RECOMMENDATION:

That a Public Meeting be held to consider the applications submitted by Branstone Estates Inc. (Greenpark Homes) for Zoning By-law Amendment and Site Plan Approval for three blocks of condominium townhouses, Blocks 72, 73 and 75, of Registered Plan 65M-3719, west side of McCowan Road, north of Bur Oak Avenue in the Berczy Village Community, once the concerns noted in this report have been resolved to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Development Services.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to provide preliminary information regarding the zoning and site plan applications by Branstone Estates Inc. consisting of 167 condominium residential dwelling units on, Blocks 72, 73 and 75, Registered Plan 65M-3719. It is recommended that a statutory public meeting be held to consider these applications once concerns noted in this report have been resolved to the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Development Services.

BACKGROUND:

Property and Area Context

The proposal consists of three separate parcels located within the Berczy Village Community (Figure 1).

The first parcel (Block 72) is located on the northwest corner of Castlemore Avenue and McCowan Road, and has a total area of 1.39 hectares (3.43 ac.) (Figure 4). The second, 1.4 hectare (3.45 ac) parcel (Block 73) is located immediately south of the first, across Castlemore Avenue. To the north is a proposed plan of subdivision by El-En Realty Limited. To the east, across McCowan Road, is the Dovcom Realty Inc./Danvest Wismer and Amber Plains Investments plans of subdivision in the Wismer Commons Community. To the south and west are valley lands.

The third parcel (Block 75) is located on the east side of Hillwood Street, north of Bur Oak Avenue and has a total area of 1.2 hectares (2.96 ac.) (Figure 6). The parcel is bounded to the north by valley lands. Adjacent to the south and east property line are two single detached dwellings. The most southerly of the two dwellings is currently used as a chiropractor’s office. To the west is registered plan of subdivision 65M-3719, the subdivision within which these blocks are located (Markham Trails Inc.).

Proposal for 167 condominium townhouses

The applicant is proposing a total of 167 condominium townhouse units ranging in size from 1,500 square feet to 2,217 square feet. The applicant is also proposing to preserve the existing historic Peterson-Jarvis house located on Block 73. The house is designated under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act and a heritage easement agreement was registered on January 9, 2004, as part of the conditions of draft approval for the subdivision. The designation and easement agreement ensures that the historic house and adjacent heritage tree will be restored, protected and incorporated into the development. Each of the three block proposals includes a tot lot and visitor parking.

TABLE A
Block	Number Of Units	Density
72	62	44.6 uph (18 upa)
73	54	38.6 uph (15.65 upa)
75	51	42.5 uph (17.5 upa)
Total	167

Proposal complies with the Berczy Village Secondary Plan

The subject lands are designated Urban Residential – Medium Density and Community Amenity – Arterial in the Berczy Village Secondary Plan. These designations provide for medium density housing. Detached, semi-detached, linked, duplex, triplex, fourplex, townhouses, street townhouses, stacked townhouses, apartments and other forms of multiple unit housing are contemplated.

The Secondary Plan provides for a net site density (Medium Density housing) of 37.1 to 79.9 units per hectare (15 to 32 units per acre). The proposed condominium townhouses have a density ranging from 38.6 uph (15.65 upa) to 44.6 uph (18 upa). The proposed development complies with the Berczy Village Secondary Plan.

Existing zoning permits townhouses, amendment required to permit attached front yard garages

Blocks 72 and 73 are currently zoned Residential Three (R3) and Block 75 is zoned Community Amenity One (CA1) by By-law 177-96, as amended by By-law 2002-78. The amending By-law was implemented in conjunction with Markham Trail’s plan of subdivision which was registered in January 2003. The existing Residential Three (R3) and Community Amenity One (CA1) zoning permits a range of low and medium density residential uses, including townhouses. However, the Residential Three (R3) zone only permits townhouses that are accessed by a lane, with detached garages. A zoning by-law amendment is required to permit the proposed attached garages in the front yard. Site plan approval is also required for the three blocks.

POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF APPROVAL OF THE PROPOSAL:

Some of the anticipated benefits of the proposal include:

· Provision of valley land;

· Proposal is in keeping with the Berczy Village Secondary Plan:

· Increased range of housing types and tenure in the Berczy Community.

CONCERNS/ISSUES TO BE RESOLVED:

The following is a brief summary of concerns/issues raised to date. These matters, and any others identified through the circulation and detailed review of the proposal, will be addressed in a final staff report to be presented to Committee at a later date. The list below includes initial concerns raised by staff; other issues may be raised during a more detailed review of the proposal.

Design concerns

Initial concerns expressed by the Town’s Planning and Design staff include:

- Staff is reviewing the interface of the residential units to the valley for Blocks 72 and 75, which may entail the relocation of internal driveways to minimize back-lotting onto valleylands.

- Further clarification and possibly modification to the design of the townhouse units fronting onto Castlemore Avenue and McCowan Road may be required. The site plan and building designs do not provide a clear definition of the front and rear yards. Staff are concerned that the amenity areas adjacent to Castlemore Avenue and McCowan Road may function as rear yard amenity spaces, since the interior yard (rear yards) amenity space appears to be restricted to small second storey balconies.

- The townhouse elevations are under review at this time (sample elevations Figures 7 – 9). The units adjacent to Castlemore Avenue on Blocks 72 and 73 are of similar design and have a consistent approach to the application of materials (stone and brick). These units are predominately three storeys, stepping down to two storeys on the end units. The units fronting on Castlemore Avenue have the parking in the rear and provide a similar massing to the street.

- The tot lot on Block 72 is located in the middle of a traffic island and on Block 75 it is obscured by residential lots. Alternate locations will be recommended by staff to better integrate the tot lots into the development which will improve public safety and allow them to act as focal points within the community.

- The elevations of the townhouses adjacent to the heritage dwelling are to be of a sympathetic design.

Noise study required

Blocks 72 and 73, particularly the units adjacent to Castlemore Avenue and McCowan Road could pose a concern regarding the relationship between the outdoor amenity space and the street. If the amenity areas are located adjacent to these roads, staff is concerned that the noise generated from the traffic on Castlemore Avenue and McCowan Road may require noise attenuation fences adjacent to the R.O.W. It is one of the Town’s objectives to eliminate this condition wherever possible. Outdoor amenity areas should be located adjacent to internal roads to avoid the need for noise fencing along Castlemore Avenue and McCowan Road. Furthermore, a noise impact study, with recommended mitigation measures related to noise generated by road traffic is required.

Sufficient water allocation

On December 15, 1998, Council endorsed a policy and guidelines for allocation of water for future residential developments. This allocation policy was necessary due to limited available water supply in the urban expansion area.

As endorsed by Council in December 1998, water allocation of 1427 units was granted to the Berczy Secondary Plan Area to be distributed by the Trustee of the Developers Group. The subdivision within which these blocks are located in (Markham Trails) was allocated 607 units by the Developers Group. On April 10, 2001, the Town approved a further water allocation of 385 units to the Berczy Village Developers Group from the Town’s reserve. Of the 385 units allocated in April 2001, Markham Trails received 300 units, while Emery Investments (draft plan of subdivision to the south) received 85 units. Markham Trails’ total allocation from the Trustee is 907 units (607 + 300).

The previous phases (phases 1 and 2) of Markham Trails’ subdivision had approval for 565 units. Their final phase (Phase 3, within which the subject blocks are located in) includes 159 units of low density residential, plus the 167 medium density townhouses proposed by Branstone Estates Inc. (Greenpark Homes). As a result, a total of 891 units are to be developed, while water allocation is available for 907 units. Any remaining unassigned water allocation should be returned to the Developers Group.

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

There are no financial matters to be considered at this time.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

The TRCA has no objections to the approval of the zoning by-law amendment and site plan applications. They note that they were involved in the review and approval of the draft plan of subdivision within which these blocks are located. The limits of development were approved as part of the plan of subdivision approval process, and a minimum 10 metre environmental buffer conveyed to the Town along with the valley lands.
BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

The application has been circulated to the Town Departments for review and comments. All conditions and requirements received will be addressed and incorporated in the recommendation report.

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

DOCUMENT #: Q:\Development\Planning\APPL\ZONING\04 006288 Markham Trails (Green Park)\dscmarch23preliminary.doc

ATTACHMENTS: Figure 1 – Applicant/Agent and Location Map

Figure 2 – Area Context and Zoning

Figure 3 – Air Photo

Figure 4 – Site Plan (Block 72)

Figure 5 – Site Plan (Block 73)

Figure 6 – Site Plan (Block 75)

Figure 7 to 9 – Sample Elevations

APPLICANT/AGENT: Greenpark Homes (Branstone Estates)

Attn: Frank Principe

8700 Dufferin Street

Vaughn, ON

L4K 4S6

Tel: (416) 736-4096

Fax: (905) 660-0746

		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:	West District Stephen Kitagawa, Senior Planner

	DATE OF MEETING:	March 23, 2004

	SUBJECT:	PRELIMINARY REPORT Branstone Estates Inc. (Greenpark Homes) Re: Applications For Zoning By-law Amendment And Site Plan Approval For Condominium Townhouses (Blocks 72, 73 and 75, Plan 65M-3719) West Side of McCowan Road, North of Bur Oak Avenue (ZA.04-006288 & SC.04-006347)