Provision for Relief of Subdivision Agreement Condition -
Rosemount Subdivision UDSB-1227 - The Goldman Group
North York Humber
The North York Community Council recommends that:
(1) Clause A.6.2 of the Subdivision Agreement (Option [a]) referred to in the
following report (March 23, 1998) from the Deputy Commissioner of Public
Works, North York Civic Centre, be re-confirmed; and
(2) Council establish a policy for residential building lots for single and semi-detached dwellings developed by plans of subdivision to have a storm drain
extended to the rear of proposed dwellings to alleviate any future rear lot
drainage problems, where required:
Purpose:
The purpose of this report is to respond to a request from The Goldman Group, developer of the
above subdivision for exemption from a Subdivision Agreement condition which requires the
extension of house storm drains for rear lot drainage.
Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
N/A
Recommendations:
It is recommended that:
(1) Council provide direction on The Goldman Group's request for relief from Clause A.6.2 of
the Subdivision Agreement which requires extension of house storm chains for rear lot
drainage to either:
- (re-confirm Clause A.6.2 of the Subdivision Agreement;
(b) grant exemption from Clause A.6.2 of the Subdivision Agreement
with no conditions; or
(c) grant exemption from Clause A.6.2 of the Subdivision Agreement
provided that the developer deposits an irrevocable letter of credit in
the amount of $84,000.00 for a period of five years after the
assumption of the subdivision to cover any unforeseen drainage
problems.
(2) Council policy be established for residential building lots for single and semi-detached
dwellings developed by plans of subdivision to have a storm drain extended to the rear of
proposed dwellings to alleviate any future rear lot drainage problems, where required; and
(3) the appropriate City officials be authorized and directed to take the necessary action to give
effect thereto.
Background:
The Works and Emergency Services is in receipt of letter dated March 23, 1998 from Ms. Cynthia
Murphy of 1196391 Ontario Ltd., (The Goldman Group) requesting exemption from condition A.6.2
of the Subdivision Agreement with the City file UDSB-1227, Plan 66M-2306. Clause A.6.2 of the
Subdivision Agreement with the former City of North York states:
"The OWNER agrees to provide a building storm drain for lots graded from rear to
front at the rear wall of each dwelling, which shall be deep enough to accommodate
a connection from a rear lot catchbasin. Prior to the assumption of the municipal
services by the City, the OWNER agrees to install a rear lot catchbasin and
connection to the building storm drain on the lot in which it is deemed necessary by
the Commissioner".
Discussion:
The Works and Emergency Services is responsible for the review of the engineering design for plans
of subdivision, including grading and rear lot drainage.
Recently, there has been an increased number of draft plans for residential subdivisions with lots
having narrower frontages and reduced side yard set backs. Rear lot drainage may be impacted by
the trend of having larger residential building envelopes on a combination of narrower frontages and
reduced side yard set backs.
Typically residential lots in plans of subdivision are graded to provide rear lot drainage by a
combination of swales and rear lot catchbasins with connections to municipal sewers.
In the past, there have been situations where rear lot drainage problems have arisen as a result of
homeowners altering grading and/or swales being obstructed. In some cases, rear lot catchbasins
have had to be installed to alleviate drainage problems. These installations, which had to be done
after the construction of houses has been completed, have proved to be quite expensive, causing
inconvenience to homeowners and subject to numerous disputes among homeowners, house builders
and the subdivision developer and City.
At the former City of North York, rear lot drainage and ponding problems that arise after the
assumption of a subdivision have been rectified based on a cost sharing arrangement between the
City and the property owner. Former City of North York Policy of Council No. 93-09 permits
owners experiencing flooding or ponding problems at the rear of their residential properties to apply
to the Works Committee for City aid to a maximum of 50 percent of the total cost to resolve the
problem.
The cost of installing a rear lot catchbasin with a connection to a municipal sewer in standard
situations is on average $10,000.00 with the City's share being approximately $5,000.00.
It is quite possible that swales draining the rear of residential lots could become obstructed with the
construction of permanent features such as walkways, fencing, landscaping, etc., by a property
owner. This is of particular concern when property owners are impacted as a result of drainage being
obstructed or lot grading altered on a neighbouring property. This can in some cases become very
difficult to resolve by the City if consent is not given by the owner to the City to enter onto private
property. In situations where consent is given, the City may be exposed to liability for performing
work on private property.
Typically, rear lot drainage problems can be resolved with the installation of a catchbasin in the
vicinity of the ponding area on private property and drained by a pipe between houses to the
municipal sewer located on the street. This becomes problematic when sideyard set backs between
dwellings are relatively narrow and there is insufficient space for access to permit the installation
of a pipe as an outlet for ponding water at the rear of a property.
It is relatively inexpensive, estimated at $200.00 per lot, to extend a storm connection to the rear of
a property before houses are built and therefore, the Department has included this as a requirement
in subdivisions such as this one. Unfortunately, the developer and builder inadvertently failed to
provide these installations during the construction of the subdivision and houses. In order to
construct now, it is estimated that the cost is approximately $2,000.00 per lot or approximately
$84,000.00 for the 42 houses involved. If Council wishes to grant relief from this requirement, it
is recommended that as a condition, the developer post security in the form of a letter of credit in
the amount of $84,000.00 for a period of five years from assumption of the subdivision to cover any
unforeseen drainage problems.
Conclusion:
The extension of a storm connection from the front to the rear of each proposed single or semi-detached dwelling within new plans of subdivision serves as a preventative measure by providing
an outlet to alleviate any future rear lot drainage problems. The extension of a storm connection
pipe, if done in conjunction with the house construction for each residential dwelling is a relatively
low cost measure and is a fraction of the expense of installing a new connection after house
construction and landscaping is completed.
Contact:
S. Bertoia, P. Eng., Director of Engineering, 395-6235
