STAFF REPORT

December 20, 1999

To: North York Community Council

From: Rob Dolan

Director, Community Planning, North District

Subject: FINAL REPORT

Application for Zoning By-law Amendment

William Holman

74 - 78 Finch Avenue West

Ward 10 - North York Centre

UDZ-99-13 and UDSP-99-147

Purpose:

This report recommends approval of the rezoning application to permit the construction of 21 condominium townhouses at 74 - 78 Finch Avenue West.

Financial Implications and Impact Statement:

All of the costs associated with the processing of this application are included within the 1999 and 2000 operating budgets.

Recommendations:

It is recommended that the application be approved, subject to the following:

(1) that Zoning By-law No. 33107 be repealed;

(2) that Section 64.16 of By-law 7625 of the former City of North York is amended by deleting RM1(6) and adding a new RM1 exception zone in which the only permitted uses shall be multiple attached dwellings, with the following exceptions:

(a) the maximum gross floor area shall be 2510 m²;

(b) the maximum building heights shall be as set out in Schedule H, and, further, the building heights shall not exceed the measurement equal to 70% of the horizontal distance separating the building from the nearest property line that coincides with the boundaries of the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan. For purposes of this by-law , the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan area boundary is as set out in Schedule C;

(b) the minimum total lot area shall be 2675 m²;

(c) the maximum lot coverage of all buildings on the lands other than private garages shall be 46 per cent;

(d) the provisions of By-law Section 16.2.1 regarding minimum lot area per dwelling unit shall not apply;

(e) the provisions of By-law Section 16.2.3 regarding minimum street frontage shall not apply;

(f) the provisions of By-law Section 16.3.2 regarding distance between buildings in a group housing project shall not apply;

(g) the provisions of By-law Section 16.2.4 regarding setbacks shall not apply. The minimum front, side and rear yard setbacks and distances between buildings shall be as shown on Schedule H;

(h) the provisions of By-law Section 15.8(a) regarding landscaping shall not apply;

(i) notwithstanding By-law Section 6(A) regarding Parking For Multiple Attached Dwellings, parking shall be provided at a rate of 2 spaces per dwelling unit; and

(j) the provisions of this exception shall apply collectively to these lands, notwithstanding their future severance, partition or division for any purpose.

(11) that, prior to the introduction of the Bill in Council, the applicant shall have:

(a) obtained Site Plan Approval for this project at 74 - 78 Finch Avenue West from the Director Community Planning, North District, with particular attention given to the comments of Civic Officials contained in Schedules I through H of this report; and

(b) conveyed to the City, at nominal cost, a 2.76 metre wide strip of land across the entire Finch Avenue frontage of the property, as further described in Schedule P of this report.

Background:

PROPOSAL:

Proposed are 21 condominium townhouses on a deep, L-shaped lot situated on the north side of Finch Avenue West, between Talbot Road and Kensington Avenue. On the southern half of the site, fronting Finch Avenue, the townhouse units are three storeys in height. On the northern half of the site, the units are two storeys in height.

The site is located four blocks west of the Yonge/Finch intersection, and contains three single family detached dwellings. Abutting uses include the Danish Lutheran Church directly to the east, a two-storey medical office building on Finch Avenue to the west, and single family detached dwellings in the stable residential area to the north and north-west of the site.

In this proposal, 6 units front onto Finch Avenue West, and 15 units face a private condominium drive running perpendicular off Finch Avenue West. Access to all garages, including those of the front-facing units, is provided by the private driveway.

OFFICIAL PLAN:

The site is subject to the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan, and is split into two designations as shown on Schedule B.

The southern part of the site, along the Finch Avenue frontage, is designated CFMU-1 (Central Finch Mixed Use - One), which permits:

- single, detached and multiple-unit residential uses, offices, retail and service commercial uses, places of worship, public parks and recreational facilities, and institutional uses; and

- a maximum density of 2.0 FSI for sites with a frontage of 30 metres or more, in which the use is solely residential; and

- a maximum height of 4 storeys or 13 metres ,whichever is the lesser, provided that:

- building setbacks of minimum 9.5 metres are provided along all lot lines that abut the stable residential areas outside the Secondary Plan Area; and

- the height of any part of a building cannot exceed 70% of the horizontal distance separating that part of the building from the nearest residential property line that coincides with the boundaries of the Secondary Plan area (the Aseparation distance@).

The development proposed for the CFMU-1 lands meets all the Secondary Plan provisions respecting use, density, height and setbacks.

The northern part of the site is designated CFR-2 (Central Finch Residential - Two), which permits:

- single detached and multiple unit residential uses, public parks and recreational facilities, and places of worship;

- a maximum density of 1.0 FSI; and

- a maximum height limit of 3 storeys or 10 metres, whichever is the lesser, provided that:

- building setbacks of minimum 9.5 metres are provided along all lot lines that abut the stable residential areas outside the Secondary Plan Area; and

- the height of any part of a building cannot exceed 70% of the "separation distance".

The portion of the development located on the CFR-2 lands comply with the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan provisions respecting use, density, height and setback.

ZONING:

The entire site is currently subject to site-specific Zoning By-law No. 33107, which was approved in 1997, and is zoned RM1(6). This by-law rezoned the site from R4 (One Family Detached Dwelling Fourth Density Zone) to RM1 (Multiple Family Dwellings First Density Zone). The following chart compares this application to that permitted by RM1(6):

Should Council approve this application, the existing zoning designation, RM1(6), should be repealed and replaced with a new RM1 exception zone which includes appropriate development requirements for maximum gross floor area, maximum building height, and setbacks.

COMMUNITY CONSULTATION:

The proposal was presented to the community at a meeting held on November 1, 1999 at the Edithvale Community Centre. Councillors Gardner and Filion and their staff were in attendance in addition to the applicant and Urban Planning and Development staff. One member of the public attended. The following concerns were raised:

- that there should be more landscaping on the site, and that the private drives on site should be narrowed to accommodate the additional green space; and

- that the Site Plan application and rezoning for this site should be processed simultaneously.

The resolution of community concerns is discussed below.

Discussion:

PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS:

1. Separation from residential areas

The application has been revised to comply fully with the minimum 9.5 metre setback requirement from all property lines abutting the stable residential areas adjacent to the site. The specific property lines

2. Addressing the parking deficiency

The application has been revised so that it complies with the Zoning By-law standard of 2 spaces per unit (including visitor parking). For most of the units, the parking requirements are fulfilled through the use of integral, tandem parking garages that accommodate 2 parking spaces. Three units fronting onto Finch have garages that can accommodate only one parking space each; to meet the by-law standard, each of these units has one designated surface parking space outside the units.

3. Servicing

It was suggested at the community meeting that the private driveway on the site should be narrowed from 8.5 metres to 6.0 metres to accommodate more landscaping. Works and Emergency Services advises that the pavement must be 8.5 metres wide at minimum to ensure that:

- two-way vehicular circulation is maintained in the event that vehicles are parked on one side of the driveway; and

- there is adequate on-site circulation of emergency, service and collection vehicles.

The site plan application will require amendment to comply with the 8.5 metre minimum standard.

In addition, if the applicant requests garbage pickup for the individual townhouse units, a cul-de-sac with a 12.50 metre radius must be provided at the north limit of the site, and the site plan application drawings will need to be amended accordingly.

4. Landscaping

The applicant has submitted landscape plans which show:

- boulevard enhancements along Finch Avenue West fronting the site, including street trees, and a new 1.5 metre concrete sidewalk with a decorative strip;

- a 1.5 metre concrete sidewalk parallel to the private driveway, for the full length of the site and starting at the Finch Avenue sidewalk, providing access to the townhouse units;

- adequate landscaping in front of properties facing Finch Avenue and the mutual driveway, to provide safe and amenable pedestrian use, day and night;

- details for screen fencing between the townhouse units and around the site; and

- 80 mm caliper shade trees planted at 8 metres on centre along the perimeter of the site to help integrate the development into the adjacent residential neighbourhood.

The landscape plans will be satisfactory once they incorporate a resolution of the servicing matters described earlier in this report.

5. Processing of Site Plan application:

The Site Plan Application is in its final stages of review by staff. The zoning bills will be introduced in Council only after the applicant has entered into the Site Plan Agreement for this site.

Conclusions:

This proposal conforms with the density limits, permitted uses, height requirements and setbacks set out in the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan. Approval of the rezoning application is therefore recommended.

Contact:

Anne Milchberg, Senior Planner

North York Civic Centre

Telephone: (416) 395-7129

Fax: (416) 395-7155

E-mail: amilchbe@toronto.ca

Rob Dolan

Director, Community Planning, North District

List of Attachments:

A Data Sheet

B Current Official Plan Map

C Boundary of Central Finch Area Secondary Plan

D Current Zoning Map

E Context plan

F Applicant's site plan

G Applicant's elevations

H Proposed setbacks and height limits

I- P Comments of Civic Officials

DRAFT ZONING BY-LAW AMENDMENT

Authority: Report No. ____, Clause No.____, as enacted by Council on _________ (date)

Enacted by Council:

CITY OF TORONTO

By-law No. _____

To amend City of North York By-law No. 7625

in respect of lands municipally known as

74 -78 Finch Avenue West

Whereas authority is given to Council by Section 34 of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.P.13, as amended, to pass this By-law; and whereas Council of the City of Toronto (former City of North York) has provided adequate information to the public and has held at least one public meeting in accordance with the Planning Act;

The Council of the City of Toronto HEREBY ENACTS as follows:

Schedules B and C of By-law 7625 of the former City of North York are amended in accordance with Schedule "1" of this By-law.

1. Zoning By-law No. 33107 is hereby repealed.

2. Section 64.16 of By-law 7625 of the former City of North York is amended by deleting subsection RM1(6), and by adding the following subsection:

"64.16 RM1(___)

PERMITTED USES

(a) the only permitted use shall be multiple attached dwellings;

EXCEPTION REGULATIONS FOR MULTIPLE ATTACHED DWELLINGS

(b) the maximum number of units shall be 21;

(c) the maximum gross floor area shall be 2510 m²;

(d) the maximum lot coverage of all buildings on the lands other than private garages shall be 46 per cent;

(e) the maximum building heights shall be as set out in Schedule H, and, further, the building heights shall not exceed the measurement equal to 70% of the horizontal distance separating the building from the nearest property line that coincides with the boundaries of the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan. For purposes of this by-law , the Central Finch Area Secondary Plan area boundary is as set out in Schedule C;

(f) the minimum total lot area shall be 2675 m²;

(g) the provisions of By-law Section 16.2.1 regarding minimum lot area per dwelling unit shall not apply;

(h) the provisions of By-law Section 16.2.3 regarding minimum street frontage shall not apply;

(i) the provisions of By-law Section 16.3.2 regarding distance between buildings in a group housing project shall not apply;

(j) the provisions of By-law Section 16.2.4 regarding setbacks shall not apply. The minimum front, side and rear yard setbacks and distances between buildings shall be as shown on Schedule H;

(k) the provisions of By-law Section 15.8(a) regarding landscaping shall not apply;

(l) notwithstanding By-law Section 6(A) regarding Parking For Multiple Attached Dwellings, parking shall be provided at a rate of 2 spaces per dwelling unit; and

(m) the provisions of this exception shall apply collectively to the lands notwithstanding their future severance, partition or division for any purpose.

ENACTED AND PASSED this ________ day of ____________, A.D. 2000

Mayor City Clerk

(Corporate Seal)

SCHEDULE A

Data Sheet