January 7, 1998

To: North York Community Council

From: Bryan W. Tuckey,

Acting Commissioner of Planning

Subject: RECOMMENDATIONS REPORT

Official Plan and Zoning Amendment Application

Shell Canada Limited

4021 Yonge Street

Ward 9 - North York Centre South

UDOZ-97-26

Purpose:

The purpose of this report is to recommend an Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment to permit an upgrade to the existing gasoline station

Source of Funds:

Not applicable.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that:

(1) Part D.5, Section 4 of the Official Plan (York Mills Office Centre Secondary Plan) be amended to permit limited surface parking;

(2) the C1 and C1(45) zoning on the property be amended to General Commercial (C1) exception, subject to the following provisions:

(3) prior to the enactment of a zoning by-law, the applicant shall apply for and receive site plan approval, achieving matters which include the following:

(4) the following be fulfilled as part of the site plan approval:

(5) the appropriate City Officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give effect hereto.

Background:

Proposal:

Shell proposes to redevelop and upgrade its prominent site at Yonge Street and York Mills Road, as shown on Schedule "C", as follows:

Traffic flow for the drive-through facility and car wash would be from south to north. For vehicles entering the site, access would be obtained from Old York Mills Road, with patrons exiting onto York Mills Road.

A summary of the most pertinent project statistics are set out in Table 1 below:

Application UDOZ-97-26 was made under the new Planning Act as it was received after May 22, 1996.

Site Location:

The 5,704m² site is located at the southeast corner of Yonge Street and York Mills Road. A Shell gasoline station with 11 gas pumps and vehicle service repair bays currently exist on the site. There is a high rise complex containing commercial uses on the north side of York Mills Road. To the south of Old York Mills Road is a TTC station, park and institutional uses. The west side of Yonge Street in the immediate vicinity is dominated by parkland and open space. Surrounding uses are primarily low density residential.

Two applications have been submitted on the adjacent: a temporary use zoning by-law to allow the property to continue to be used as a pay parking lot and a proposal for a nine-storey, 141-unit residential apartment building, including a portion of the remnant density from the subject site. The applicant of the residential proposal will need to undertake a traffic study taking into consideration the change to the Shell site as a result of their proposal.

Official Plan:

The site is designated YMO (York Mills Office) in the York Mills Office Centre Secondary Plan (see Schedule "A") within Development Area #4, permitting office, retail, financial institutions, service shops, transit facilities, religious and educational facilities and recreational uses. The maximum FSI (floor space index) is 2.0. All parking facilities are to be provided in a structure. Therefore, an Official Plan amendment is required to permit the surface parking associated with the development.

Zoning By-law:

The site has two zones:

- the western half fronting along Yonge Street is zoned C1 (General Commercial) permitting a full range of commercial uses.

- the eastern half is zoned C1(45) permitting gasoline and service station and accessory uses. This exception by-law was recently enactment to simply reflect the previous 1969 zoning which permitted the relocation of the gas station as a result of the subway construction.

An amendment to the zoning by-law is required in order to expand the range of uses on the eastern portion of the site to be consistent with those currently permitted on the western portion.

Schedule "B" illustrates the existing zoning areas of the site and the wider area.

Comments from Other Departments and Agencies:

The following section summarizes significant comments received from the departments and agencies circulated.

The Transportation Department notes that while 15 parking spaces are shown on the plan, only 14 parking spaces are required. However, the Transportation Department does not consider the parking space denoted for handicapped use as part of the total supply as it must be used for the garbage room access as well. Therefore, the actual parking supply on site would meet the required 14 spaces. Other modifications to directional signage, parking aisle and sidewalks are to be submitted through a revised site plan, as contained in Schedule "E".

As part of its comments contained in Schedule "F", the Public Works Department provides conditions related to deposit of funds for the works required on the property, location of the car wash facility in relation to the existing storm sewer, storm water discharge levels and garbage collection.

The Parks and Recreation Department requests in Schedule "G" that landscaping along the Old York Mills Road frontage opposite York Mills Park be reviewed during the site plan stage. The Parks and Recreation Department also advises that a 2% cash-in-lieu of parkland dedication applies to the application.

The Public Health Department notes in Schedule "H" that it is the applicant’s responsibility to notify the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) as required under the Gasoline Handling Act due to the movement of gasoline storage tanks to occur on the property. Public Health also notes that any environmentally hazardous materials are to be properly disposed of prior to demolition of the existing service station and that municipal water and sewer services are to be maintained.

The Metropolitan Planning Department has no objections to the application, subject to several technical requirements outlined in Schedule "I". The Metropolitan Transportation Department has advised that a conveyance across the frontage of the property on Yonge Street is required. It also requires specific inbound and outbound directional movements, radii and signage for the four Metro Road access points, necessitating some plan revisions.

A questionnaire was circulated by the local councillors, with summary comments as follows:

Items were viewed favourably: Items not particularly favoured:

- improved access to the gas pumps; - addition of the drive-through facility;

- upgraded appearance; and - loss of service bays for vehicle repairs;

- improved landscaping. - perceived increases in traffic levels; and

- convenience store 24-hour operations.

There was mixed reaction to the proposal for the addition of a car wash.

A community meeting was held on September 4, 1997. Notes from this meeting are attached as Schedule "D" and other correspondence is located in the Index to this report. In summary, the following general matters were raised at the meeting and corresponded quite closely to the completed questionnaires:

(1) Additional Land Uses - combination of uses, particularly the drive-through restaurant and, to a much lesser extent, the car wash facility in terms of site congestion.

(2) Traffic and Access - internal management of traffic, traffic levels and access.

(3) Site Design - a "more residential looking" architectural design, lighting from the canopy and signage to reflect this site’s location close to a residential area.

(4) Environmental Standards - the applicant’s responsibility for decommissioning the existing tanks and the installation of new ones, which must follow established standards.

These issues are discussed in the following section.

Discussion:

(1) Land Use

The site is already used as a gasoline and service station at a major intersection, where higher density commercial uses are permitted. The proposal is in line with most new stations today and represents the types of services commonly included as accessory to a gas station. The sizes of the buildings proposed are acceptable given the size and location of the site within a mixed use area, with the density proposed being considerably lower than the 1.0 FSI as-of-right zoning. In addition, the uses proposed on the eastern portion of the site are already permitted as of right in the zoning by-law on the western portion.

Further review related to the operations of the site and the attainment of appropriate design standards would occur during the site plan stage and the applicant is required to sign a site plan agreement.

(2) Traffic and Access

The Metropolitan and North York Transportation Departments conclude that the uses and densities proposed are not "destination" uses. A significant increase in the number of vehicles travelling along Yonge Street or York Mills Road is not expected from the proposal, including the drive-through and car wash facilities to be added to the site. It is anticipated that the accessory uses will predominantly serve the persons who are already on site to purchase gasoline.

Restrictive turning movements are included in the conditions of approval requested by Metropolitan Toronto, particularly with respect to left turns into the site and other restrictions on turning movements. On-site traffic movement is expected to be improved through the wider aisles between pump islands and adequate parking spaces for patrons to minimize conflicts between those entering/exiting and others driving or walking to another part of the property. The requirements by Metropolitan Toronto for car stacking will also contribute to less conflicts, with management of the site’s operations important to the success of the project.

(3) Urban Design

Overall, an upgraded appearance is expected to result from the plan. While the materials to be used by Shell are its standard, they are generally consistent with upgrades on other sites and are compatible with existing buildings in the area. The canopy, while relatively long, would provide added weather protection, modern illumination methods, additional space and safety.

The new zoning standards for gasoline sites apply to this Shell site. Consistent with car wash facilities and retail stores being permitted on such sites located in "Residential Neighbourhoods", a 3.0 metre landscaping strip and noise attenuation fence should be added along the rear (eastern) edge of the property. This is particularly important given the existing and proposed residential development to the east.

While the parking is adequate for the uses proposed, the handicapped space proposed alongside the washrooms at the south end of the retail store must be moved in order to avoid conflicts with the garbage room provided. The landscaping, pump islands, canopy, signage, lighting, access details and any other relevant matters will be reviewed further during the site plan stage.

Conclusions:

The applicant’s proposal to upgrade the existing gasoline facility and provide an increased range of accessory services is within the general land use and density provisions in the York Mills Office Secondary Plan. The inclusion of surface parking is appropriate given the nature of the use involved, as are the retail uses being sited at the east end of the site. The proposal, in essence, represents a shifting of the location of the proposed commercial uses to allow them on the eastern portion of the property, as such uses are already allowed on the western side. It is recommended that an implementing by-law covering the entire site at the major intersection of Yonge Street and York Mills be approved, subject to conditions requested from agencies and a detailed review of landscaping, buffering, lighting, signage, servicing, access and other issues being addressed at the site plan stage prior to by-law enactment.

Contact Name:

Alan Binks, Planner

Phone: 395-7100 Fax: 395-7155

Bryan Tuckey

Acting Commissioner of Planning