	REPORT TO DEVELOPMENT SERVICES COMMITTEE


TO:	Mayor and Members of Council

FROM:	Jim Baird, Commissioner of Development Services Valerie Shuttleworth, Director of Planning & Urban Design

PREPARED BY:	George Duncan, Heritage Planner ext. 2296, Planner –Heritage Development Team

DATE OF MEETING:	December 6, 2005

SUBJECT:	PRELIMINARY REPORT Zoning Amendment and Site Plan Control 1625140 Ontario Inc. (Bruno Spinosa) 6050 7 Hwy E , Markham Village HCD ZA-05-015302 and SC-05-015309

RECOMMENDATION:

That a Public Meeting be held to consider the application submitted by 1625140 Ontario Inc. for Zoning Amendment to allow the construction of a new mixed use building at 6050 Highway 7.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to provide preliminary information regarding an application for a zoning amendment and site plan approval to allow the redevelopment of the property at 6050 Highway 7, and to recommend that Committee authorize the scheduling of a public meeting.

BACKGROUND:

Property and Area Context

The subject property (Plan 18 Blk F Pt Lot 1) is located on the north east corner of Highway 7 and Jerman Street, within the Markham Village Heritage Conservation District. The lot area is 0.19637ha (0.49ac) and the lot frontage is 32.548m (106.8ft).

There is an existing one storey building on the site in commercial use, containing two units. The building is not a heritage structure. The commercial building has an asphalt parking lot to the rear and to the west side. There is driveway access from both Highway 7 and Jerman Street. A landscape strip exists along the Highway 7 frontage, including a grassed area, a planter and two maple trees. At the rear (north property boundary), there is a narrow landscape strip with two mature trees close to the fence line. The fence is a 1.5m (5ft) alternating board privacy fence.

To the west, across Jerman Street, is a commercial building housing a dry cleaner, hair dresser and coffee shop. To the east is a small-scale building in office use. To the north is a single detached residential home. On the opposite side of Highway 7 is the Markham Village Community Centre.

OFFICIAL PLAN POLICIES

The property is designated Commercial - Heritage Main Street in the commercial policies of the Markham Official Plan. The proposed development is consistent with the provisions of this designation. The traditional design of the proposed building also would appear to address the planned function of the area “to provide a traditional shopping experience in the form of an historic commercial area”.

The Main Street Markham Area Secondary Plan (Official Plan Amendment 108) designates these lands Main Street Commercial (MS). The Main Street Commercial category provides for this type of mixed use development. Under this designation, a wide range of commercial uses are permitted, including basic shopping establishments, specialty retail stores, personal service shops and business and professional offices. Additionally, the Main Street Commercial category allows new residential uses on the upper floors of buildings where the ground floor is in a non-residential use.

EXISTING ZONING

The existing zoning of the subject property is Service Commercial (C3) under By-law 1229, as amended. The permitted uses under this category include typical highway commercial uses such as auto service stations, banks, restaurants, and building supply stores. In order to implement the applicant’s plans for a more diverse range of commercial uses as well as residential uses on the upper floor of the proposed building, a zoning amendment is necessary to rezone the lands to Central Commercial (C2). Under Central Commercial zoning, retail stores, personal service shops, restaurants, and business and professional offices are permitted. The Central Commercial zone also permits residential dwellings over business premises.

PROPOSAL

The applicant proposes to demolish the existing one storey commercial building on the site, except for the basement part of the east wall, and replace it with a new mixed use building designed in an interpretation of late Victorian Italianate architecture. The design was inspired by the heritage buildings on Main Street Markham. The reason for retaining the basement and part of the east wall of the existing structure is to enable the building to retain its current setback from Highway 7.

The new building will have 6 commercial units on the ground floor, and 3 residential apartment units on the upper floor. The two storey portion of the building is positioned at its west end, providing a higher built form at the street corner. The building has a footprint of 685.25m²(7376ft ²). The total Gross Floor Area is 1023.5m²(11,0017ft²).

The commercial units will be double-fronted to have storefronts facing Highway 7 and the parking area to the rear. Pedestrian walkways will be adjacent to the storefronts. Landscape strips will be provided on the Highway 7 frontage, the Jerman Street flankage, and along the rear property line. Both commercial and residential garbage will be contained in internal garbage rooms at the east end of the building.

A total of 25 parking spaces are proposed. Access will be from a two-way driveway off of Jerman Street. The existing Highway 7 driveway will be closed, which is a requirement of the Ministry of Transportation (this part of Highway 7 remains in the control of the MTO). On the basis that a portion of the east wall of the existing building is to remain, the MTO has allowed the new building to match the setback from Highway 7 of the existing building.

SITE PLAN CONTROL AREA

The property is located in a site plan control area (Markham Village Heritage Conservation District) and the development will require site plan approval and a site plan agreement. The site plan application is being processed concurrently with the zoning amendment application.

POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF APPROVAL OF THE PROPOSAL:

Approval of this zoning amendment would result in the redevelopment of the subject property in accordance with the Secondary Plan. The construction of the proposed new building, which is designed to reflect the late Victorian architecture of Main Street Markham, would replace a building that does not reinforce the historical character of the area with one that is very compatible and helps to support the heritage district. This would reinforce the heritage character of this area of the Heritage District. From an urban design perspective, the two storey form of the new building and its proximity to the street line would enhance the urban character of the Highway 7 frontage of the Heritage District.

CONCERNS/ISSUES TO BE RESOLVED:

The following is a brief summary of concerns/issues raised to date. The application has been circulated and detailed comments have been incorporated into this report.

Heritage

Heritage Markham reviewed the plans and elevations at their meeting of July 13, 2005. The applicant made minor changes to the details of the elevations to address the committee’s comments. Both Heritage Markham and Heritage Section staff are supportive of the revised elevations.

Ontario Ministry of Transportation

This part of Highway 7 remains under the jurisdiction of the Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO), although there is the possibility of this section being transferred to the Region of York at some point in the future. MTO initially required the building to conform to their standard setback of 14m (46ft). However, based on the existing pattern of development in the immediate area, MTO agreed that the existing 6.8m(22.29ft) setback from Highway 7 can be accepted provided there is no conflict with the site triangle. Another MTO requirement is that the existing driveway on the east side of the building be closed, and that all access will be from Jerman Street.

Planning and Urban Design

No major issues have been identified during the review of this application. Any specific details and requirements will be dealt with at the site plan agreement stage. A site-specific by-law will need to be created to provide appropriate development standards in order to implement the design as proposed.

Engineering/Servicing

The applicant is required to submit a grading plan, a storm water management report, a noise study for the residential units, as well as other standard Engineering submissions. The applicant must demonstrate that sight distances at the corner of Highway 7 and Jerman Street will not be impacted by signage or landscape features. Servicing allocation is required for the 3 proposed residential units.

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

There are no financial implications to be considered in this report.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

There are no environmental impacts to be considered in this report.

ENGAGE 21^ST CONSIDERATIONS:

This application aligns with the Corporate Goal of maintaining a Quality Community by redeveloping a property within a Heritage Conservation District in a form that is compatible with the district and thereby reinforces its special character.

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

This application has been circulated to Town Departments and external agencies for review and comment.

ATTACHMENTS:

Figure 1: - Applicant/Agent and Location Map

Figure 2: - Area Context and Zoning

Figure 3: - Secondary Plan

Figure 4: - Aerial Photograph

Figure 5: - Site Plan

Figure 6: - Elevations

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

FIGURE 1:

APPLICANT:

Applicant Contact Information:

1625140 Ontario Inc

Bruno Spinosa

72 Peter St Markham ON L3R 2A6

Telephone number: 416-821-7777

Facsimile Number: 905-201-0782