December 15, 1998

To:North York Community Council

From:Bryan W. Tuckey

Director, Community Planning, North District

Subject:FINAL REPORT

ZONING AMENDMENT APPLICATION

Centre Core Holdings Inc.

1 and 11 Granlea Road, 21 Calvin Avenue and 4 Vonda Avenue

UDZ-98-17

Ward 10 - North York Centre

Purpose:

This report recommends approval of an application to permit 10 new small lot single detached dwellings, with a rear lane and rear yard garages, fronting onto Granlea Road.

Recommendation(s):

It is recommended that:

(1)The application for rezoning be approved, and the zoning be amended to R7 (8) to permit 10 single detached dwellings with a rear lane and rear yard garages, with the following exceptions:

(a)minimum lot area - 227 m5,

(b)minimum lot frontage - 7.6 metres,

(c)minimum front yard setback - 3.0 metres,

(d)minimum side yard setbacks - 0.6 metres,

(e)lot coverage of 50% maximum for all buildings and structures including garage,

(f)maximum building height of 8.8 metres and 3 storeys provided that, for the third storey, window openings and doorways be permitted only in the front and side yards,

PRIOR TO ENACTMENT OF ANY ZONING BY-LAW

(2)Staff do all things necessary to secure all necessary agreements, financial and otherwise to implement the conditions of the Works and Emergency Services Department as set out in Schedule AF@,

GENERAL CONDITIONS

(3)The conditions of the Works and Emergency Services Department, Transportation Services Division as set out in Schedule AE@,

(4)The conditions of the Parks and Recreation Planning Branch of the Economic Development, Culture and Tourism Department, as set out in Schedule AG@,

(5)Prior to the issuance of any building permit, the applicant shall submit a landscape plan satisfactory to the Director, Community Planning, North District, addressing appropriate front yard landscaping, streetscaping along Granlea Road, Calvin Avenue and Vonda Avenue, and rear yard landscaping and fencing,

(6)At the appropriate time, Council approve a release from part lot control by-law, subject to the conditions and policies for release of part lot control as adopted by Council. Prior to releasing part lot control on the site, the applicant shall have submitted a letter of undertaking stating that upon the sale or transfer of the last parcel of land, the City will be advised in order that the part lot control exempting by-law may be revoked.

Background:

Proposal:

The application proposes an amendment to the Zoning By-law in order to permit 10 new small lot single detached dwellings, three storeys in height, where 4 dwellings currently exist. Pertinent site statistics are set out below:

Location and Existing Site:

The site is located on the south side of Granlea Road, between Calvin Avenue and Vonda Avenue, southwest of Sheppard and Bayview. Four single detached dwellings currently occupy the site, fronting on Granlea Road, Calvin Avenue and Vonda Avenue. There are single detached dwellings to the north, south and east. Further to the north, there are office uses on the commercial lands abutting the south side of Sheppard Avenue. The ARoseways@ townhouse complex is located to the west of the site.

Planning Controls:

Official Plan:

The site is designated Residential Density One (RD1) which permits single detached dwellings at a general density of 20 units per hectare (8 units per acre), and semi-detached dwellings at a general density of 30 units per hectare (12 units per acre).

The area southwest of Bayview/Sheppard which includes this site is also subject to Part D.15 of the Official Plan, the Sheppard East Subway Corridor Secondary Plan, introduced through OPA 392. The secondary plan maintains the existing RD1 designation. The approval of OPA 392 has been appealed to the OMB by the Bay Cal Group Inc, one of the homeowner groups in the area.

The RD1 designation allows the proposed detached dwellings. At approximately 43 units per net hectare (17 units per net acre), this proposal is above the general density normally permitted by the Official Plan. This density is appropriate however, for a location in the Sheppard Corridor and represents limited intensification, as discussed in this report.

Zoning By-law:

The site is currently zoned One-Family Detached Dwelling Zone (R4) which permits single detached homes and accessory buildings, as well as certain recreational and institutional uses. The proposal would require an exception amendment to the regulations for the R4 zone.

Other Department Comments:

The Transportation Services Division of the Works and Emergency Services Department has indicated that they are satisfied with the proposed rear lane of 6.0 metres as shown on the revised site plan. Their comments are attached as Schedule AE@.

The Works and Emergency Services Department has indicated that the reconstruction of Granlea Road from Calvin Avenue to Vonda Avenue will be required, along with a sanitary sewer and a sidewalk along Granlea Road. The applicant will be required to enter into an agreement with the City, registered on title, requiring the future owners to jointly maintain the common elements (i.e. the rear lane), and granting mutual easements. Their comments are attached as Schedule AF@.

The Parks and Recreation Planning Branch of the Economic Development, Culture and Tourism Department has indicated that 5% cash-in-lieu of parkland will be required at the time of building permit application, and that the applicant will be required to enter into a Tree Preservation Agreement with the City. Their comments are attached as Schedule AG@.

The Public Health Division has indicated that there are no outstanding Public Health requirements pertaining to the soils on the site. Their comments are attached as Schedule AH@.

Community Consultation:

A community consultation meeting was held on July 28, 1998. A number of issues were raised by the residents:

• this proposal may set a precedent for other applications in the area,
• the zoning for the whole neighbourhood should be changed to allow a higher density,
• a comprehensive assembly of the area is unlikely,
• there is a limited market for homes larger and more expensive than the proposal,
• the existing trees on the properties should be protected,
• there should be landscaping and fencing to buffer the adjacent properties,
• traffic and parking issues should be addressed.

A number of submissions have been received from area residents raising similar issues (refer to Schedule AO@). Each of the issues is addressed in this report in the appropriate section.

Discussion:

Planning Issues:

Land Use and Density:

Sheppard Corridor Plan and Limited Intensification:

OPA 392 encourages transit supportive development in the Sheppard Corridor, with a high quality of urban design. New development is to be supportive of the existing goals and objectives of the Official Plan, which include the housing policies limiting intensification in stable residential neighbourhoods.

Stable residential areas within the Sheppard Corridor which have Residential designations are to be protected and enhanced in accordance with the housing policies and the Sheppard East Subway Corridor secondary plan, which has established the Bayview node as a residential development node with opportunities for a variety of housing types within walking distance of the subway station.

The Housing policies call for limited intensification which will enhance the viability of residential areas. This proposal will reinforce the stability of this neighbourhood as a low density residential area, and will set a precedent for other forms of low density limited intensification in the future. The development also provides the opportunity to provide new single detached dwellings within walking distance of the future Bayview subway station.

The policies governing RD1 areas recognize that in some cases this designation applies to lands developed with smaller lots at a higher density than normally permitted. Notwithstanding the designated density and the provisions of the Zoning By-law, for development in or near RD1 areas, regard is to be given to the character of existing or approved development, and maintaining appropriate land use performance standards and compatible built form.

This application proposes single detached dwellings on smaller lots, which are to be compatible with the other single detached dwellings in the area, and at a modest level of intensification which is appropriate given the site=s proximity to the future subway station.

Built Form:

The General Development Criteria of the Housing policies, which are designed to ensure the continued stability of neighbourhoods and their regeneration, promote maintaining or creating compatible built form relationships between new and existing development in stable residential areas when limited intensification is considered. The scale, built form and massing of new housing should be sensitive to the physical character of the surrounding neighbourhood.

The application proposes replacement housing which includes elements of limited intensification which have been used successfully in other parts of the Anew@ City such as rear lanes, maximizing amenity space, and detached garages in the rear yard. These attributes of this proposal are appropriate for this location given the proximity to the future subway station at Bayview/Sheppard, and further met the requirements of the Housing policy.

The rear lane and rear yard garages provide for an attractive streetscape, in that vehicular parking is located to the rear of the houses, and there is a minimum of hard surfaces in the front yard. With well articulated front facades and generous front yard landscaping, this development will enhance the street, which can be difficult to achieve with small lot dwellings, which are often developed with below grade garages. The side walls of the units which abut Calvin Avenue and Vonda Avenue should have elevation treatments which reflect their public street frontage.

The proposal seeks to maintain the existing trees. A landscape plan indicating appropriate front yard landscaping, appropriate streetscaping along the three abutting streets, and sensitive rear yard landscaping and fencing to buffer the properties to the south, should be required as a condition of approval.

The applicant has proposed that the dwellings share access via a rear lane width of 6.0 metres, which narrows near the centre to permit the preservation of a mature oak tree. This is acceptable to the Transportation Services Division. The proposal provides two parking spaces per unit which meets the Zoning By-law standard.

The applicant requests permission to include a half storey within the roof portion of the houses. Technically this represents a third storey although the maximum permitted 8.8 metre building height is to be maintained. The third storey is appropriate given that there is no change to the massing of the proposed houses, however, there should be no overview of the abutting properties to the south fronting onto Calvin Avenue and Vonda Avenue, which are developed with 12 storey houses. The amending by-law should permit window or door openings only facing the front and side yards, in order to minimize overview onto the neighbouring properties.

Neighbourhood Context and Appeal of OPA 392:

The residents groups in the area differ in their views as to whether this neighbourhood should be maintained as a low density residential area (SOS Preservation Group), or designated as a key development area (Bay Cal Group Inc). A submission from each of these groups is attached to this report. This is a stable residential area deserving protection in accordance with the principles of the Sheppard Corridor secondary plan, and one which is appropriate for limited intensification of the type proposed by this application. No larger assembly has occurred. Discussions will continue with the Bay Cal Group Inc to focus their appeal of OPA 392, and seek solutions, prior to the OMB pre-hearing conference which is expected to be held early in 1999.

Rear Lane Maintenance and Mutual Easements:

The applicant will be required to enter into an agreement with the City requiring the future owners to jointly maintain the common elements (i.e. the rear lane) and requiring mutual easements to give effect to their mutual rights-of-way to gain access over other unit owners= lands. This agreement shall be registered on title, guaranteeing that the owners of the properties and their successors in title will be responsible for the provision, construction, maintenance and repair of the common elements and that the City will not be required to assume such services at any time in the future.

Part Lot Control:

At the appropriate time, Council should consider a by-law to release the site from part lot control because of the division of the existing four lots and the mutual easements which the applicant intends to seek. Council=s tariff of fees for the processing of an application to release part lot control will be applied to any such proposal. A by-law to designate lands as not subject to part lot control, authorized by Section 50(7) of the Planning Act, would be enacted in accordance with the North York Council policy adopted in 1995. The applicant will be required to advise the City following the sale of all of the houses in order that the by-law can be repealed to prevent further subdivision of the lands.

Conclusions:

The application is consistent with the RD1 designation and the objectives of the Sheppard East Subway Corridor secondary plan in terms of land use and density. The location of the garages in the rear yard, combined with appropriate landscaping and streetscaping, will enhance the street and the neighbourhood. The proposal represents compatible and sensitive infill development which conforms to the Housing policies for limited intensification in stable residential areas.

Contact Name:

Ruth Lambe, Senior Planner

Telephone: (416) 395-7110Fax: (416) 395-7155

Bryan W. Tuckey

Director, Community Planning, North District

Schedules:

AOfficial Plan Map

BZoning Map

CRevised Site Plan

DRevised Elevations

ETransportation Services Division Comments

FWorks and Emergency Services Comments

GParks and Recreation Comments

HPublic Health Comments

IFire Comments

JBy-law Enforcement Comments

KToronto District School Board Comments

LToronto Catholic School Board Comments

MBell Comments

NConsumers Gas Comments

OPublic Submissions