Planning Rationale in Support of an Application for Zoning By-law Amendment

Transcription

1 Planning Rationale in Support of an Application for Zoning By-law Amendment 3180, 3196 Albion Road South City of Ottawa Prepared By: RorTar Land Development Consultants For: Phoenix Commercial Properties Inc.

2 INTRODUCTION 1. Purpose of Report RorTar Land Development Consultants Inc. has been retained by Phoenix Commercial Properties Inc to prepare a planning rationale in support of an application for zoning by-law amendment to promote future development of a 3.1ha. Parcel of vacant land located at address 3180/3196 at the north end Albion Road South. The proposal is to amend the IL-Light Industrial Zoning of the subject property to add one additional permitted use, being a Storage Yard, limited to the storage of vehicles only and not including an automobile salvage operation or scrap yard. The purpose of the application is to enable the property owner to take advantage the locational attributes of the site to accommodate the needs of existing automobile business operators in the immediate area who are seeking opportunities to expand their inventory storage space in an appropriate location that is convenient to their main showroom, office and servicing facilities. No site works are being proposed at this time. The existing IL-Light Industrial zoning of the subject and surrounding properties in the area permits a variety of industrial/employment uses, including vehicle sales, rentals, service facilities and on-site, directly associated vehicle storage and display areas. New automobile sales operations are located on several properties adjacent to the subject property and in the general area of the site. The requested zoning amendment is intended to allow on the subject property needed additional off-site vehicle storage facilities for these types of businesses. 2. Site Description and Neighbouring Land Uses Exhibit A illustrates the subject property s location relative to neighbouring land uses at the north end of Albion Road South within a mixed industrial/employment area located north of Johnston Road. The Albion Road South road allowance and public street terminates at the southeast corner of the site. 2

3 The property is bounded on the north by railway lands including main line tracks, sidings, equipment and rail car storage areas and a small steel-clad storage building. The railway corridor and similar associated uses extend east and west from this location. The property abutting to the south on Albion Rd. South is occupied by an Auto body repair business, which in turn is located adjacent to a towing operation and associated vehicle storage yard. Abutting the subject property on the southwest and fronting on Johnston Road is an office/warehouse use and a new vehicle dealer sales/service and body repair operation which includes associated vehicle display and storage functions. EXHIBIT A South and east of the subject property, land uses include the offices and yard of a construction and equipment contractor as well as a salvage business which has a significant storage yard component. Adjacent to the west are storage yard operations associated with a landscaping business. 3

4 Residential land uses closest to the subject property are located south of Johnston Road a minimum of 180 metres distant and separated from the subject lands by the intervening developed industrial/commercial properties fronting on Albion Road South and Johnston Road. The subject property was formerly a component of the Railway lands abutting to the north. There is on-site evidence that a rail spur at one time projected into the site. A Road Closing Bylaw (75-50) closed the northerly extension of Albion Road South through the property to and beyond the existing railway line to the north. This closed road allowance was consolidated with former Railway land components to create the current parcel. Access to the remaining Railway lands from the stub-end of Albion Road South is maintained by a private right-of-way granted and registered in favour of the corporate owner of those properties. With the exception of some limited vegetated cover adjacent to the closed road allowance and along a buffer-protected tributary of Sawmill Creek, the property is clear and vacant. Future development, which is not planned at present, will be subject to site plan control where existing and proposed vegetation and new landscaping requirements will be addressed. 3. Relevant Planning Documents 3.1 Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) The Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) encourages municipalities to promote economic development by providing for an appropriate mix and range of employment land (including industrial, commercial and institutional uses) sufficient to meet long-term needs. The PPS directs municipalities to maintain a range and choice of suitable sites for uses that support a wide range of economic activities. Municipalities are authorized to establish more specific Official Plan and other policies that are consistent with the general direction provided by the Provincial Policy Statement. Any development of the subject lands must respect the general direction of the Provincial Policy Statement as further directed by The City of Ottawa Official Plan. Under policy of the Provincial Policy Statement, specific direction is given that...``planning authorities...shall protect employment areas in proximity to major goods movement facilities and corridors for uses that require those locations``. This policy statement considers that locations adjacent to railway transport facilities, such as is the case for the subject property, should be dedicated to uses that may benefit from ready access to rail freight transport opportunities. The vehicle storage use component of the proposed zoning amendment is being initiated, in particular, to address the inventory storage needs of neighbouring existing new automobile dealerships. The automotive industry is a major employment activity that has traditionally benefited from rail-freight services. The subject site is already well-served by the existing road system. As a potential off-load site served by a rail facility providing direct access to 4

5 neighbouring automobile dealerships, the subject property is particularly well-suited to a vehicle storage yard use. In this regard, the proposed zoning amendment is directly supportive of the objectives of the Provincial Policy Statement. The proposed zoning by-law amendment as it applies to the subject property is consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement in that the proposed use is compatible with its surroundings, promotes the continuing success of other employment activities in the area and is situated in a location that will not compromise the planning integrity of neighbouring lands. 3.2 City of Ottawa Official Plan Employment Area In response to PPS policies, the City of Ottawa Official Plan designates Employment Areas within the Urban Area as a strategy to achieve long term economic prosperity and to maintain an adequate supply of suitable lands to support employment and related economic activities in appropriate locations across the municipality. The City of Ottawa Official Plan designates the subject property and neighbouring lands as Employment Area. An Employment Area typically provides large parcel sizes and ready access to major transportation infrastructure. These attributes are reflective of typical user needs for the accommodation of employment and related supporting activities. The general principles of Official Plan policy statements applicable to Employment areas acknowledge in Subsection that... Uses that require large land areas for the external storage of goods or for vehicle sales and service may be carried out in Employment and Enterprise Areas. Incidental activity carried out in combination with a main use, such as showroom space associated with warehousing and storage, is also anticipated in Employment and Enterprise Areas. Furthermore, in Subsection of the Plan, Policy 2.b. directs as follows: In Employment and Enterprise Areas, the zoning by-law will: Permit uses that store most products outdoors and require large land areas devoted to external storage, sale or service of goods or for vehicle sales and service; The objective of the proposed zoning amendment, i.e. to add a Storage Yard, limited to the storage of vehicles, as an addition to the existing list of permitted use on the subject property, is entirely consistent with the policy objectives of Section of the Official Plan. The proposed additional use will be compatible with and supportive of other existing and permitted employment/industrial land uses in the general area. 5

6 3.3 City of Ottawa Zoning By-law IL-Light Industrial Zone Purpose The City of Ottawa Zoning By-law zones the subject property IL-Light Industrial Zone. As stated in the Preamble to the Permitted Uses and Zone Provisions, The purpose of the IL Light Industrial Zone is to: 1.permit a wide range of low impact light industrial uses, as well as office and office-type uses in a campus-like industrial park setting, in accordance with the Employment Area designation of the Official Plan or, the General Urban Area designation where applicable; 2.allow in certain Employment Areas or General Urban Areas, a variety of complementary uses such as recreational, health and fitness uses and service commercial (e.g. convenience store, personal service business, restaurant, automobile service station and gas bar), occupying small sites on individual pads or in groupings as part of a small plaza, to serve the employees of the Employment or General Urban Area, the general public in the immediate vicinity, and passing traffic; 3.prohibit retail uses in areas designated as Employment Area but allow limited sample and showroom space that is secondary and subordinate to the primary use of buildings for the manufacturing or warehousing of the product; 4.prohibit uses which are likely to generate noise, fumes, odours, or are hazardous or obnoxious; and 5. Provide development standards that would ensure compatibility between uses and would minimize the negative impact of the uses on adjacent non-industrial areas. Key considerations with respect to the location and zoning of the subject property are the stated purposes (4) and (5) which emphasize the prohibition of uses with potential for noise,fumes, odours or are hazardous or obnoxious and (5) to promote compatibility amongst uses and minimization of impacts on non-industrial areas. In the case of the subject property it is clear that the proposed additional use, to be limited to a passive storage yard for vehicles, and more specifically intended to accommodate new automotive sales dealership inventory, will be entirely compatible and in many cases in 6

7 closer conformity to existing zoning permissions than the uses that currently exist on some neighbouring properties. Permitted Uses Of particular note, amongst numerous others, the list of Permitted Uses in the IL Zone includes automobile dealership, automobile rental establishment, heavy equipment and vehicle sales, rental and servicing, parking lot, and truck transport terminal. The various Zoning By-law definitions for these permitted as-of-right uses point to the appropriateness of the proposed additional storage yard for vehicles use on the subject property. This use will be comparable to,compatible with and supportive of uses that are already permitted and existing within the immediate area. For Example, an Automobile Sales Dealership is defined as a place where new or used motor vehicles other than heavy vehicles are displayed and sold at retail, rented or leased. An Automobile Rental Establishment is defined as a place where new or used motor vehicles other than heavy vehicles are rented. Heavy equipment and vehicle sales, rental and servicing includes the sale, rental, servicing and accessory storage of heavy vehicles including farm vehicles or equipment, and transport trucks or trailers. Parking Lot is defined as a lot or place other than a building used for the parking of four or more motor vehicles, which includes the parking spaces, aisles and driveways, but excludes the interior landscaped islands and medians, the required perimeter landscaped buffer to a lot line, and an area used solely for the display of vehicles for sale. Each of these uses, which are permitted as-of-right within the subject IL-Light Industrial Zone are, in terms of their planning implications for the area, are essentially identical to or have significant development characteristics that would be duplicated by the use that is proposed by the requested zoning amendment. Most notably, the development of an as of right Parking Lot, which by By-law definition means...a lot or place other than a building used for the parking of four or more motor vehicles..., would be identical, in terms of its planning impacts, to the additional use that is proposed to be permitted by the requested amendment. 7

8 4. Conclusions Local Land Use Context and Future Development Scenario The intent of the proposed zoning amendment is simply to permit a single additional potential future land use on the subject property that presents planning characteristics that are identical to and/or are consistent and fully compatible with uses already existing or already permitted within this Official Plan designated Employment Area. The application for permission to allow vehicle storage is primarily intended to open an opportunity to accommodate the inventory storage needs of neighbouring existing employment uses in the immediate area, specifically in the automotive sales sector. Given the potential development characteristics of the additional use, it will not jeopardize the future ability of the subject property to viably accommodate more intensive employment activities that are permitted in the zone. At the same time, given the location in proximity to the employment uses that stand to benefit from its accommodation, given the potential benefit to the activity that may be provided by the adjacent railway facilities, and given the distance and physical separation from any potentially conflicted land uses, the proposed zoning amendment is entirely appropriate from a land use planning perspective. Subsequent Development Approvals As with any and all uses currently permitted on the subject property, any development associated with the additionally proposed use will be subject to all applicable review and approvals processes that are mandated by federal, provincial, municipal and other approvals authorities. Specifically, municipal Site Plan Control will initiate the full review and approval of all matters relating to site planning, engineering, servicing, transportation, cultural heritage, health and safety, energy conservation, archaeological, environmental and other considerations that are mandated by existing regulations. These matters will be addressed as they would be with any future development proposal that might be brought forward for any use that the By-law currently permits. C. White, RorTar Land Development Consultants 8