed about the development
and have opportunities to provide input into the redevelopment plan. Staff were requested to hold at least one
additional community information meeting prior to the statutory public meeting.
Two Community Information Meetings and a
Statutory Public Meeting were held
The Town hosted two community information
meetings (August 19, 2002 and December 2, 2002) and a statutory public meeting
(December 3, 2002) to provide area residents with a several opportunities to
review and evaluate the proposal as it evolved. Residents raised concerns about:
- potential traffic impacts from the proposed development;
- the locations of existing entrances to the mall and St. Luke’s
Church on Green Lane;
- an early proposal to relocate the mall entrance at the existing
signalized intersection at Green Lane and the Landmark of Thornhill
entrance driveway, was of a concern to the Landmark of Thornhill residents
as it was felt that this proposal would encourage traffic infiltration
into their development from the subject site; and,
- traffic infiltration into the Johnsview townhouse development to
the south.
The Development Services Committee also
requested staff to explore opportunities for developing some publicly-assisted
housing on this site.
DISCUSSION
Proposed development will establish an
intensive mixed use neighbourhood on the Thornhill Square property
The owners of the Thornhill
Square property propose to redevelop the site as a intensive mixed-use retail,
office and residential development which has the potential to become a focal
point for the Thornhill Community. The
main elements of the development include (see Figures 4 and 5):
§
Retaining
the restaurant in the heritage building, the Dominion Store, the office
building, the ground floor retail located within the office building, and the
parking structure east of the office building;
§
Demolishing
the mall located east of the office building above the parking structure,
which contains approximately 12,003
square metres (129,203 sq. ft.) of floor area;
§
Extending
office uses to the second floor of the office building (this area is currently
used for retail and a food court);
§
Developing
six blocks of stacked townhouses (220 units) over the existing parking deck
east of the office building;
§
Developing
two apartment buildings (9 and 7 storeys) containing 225 units, at the east end
of the site near the railway line;
§
Developing
a new retail pad, of 2,105 m2 (22,660 sq. ft.) south of the office
building, near the John Street frontage of the site;
§
Developing
additional grade oriented shops on the east side of the entrance driveway, in
front of the parking deck.
The
following table compares existing and proposed floor areas on the site (note
that existing floor areas are approximate):
|
Retail floor
area
|
Office floor area
|
Restaurant
floor area
|
Residential
Units
|
|
Existing Development
|
19,788 m2
(213,003 sq. ft.)
|
5,840
m2
(62,863
sq. ft.)
|
483
m2
(5,200
sq. ft.)
|
None
|
|
Proposed Development
|
9,959 m2
(107,201 sq. ft.) includes:
·
7,854 m2
(84,541 sq. ft.) in office building
·
2,105 m2 (22,660 sq. ft.) in new retail
pad
·
625 m2 in front of parking deck
|
6,737m2
(72,520 sq. ft.)
|
483
m2
(5,200
sq. ft.)
|
445
residential units includes:
·
220 stacked townhouse units
·
225 apartment units
|
Proposed development responds directly to the
site-specific Urban Design Principles adopted into the Thornhill Secondary Plan
in 2002
As
previously noted, in response to concerns raised by the previous “big box”
proposal, staff prepared a set of site specific Urban Design Principles in
August 2002 to guide future development on the subject property. The design elements contained in this
application respond directly to these principles:
·
Enhancing the pedestrian environment and improving connections and
linkages both within the site and to adjacent properties: The
proposal enhances the pedestrian environment, both within and adjancent to the
site in a variety of ways:
o Pedestrian access between St. Luke’s Church and Senior’s Residence, the
Dominion Store and adjoining residential uses will be safer and more
convenient. The existing site layout
requires a very steep ramp to negotiate the difference in grade between the two
sites. As part of the redevelopment of
the site, a new shared access between Thornhill Square and the church site will
be constructed. The existing pedestrian
ramp will be replaced by a much more gradually sloped sidewalk, which will lead
to a new intersection controlled by stop signs. This arrangement will benefit parishioners parking on the
Thornhill Square property as well as residents of the Senior’s home (including
those in wheelchairs), who rely on the shopping facilities in Thornhill Square
for most of their day-to-day shopping needs;
o The main north-south driveway has
been carefully designed as a pedestrian-oriented “main street”, defined by
generous sidewalks, street tree plantings on both sides, and a defined building edge where feasible
(particularly in the southern 2/3 of the site where the driveway is adjacent to
the parking deck, the new retail pad and the existing office building). Grade-oriented retail and service shops
front onto the east side of the driveway under the parking deck, along the
eastern façade of the office building, and along portions of the new retail pad
at the John Street entrance;
o Pedestrian access to John Street and Green
Lane will be enhanced by providing continuous sidewalks on both sides of the
north south driveway (which provides direct access to the interior of the
site); by providing new pedestrian walkways that lead directly from John Street
to the interior of the retail and residential portions of the site; and from
the new signalized intersection at Green Lane to the Church property;
o A network of internal walkways will
interconnect the residential area, the landscaped open space, the St. Luke’s
Church property and the commercial portion of the site west of the driveway.
·
Reducing the visual impact of the parking deck: The site plan proposes several strategies to
reduce the visual impact of the parking deck including:
o “closing” the open end of the parking deck
along the east side of the north/south driveway, through enhanced landscaping
and terracing adjacent to John Street; and grade-oriented retail stores built
into the west elevation of the parking deck which will front directly onto the
driveway;
o developing a new pedestrian stairway mid-way
along the western elevation of the deck, which will help to break the western
elevation of the deck into two smaller units (see Figure 6 and 16);
o building townhouse units on top of the deck
will make the deck appear more like a building podium rather than a parking
garage
·
Reducing the visual impact of surface parking:
Currently the majority of the site is covered in surface parking. The proposed development will greatly
improve this situation by developing townhouse units and a landscaped open
space area over the parking deck as well as a new retail pad adjacent to the
main John Street entrance. Additional
parking will be provided in new underground parking beneath the proposed
apartment buildings.
·
Providing at least one open space area in the development: The applicant is proposing a private
landscaped square in the interior of the townhouse development, which will be
accessible from both the Church property and the commercial area. The square will be defined by townhouse
blocks, which will front onto it, but will be open to the main east-west
pedestrian link (which will provide direct access to the commercial area west
of the driveway) and a north south walkway which will provide direct access to
St. Lukes Church and Senior’s Residence.
The intent is for these walkways and the landscaped open space area to
be fully accessible to the residents of the St. Luke’s Seniors residence and
the applicant has agreed not to install any fencing, gates or other physical
barriers that would in any way impede public access over these facilities.
·
Buffering and Screening from the CN Rail line: The
applicant has given careful consideration to this issue, and has positioned the
proposed apartment buildings along a north south axis to provide maximum
buffering and visual screening from the railway line. The apartments themselves have been located and designed to meet
CN Rail’s 30 m. setback and noise buffering requirements, and further screening
will be provided by a landscaped berm and fence where the property abuts the CN
corridor.
·
Integrating existing and new development through high quality
design: The applicant and Town staff have worked very
closely to refine the building designs and elevations to achieve this objective
(see Figures 6 to 16):
o Building facades fronting onto John Street, St. Luke’s Church and
the commercial area have been designed to reflect the modern character of
surrounding development and create an integrated overall design theme for the
development. This includes the
elevations of the two apartment buildings and the southern and western
elevations of the townhouse blocks fronting John Street and the north south
driveway;
o Building design details have been carefully
considered to further the degree of integration. For example, the height of the first storey cornice of the
existing office building has been set at the same level as the top of the
existing parking deck. This horizontal line
is further reflected in the height of the first storey cornice of the new
retail pad, and the screening wall for the surface parking area along the west
side of the driveway. In the
residential portion, the second storey cornice on the two apartments buildings
reflects the height of the roof eaves of the townhouses. This is further reflected in the height of
the second storey cornice of the existing office building.
o To avoid monotony, the townhouse blocks in the
interior of the site alternate between flat and peaked roof styles, and provide
for a variety of elevations.
·
Creating a unique community identity:
Staff are satisfied
that the proposed site plan and elevations will provide for a truly unique,
high quality, urban mixed use community.
The buildings have been carefully designed to create an integrated
development in which the redeveloped and existing portions of the site
complement and enhance each other; pedestrian walkways and vehicular driveways
have been planned to create an active, inviting environment which will
encourage and support pedestrian activity; linkages, both within the site and
to adjacent properties have been maximized; and the buildings themselves have
been designed to reflect their unique identities while at the same time presenting
an overall unified design theme.
The applicants and St. Lukes
Church have reached “agreement in principle” on a shared access and parking
strategy
Currently, the access points from Green Lane into St. Luke’s Church, the
subject property and the Landmark of Thornhill present a number of concerns:
·
The adjacent
driveways into St. Lukes and Thornhill Square, are confusing and create
potential for traffic conflicts;
·
The residents of the
Landmark are dissatisfied with the existing traffic light at the Green Lane
entrance. In their opinion this signal
encourages traffic infiltration into their development;
·
The existing access
configuration at the Church and Thornhill Square precludes moving the Landmark
traffic signal to this location, even though it would be beneficial to do so.
Due to these concerns, staff met with the applicant
and representatives of St. Luke’s Church last summer to propose consolidating
these entrances into a single, shared, signalized access point. In response, the parties entered into
lengthy negotiations and have very recently agreed in principle to the shared
access arrangement reflected in the attached site plan (Figure 4). This arrangement presents numerous benefits:
·
It creates a safer,
less confusing access point into both sites from Green Lane;
·
It enhances
pedestrian access to the site by providing a well-defined single access point;
·
It allows for the
traffic signals to be moved from the Landmark entrance;
·
While the shared
access results in the loss of some parking spaces on the St. Lukes property,
the owners of Thornhill Square have agreed to enter into a shared parking
agreement with St. Lukes whereby overflow parking for use of St. Luke’s
parishioners will be provided on the Thornhill Square property.
The design of the proposed shared access was
prepared by the applicants’ traffic consultant (BA Group) as part of the
Traffic Impact Study prepared in support of the application (see Figure
17). Both St. Luke’s traffic
consultant, as well as Town staff, have reviewed the proposed design and
consider it to be satisfactory.
Further
revisions to the site plan may be required if “agreement in principle” cannot
be finalized
In the unlikely event that the parties cannot
finalize a shared access and parking agreement, a revised site plan will be
required showing the St. Luke’s entry in its current location, and the
Thornhill Square driveway in either its existing or a new location. Further traffic analysis would also be
required. As a result, a condition of
site plan approval has been included, requiring the applicants to submit a
revised site plan and traffic study prior to final approval of the site plans,
if the parties cannot enter into a formal agreement relating to the access
arrangement shown on the attached site plans.
Other minor revisions to the
site plan are still required
St. Luke’s traffic consultant is reviewing the most
recent site plan submissions to confirm that previous concerns relating to
driveway slopes have been addressed.
They are satisfied with the ramp design illustrated in the traffic study
undertaken for the applicant by BA Group and this layout is included as an
attachment to this report. The site
plan may need to be revised to fully incorporate the BA design. The fire department has indicated that the
site plans must be revised to show fire routes between all townhouse blocks,
and locations of fire route signage, fire department hook ups and rapid key
entry boxes. Both CN Rail and GO
Transit have asked to review the revised site plans, and their comments are
still outstanding.
Staff are satisfied that any changes to the site
plans resulting from the above comments can be easily accommodated without
changing the overall design concept presented in the attached site plans. Staff are therefore proposing that any
further changes to the site plan be delegated to staff for final approval.
Water allocation is required to
complete the first phase of development
The applicants are proposing a first phase of
development consisting of 278 units (162 stacked townhouse units and 116
apartment units). In December 2002,
Council adopted a number of criteria to assist in assessing and prioritizing
applications for water allocation. Staff
support the applicants’ proposed phase 1 allocation, on the basis that it meets
a number of the criteria, as follows:
·
The proposed development represents a
significant infill and intensification of an existing under utilized site in
the middle of a mature urban area. As
such, the proposal promotes the principles of “Smart Growth” and reduces
development pressure in greenfield
areas;
·
The proposed development will make better use
of existing infrastructure and community facilities including the Thornhill
Community Centre and the remaining retail facilities in Thornhill Square;
·
The development will require a significant
upgrade to the John Street sanitary sewer, which will also provide benefits to
neighbouring residential subdivisions;
·
The proposed development is located very close
(within a short walk) of Bayview Avenue, a key transit corridor in York
Region. In view of the proposed
densities, and the site’s proximity to Bayview Avenue, the proposed development
will support and encourage transit use.
·
Other public benefits of the proposed
development include improved circulation for both the Thornhill Community
Centre due to the new north/south driveway;
and improved circulation and access from St. Luke’s Church and Senior’s
home.
As a result, staff are recommending that
Council grant water allocation for 278 units (the Phase 1 portion of the
residential development) out of the Town’s current reserves of 877 units. Furthermore, York Region is allocating a
further water supply of 2,738 units to Markham, which will bring the total
reserve capacity to 3,615 in the Town.
Further water allocation beyond the 278 units requested in this report
will be required before Phase 2 can proceed, which the applicant anticipates
will happen in May 2004.
Staff are proposing a number of clauses and
conditions to ensure that the Town’s water reserves are protected in the event
that the development does not proceed as planned, and as well to ensure that
the applicant proceeds with the development in accordance with the proposed
phasing plan. These include:
·
A condition that the initial water allocation
for 278 units may be revoked if development does not proceed in a timely
manner;
·
A condition of site plan approval requiring
clauses in the site plan agreement confirming the applicants’ proposed phasing
plan;
·
The establishment in the zoning by-law of
separate conditions of hold removal for the Phase 1 and Phase 2 portions of the
development which are intended to ensure that development proceeds on this site
in accordance with the applicants’ stated phasing plan. More details on the proposed hold provisions
are contained in this report’s general discussion of the proposed zoning by-law
amendment, below.
The proposal conforms to Official
Plan and Secondary Plan Policies
The Thornhill Square
property is designated as a Community Amenity Area in the Official Plan
(Revised 1987), and as a Community Amenity Area – Commercial Centre in the
Thornhill Secondary Plan (OPA1). Community Amenity Areas are intended to
function as significant and identifiable focal points for the surrounding
community, serving as multi-purpose centres containing a range of office uses
and retail amenities for major food shopping as well as other retail and
service commercial facilities which meet the basic needs of the surrounding
population. Individual retail uses
cannot exceed 6,000 m2.
Medium and High density residential development, up to a maximum density
of 148 units per hectare is also permitted.
The residential redevelopment, which proposes a total of 445 units on
the 3.02 ha residential portion of the subject property, falls within the upper
limit for high density residential set out by the Official Plan.
The proposed development,
consisting of a mix of offices, community-oriented retail and service shops,
and medium and high density residential, conforms to the policies of both the
Official Plan and the Thornhill Secondary Plan.
An amendment to Zoning
By-law 1767 is required to permit the proposed development
Revisions required to the
Environmental Noise Analysis and Railway Vibration Analysis
An Environmental Noise
Analysis and a Railway Vibration Analysis were prepared by Valcoustics Canada
Ltd., dated April 11, 2003 for the
Thornhill Square Development. Review
comments of these reports were received on May 5, 2003 from the Town’s peer
review consultant, Jade Acoustics Inc.
Jade Acoustics has proposed a number of revisions to the reports with
respect to noise from the abutting buildings, vehicle traffic and railway
traffic. Also, additional analysis to
determine the effects of vibration was recommended. The applicant’s consultant is preparing a revised document.
Subsequent revisions to the
above studies and review comments by the CNR will be required prior to final
site plan approval.
Staff are satisfied that traffic concerns have been
adequately addressed
The applicants submitted a traffic impact study, prepared by BA Group,
in November 2002. Based on Comments
received from Town staff, from the traffic consultants acting on behalf of St.
Luke’s Church, and from comments received from residents at the public
meetings, the traffic study was revised and resubmitted in February 2003. Both Town staff and St. Luke’s consultants
are satisfied that traffic issues have adequately addressed, and that the
proposed development will not have significant traffic impacts on surrounding
developments or roads. St. Luke’s traffic
consultant has requested that the final approved design of the shared access be
incorporated into the traffic study as an addendum, and this request has been
included as a condition of site plan approval.
Off-site infrastructure
works will be required
Town staff noted deficiencies
in the sanitary sewer on John Street with respect to capacity and the future
connection of the Thornhill Development.
On May 29, 2003 Stantec Consulting submitted a servicing analysis along
with a proposed sanitary sewer design for the Thornhill Development. The servicing analysis and proposed design
includes watermain, sanitary and storm sewers.
This submission is currently under review by Town staff and must be
approved by staff prior to final site plan approval.
In addition, the traffic
study assumes that the traffic signals currently located at Green Lane and the
entrance to the Landmark of Thornhill will be moved to the proposed new shared
access to Thornhill Square and St. Lukes.
Assuming that the agreement between St. Lukes and Thornhill Square is
finalized, the movement of the traffic signals will also have to be undertaken
as a component of the proposed development.
A Stormwater Management report has been reviewed and
approved by Town staff
Storm sewer and stormwater
management works will be within the limits of the proposed site and the system
will outlet to an existing storm sewer at the west limit of the property. On site storage of stormwater runoff and
controlled release of the storm water will be provided by underground tanks and
a stormceptor manhole.
External watermain works will
consist of metered connections from the watermain on John Street to each of the
proposed properties. Internal watermain
works will consist of a network of pipes starting from the metered connection
on John Street and will terminate at proposed buildings. Watermains which do not terminate at
buildings will be looped, thus ensuring water quality.
Proposed
site plan addresses the concerns expressed by local residents at the public
meetings
As previously noted,
residents expressed several concerns about the proposal at the two public
information meetings and the statutory public meeting. These included:
- potential traffic impacts from the proposed development;
- the locations of existing entrances to the mall and St. Luke’s
Church on Green Lane;
- an early proposal to relocate the mall entrance at the existing
signalized intersection at Green Lane and the Landmark of Thornhill
entrance driveway, was of a concern to the Landmark of Thornhill residents
as it was felt that this proposal would encourage traffic infiltration
into their development from the subject site; and,
- traffic infiltration into the Johnsview townhouse development to
the south.
Relocation of the traffic signals from the Landmark
entrance to the proposed shared access will resolve the Landmark residents
original concerns about traffic infiltration.
Furthermore, the final traffic study prepared by BA Group indicates that
potential traffic infiltration into the Johnsview townhouses to the south will
be minimal, and will not present a concern.
Finally, with the proposed improvements to the Green Lane entrance and
the relocation of the signal to this location, the BA report concludes that
traffic impacts from the proposed development will be acceptable.
Aside from the above traffic concerns, surrounding
residents were not opposed to the proposed mixed use development of the site.
With regard to the Committee’s request regarding
incorporating some publicly-assisted housing into this development, staff
consulted with York Region Housing and asked the applicant to contact the
Region directly to further assess these opportunities. Unfortunately, the program is still in the
development stages and it appears that Markham will be receiving only a very
limited allocation of non-profit units.
Given that this program is based on supplementing housing costs, rather
than supplementing the actual construction of units, it may be possible to
incorporate some assisted units into the overall development mix in the future.
FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:
There have been no financial issues
associated with this application at this time.
BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:
This application has been circulated to all relevant departments and
outside agencies. Their comments have
been incorporated into the draft zoning by-law and conditions of site plan
approval.
CONCLUSIONS:
In conclusion, staff support the proposed redevelopment of the Thornhill
Square property into an intense, mixed use residential and commercial
development. Although there are several
issues relating to noise impacts, sanitary and stormwater infrastructure
improvements and final resolution of the shared access agreement with St.
Luke’s Church that need further consideration, staff are confident that these
issues can be resolved without affecting the design intent or quality of the
proposed development. Staff therefore
recommend that the draft zoning by-law amendments be enacted, that water
allocation for a first phase consisting of 278 residential units be granted,
and the site plan application be approved subject to the conditions set out in
this report.
ATTACHMENTS:
Figure 1 – Location Map
Figure 2 – Zoning and Area Context
Figure 3 – Air Photo
Figure 4 – Site Plan
Figure 5 – Site plan detail: Residential component
Figures 6 to 16 – Elevations
Figure 17 – Proposed shared access design
prepared by BA Group
Appendix A – Draft Zoning By-law Amendment
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Valerie
Shuttleworth, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.
Acting
Director of Planning
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Jim Baird, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.
Acting
Commissioner of Development Services
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Q:\Development\Planning\APPL\ZONING\02111342
Townhomes of Thornhill Square\Recommendation report 07_07_031.doc
FIGURE 1
OWNER: The
Townhomes of Thornhill Village Inc
Lionel
Larry, President
4211
Yonge Street
Suite
200
Toronto
ON
M4P
2A9
Tel: 416-221-2238
Fax: 416-224-2408
e-mail:
lclarry@attcanada.ca
AGENT: Rosebud
Homes Inc.
Harry
Kohn Vice President
4211
Yonge Street
Suite
200
Toronto
ON
M4P
2A9
Tel: 416-506-1600
Fax: 416-506-0956
e-mail:
hkohn@skmv.com
LOCATION MAP:
