CITY CLERK

Clause embodied in Report No. 2 of the North York Community Council, as deferred by the North York Community Council at its meeting held on February 18, 1998.

   32(a)Official Plan and Zoning Amendment Application - UDOZ-96-38 - Joseph Sahar - 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue - Ward 8 - North York Spadina.

 The North York Community Council reports having deferred consideration of the following report to its next meeting scheduled to be held on April 1, 1998 and that it be considered as a continuation of the public meeting:

 (February 9, 1998) from the Acting Commissioner of Planning forwarding recommendations with respect to the subject application to permit the existing retirement home and accessory place of worship within the two existing single family dwellings.

 PLANNING DEPARTMENT

 STAFF REPORT

 Paula M. Dill

COMMISSIONER OF PLANNING

  TO:The Chairman and Members of the Planning Committee

 SUBJECT:OFFICIAL PLAN and ZONING AMENDMENT APPLICATION

JOSEPH SAHAR

31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue

Part of Lot 21, Plan 3103

DATE:June 23, 1997Ward 7

UDOZ-96-38

  1.0SUMMARY:

 The application proposes an official plan and zoning amendment to permit the existing retirement home and accessory place of worship within the two existing single family dwellings municipally known as 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue.

 In order to provide long term reinvestment in the area, it is recommended that 35 Wilmington Avenue be rezoned as part of this application to permit a semi-detached dwelling.

 The proposed official plan and zoning amendment for the subject lands and 35 Wilmington Avenue is appropriate and is consistent with the policies of the Official Plan.

 2.0RECOMMENDATIONS:

 It is recommended the following be approved:

 OFFICIAL PLAN

 2.1The RD1 designation for 35, 33 and 31 Wilmington Avenue be amended to permit a retirement home in addition to the other permitted residential uses.

 ZONING BY-LAW

 2.2The R4 zoning for 35, 33 and 31 Wilmington Avenue be amended to an RM2 exception zone with the following specific provisions:

 PERMITTED USES

 (a)A retirement home and an accessory place of worship In addition to all of the permitted uses in the RM2 zone.

 (i)For the purpose of this exception, Retirement Home shall mean a multiple family dwelling containing bedrooms with a common dining area. The dining area shall be available to all residents of the Retirement Home on a daily basis and shall not function as a public dining facility. The bedrooms shall be used as the principal residence of the occupants and shall not be provided on a transient basis.

 Retirement Home shall exclude a boarding or lodging house and a hotel.

 (b)A retirement home and an accessory place of worship shall only be permitted within the existing buildings located on the lots municipally known as 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue.

 ZONE REGULATIONS

 (c)The minimum lot area shall be 550m5 for each semi-detached dwelling and 225m5 for each semi-detached dwelling unit.

 (d)The minimum lot frontage shall be 15m for each semi-detached dwelling and 7.5m for each semi-detached dwelling unit.

 (e)The minimum yard setbacks for the main building on a lot shall be as follows:

 (i)Front yard - 7.5m;

(ii)Side yard - 1.8 m each side;

(iii)Rear yard - 7.5 m.

 (f)The minimum number of parking spaces for the retirement home, required on site shall be 8.

 (g)The maximum height of the retirement home shall be 2 storeys or 8.8m whichever is the lesser.

 (h)The minimum parking space length shall be 5.5m.

 (i)The maximum amount of gross floor area devoted to an accessory place of worship shall not exceed 20.9m5 .

 (j)The maximum number of bedrooms shall not exceed 20 within the existing buildings municipally known as 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue.

 2.3The conditions of the Transportation Department attached as Schedule AD@.

 2.4Prior to the enactment of the by-law for the zoning amendment, the applicant shall apply for and receive site plan approval. Specific consideration should be given to the proposed parking layout, signage, buffering around the perimeter of the site and front yard landscaping.

 2.5Prior to the enactment of the by-law for the zoning amendment, the applicant shall undertake a building audit demonstrating any deficiencies required to meet Building and Fire Code requirements for a retirement home at 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue. The applicant will ensure that any deficiencies are rectify prior to the enactment of the Zoning By-law . The applicant will also ensure that upon commencement of any construction, all of the elderly residents will be relocated until such time as the construction work is signed off as complete by the Building Inspector.

  3.0PROPOSAL:

 The applicant is requesting an amendment to the Official Plan and Zoning By-law to permit the existing retirement home and accessory place of worship within the two existing single family dwellings at 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue.

4.0LOCATION AND EXISTING SITE:

 The site fronts on the east side of Wilmington Avenue. The site consists of two of the three lots in the block between Codsell and Cocksfield Avenue. These lands are developed with two single family detached dwellings. Wilmington Avenue is designated as a minor arterial road under the Official Plan and Zoning By-law.

 The property is located in the Bathurst Manor community. The area consists of one and two storey single family dwellings along Codsell and Cocksfield Avenue, semi-detached dwellings on the west side of Wilmington Avenue and apartment buildings just south of Cocksfield Avenue on both sides of Wilmington Avenue.

5.0BACKGROUND AND HISTORY:

 Prior to the use as a retirement home, 33 Wilmington Avenue was used as a place of worship. While there is still a small area devoted to worship (20.9m5) the primary use is the retirement home with the place of worship being used almost solely by the residents of the retirement home.

 Previously 33 Wilmington Avenue was subject to three Committee of Adjustment applications for additions to the existing building.

In 1968 while the building was being used as a place of worship, an approval was granted by the Committee for a reduced easterly side yard setback under application CA-68-211.

 In 1994 under application UDCA-94-513, the Committee refused this application to reduce the minimum required rear yard setback for a two storey rear addition to the retirement home which was being assessed as a residential dwelling.

 In 1994 under application UDCA-95-169, the Committee approved the application for the reduced rear yard requirement as previously applied for, therefore allowing the two storey rear extension to the building.

 6.0PLANNING CONTROLS:

 Official Plan:

 The lands are designated RD1 (Residential Density One) (Refer to Schedule A). The RD1 designation permits single detached and semi-detached dwellings. The RD1 designation presently applying to the property does not permit a retirement home. Retirement homes are generally permitted in the Residential Density Three designation (RD3). An official plan amendment is required for this proposal.

 Zoning By-law:

 The site is zoned R4 (One-family Detached Dwelling Fourth Density Zone) which permits single family detached dwellings, places of worship and accessory buildings incidental and accessory thereto (see attached Schedule B). An amendment to the zoning by-law is necessary because the R4 zoning does not permit a retirement home.

 7.0OTHER DEPARTMENT COMMENTS:

 Comments from relevant departments and agencies are attached. A summary of the comments from the North York Transportation Department are outlined below.

 The North York Transportation Department advises that they concur with the conclusions of the parking study prepared by Grant Bacchus dated June 6, 1997 (Refer to Schedule E). The Transportation Department recommend that the applicant provide a revised site plan indicating the new parking layout at the site plan approval stage.

 8.0PUBLIC CONSULTATION:

 A community meeting was held on May 1, 1997 at William Lyon MacKenzie Secondary School. The local Councillor was in attendance. There were a number of issues raised at the meeting which are outlined below and summarized in Schedule AE@.

• The next door neighbour at 35 Wilmington Avenue (Refer to Schedule G) spoke of the noise emanating from the subject site during the day as a result of residents of the retirement home participating in activities outside on the deck. Apparently during the day when the weather permits, the residents go out on the deck in the rear yard to participate in various activities including singing. The applicant has indicated that they would work with the neighbours to try and find an appropriate time to run their programs outside that would have the least impact on the surrounding community. In addition, appropriate buffering along the side and rear property lines would help to reduce the level of noise emanating from the subject site.

• Traffic has increased in the area since the introduction of the retirement home. There are no studies that support this observation.

• The frequency of emergency vehicles visiting the subject site. According to the records of Metro Ambulances, an ambulance has been called to the subject site seven times within the last two years.

• The subject site does not have sufficient parking on site. The parking study completed by Grant Bacchus and dated June 6, 1997 (Refer to Schedule F) states that there is sufficient parking on the site to accommodate the parking demand for the retirement home.

 9.0PLANNING ISSUES:

 9.1Land Use

 The existing retirement home is an appropriate use for this site. This proposal represents an opportunity to provide much needed housing for seniors. Council encourages the provision of a variety of dwelling types and forms designed to meet the housing needs of current and future senior citizens. Retirement homes and homes for the age are residences providing accommodation for seniors where common dining facilities are provided. Council encourages retirement homes to be located on arterial roads or minor arterial roads such as Wilmington Avenue. The existing retirement home provides accommodation for seniors including a common dining facility, recreational area, siting areas, outside deck and an accessory place of worship.

 The retirement home being located in a predominately residential area provides seniors who live in the area with an opportunity to continue to reside in the community. This is not a new concept. Many municipalities across Ontario permit retirement homes to be located in residential areas.

 The retirement home can take advantage of existing infrastructure, community facilities and transportation facilities without undue expense to the City. The retirement home can be adequately served by existing community facilities such as libraries, recreational facilities and parks. The existing roads and sewers adequately serve the demands of the existing retirement home without requiring any improvements to them. The accessory place of worship in 33 Wilmington Avenue will provide a service to the residents of the retirement home without increasing on site traffic. The site is well suited for access to public transit and the minor (Wilmington Avenue) and arterial (Sheppard Avenue) road system.

 9.1.1Compatibility with Adjacent Uses

 The existing retirement home is compatible with the surrounding area. The site is located on the edge of an area predominately made up of single family dwellings and fronts on a minor arterial road. There are semi-detached dwellings located on the west side of Wilmington Avenue opposite the site. There are also apartment buildings just south of the site on both sides of Wilmington Avenue between Cocksfield Avenue and Sheppard Avenue.

 This proposal conforms to General Development Criteria set out in the Housing Policies. The scale, massing and built form of the existing retirement home is sensitive to, and does not negatively impact upon, the adjacent stable residential neighbourhood. The existing retirement home being housed in two single family dwellings has little impact on the abutting residential properties in terms of overview, shadowing and loss of privacy. However, the North York Transportation Department is requiring that parking spaces be located in the rear yard of 33 Wilmington Avenue. This parking area should be properly screened from the adjacent properties to reduce any potential impact on them. The parking spaces in front of 33 Wilmington Avenue should be defined. The design and layout of the parking area can be addressed at the site plan approval stage. Matters relating to signage should also be addressed at the site plan approval stage.

 9.1.235 Wilmington Avenue

 The adjacent owner to the north of the site at 35 Wilmington Avenue, shown on Schedule G, has expressed concerns with the retirement home given the increase in activity. This lot is the last remaining one in the block. The owner of this site has tried to sell his property but has had difficulty due to the retirement home being located next door. It is unlikely that 35 Wilmington will ever be rebuilt as a single family dwelling in the future. To provide for long term reinvestment in the area, 35 Wilmington Avenue should be rezoned to RM2 to allow the flexibility of this site to be redeveloped with semi-detached dwellings. The semi-detached dwellings would be compatible with the area given that they are semi-detached dwellings located on the west side of Wilmington Avenue.

 9.2Zoning

 RM2 exception zones is an appropriate way to implement this application. The proposed RM2 exception zone legalizes the existing retirement home on 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue while providing long term reinvestment for 35 Wilmington Avenue and maintaining the long term perspective on these lots as low density residential in built form. The existing place of worship should be permitted as an accessory use within 33 Wilmington Avenue. The place of worship should be limited to a maximum gross floor area.

 For the proposed RM2 exception, to implement the zoning there will need to be exceptions to requirements for yards, parking, maximum number of beds, lot area and lot frontage.

 9.3Conformity to the Building and Fire Codes

 The existing retirement home operates within two single family dwellings. Both of these dwellings have not been reviewed against the Building Code or Fire Code in context of a retirement home. The Fire Department has informed us that there are a number of alterations that need to be done to 33 Wilmington Avenue to bring the building into compliance with the Fire Code regulations (Refer to Schedule AH@). The owner has been notified of the required alterations. Therefore, the applicant should be required to submit a building audit application for 31 and 33 Wilmington Avenue prior to the enactment of the amending zoning by-law identifying all deficiencies. Prior to the enactment of a zoning by-law the deficiencies should be completed.

 10.0CONCLUSION

 The existing retirement home and the accessory place of worship is an appropriate use for this site and conforms to the Housing Policies of the Official Plan. The abutting property to the north at 35 Wilmington Avenue should be rezoned to RM2 to permit semi-detached dwellings in order to provide long term reinvestment in the area.

 Respectfully submitted,

Paula M. Dill

COMMISSIONER OF PLANNING

Report prepared by Community Planning Division