planning justification report - london.ca · 1.3 the proposal the proposal consists of a 41 unit,...

PLANNING JUSTIFICATION REPORT

447 Old Wonderland Road

Zoning By-law Amendment

City of London

September 10, 2018

February 9, 2 018

Planning Justification Report September 10, 2018 447 Old Wonderland Road

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page No.

1.0 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Description of Subject Property .............................................................................. 1

1.2 Surrounding Land Uses .......................................................................................... 2

1.3 The Proposal .......................................................................................................... 2

1.4 Context of the Subject Lands Within the City of London Official Plan .................... 3

1.5 Context of the Subject Lands Within the London Plan ........................................... 4

1.6 Context of the Subject Lands WIthin the City of London Zoning By-law ................ 5

2.0 PROPOSED AMENDMENT ................................................................................... 7

3.0 PLANNING ANALYSIS ......................................................................................... 8

3.1 Provincial Policy Statement .................................................................................... 8

3.1.1 Relevant Policies of the PPS ....................................................................... 8

3.1.2 Analysis of the PPS ..................................................................................... 8

3.2 City of London Official Plan .................................................................................... 9

3.3 The London Plan .................................................................................................. 11

3.4 City of London Zoning By-law .............................................................................. 11

4.0 CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................... 12


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1.0 INTRODUCTION

A Zoning By-law Amendment application has been submitted to the City of London to

amend the Zoning By-law to allow residential uses on lands located at 447 Old

Wonderland Road. The purpose of the following land use assessment is to provide

planning justification for the Zoning By-law Amendment application to permit a four-

storey apartment building on the subject property.

1.1 DESCRIPTION OF SUBJECT PROPERTY

The subject lands are an irregular shaped parcel of land located at the northeast corner

of Wonderland Road South and Teeple Terrace (Figure 1). The lands are 0.55 ha (1.36

ac) in area with a lot frontage of approximately 129 m along Wonderland Road and

53.68 m of frontage along Teeple Terrace. A small portion of the subject lands also

extends easterly, providing 5.21 m of frontage along Old Wonderland Road.

Figure 1 – Subject Property


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The subject lands are currently vacant and have been previously cleared of trees and

vegetation. Existing berms are located within the road allowances along Teeple Terrace

and Wonderland Road.

1.2 SURROUNDING LAND USES

The site is located in an existing built-up area with low, medium- and high-density

residential uses located to the north and east, and medium density residential to the

west, across Wonderland Road South. The higher density land uses are in the form of

cluster townhouses and several mid- and high-rise apartment buildings.

Directly north of the subject lands is a small, City-owned park; however, due to its

existing vegetation and site grades, has limited usability.

The lands to the south contain a commercial plaza that forms the northerly limit of the

Community Commercial Node at the Wonderland Road South and Commissioners Road

intersection. The node contains a range of goods and services to serve the surrounding

residential areas. A small commercial node is also located at the intersection of

Springbank Drive and Wonderland Road and consists primarily of office uses.

A new, 13-storey apartment building is proposed for the southwest corner of Springbank

Drive and Wonderland Road, with construction commencing shortly.

1.3 THE PROPOSAL

The proposal consists of a 41 unit, four-storey apartment building with a building

footprint of 1,287.9 m2 (13,862.8 ft2) and a gross floor area of 5,151.6 m2 (55,451.4 ft2).

The site provides a total of 60 parking spaces located to the north and east of the

proposed building.

Access to the site is proposed off of Teeple Terrace and is aligned with the existing

entrance to the commercial plaza to the south.

Primary entrances to the building are proposed on the east and west elevations (Figure

3). Secondary entrances are proposed on the north and south elevations.


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Figure 2 – Proposed Site Plan

Figure 3 – Proposed Rendering

1.4 CONTEXT OF THE SUBJECT LANDS WITHIN THE CITY OF LONDON

OFFICIAL PLAN

The subject lands are currently designated “Multi-Family, Medium Density Residential”

on Schedule ‘A’ of the City of London Official Plan (Figure 4). This designation permits


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multiple attached dwellings and low-rise apartment buildings at a maximum density of

75UPH as well as variety of secondary uses including small-scale office developments

and office conversions.

Given the above, the proposed development meets the intent and purpose of the Official

Plan.

Figure 4 – City of London Official Plan

Subject Property

1.5 CONTEXT OF THE SUBJECT LANDS WITHIN THE LONDON PLAN

Although portions of the London Plan are currently under appeal before the Ontario

Municipal Board and not in full force and effect, the proposed development has been

reviewed in the context of the Plan policies. The subject lands are identified in the

London Plan as being a “Neighbourhood Place Type” at the intersection of an “Urban

Thoroughfare” and “Neighbourhood Connector” (Figure 5). The Neighbourhood Place

Type at such intersections permits low-rise apartment buildings to a maximum height of

four stories or six stories with bonusing. Stand alone-office uses are not permitted within

the Neighbourhood place type.


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The proposed development is consistent with the policies as set out in the London Plan.

Figure 5 – The London Plan

1.6 CONTEXT OF THE SUBJECT LANDS WITHIN THE CITY OF LONDON

ZONING BY-LAW

The subject lands are currently zoned “Restricted Office (RO2(30))” as part of Zoning

By-law Amendment application Z-8228 and the Ontario Municipal Board decision issued

on March 5, 2015 (Figure 7). The site-specific zoning permits medical/dental offices,

clinics and general offices.

The proposed apartment building is not permitted under the current RO2(30) zone, and

as such, a Zoning By-law Amendment is required.


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Figure 6 – City of London Zoning By-law


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2.0 PROPOSED AMENDMENT

Given the above, a Zoning By-law Amendment application is proposed to rezone the

subject lands to add a site-specific “Residential (R8-4(*))” zone to the existing RO2(30)

zone.

The site-specific regulation is proposed to permit a reduced front and exterior side yard

setback of 0m. A reduced lot frontage of 5.0m is also required to address the portion of

the subject lands that extends to Old Wonderland Road.


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3.0 PLANNING ANALYSIS

3.1 PROVINCIAL POLICY STATEMENT

The Provincial Policy Statement (PPS), issued under the authority of Section 3 of the

Planning Act “provides policy direction on matters of provincial interest related to land

use planning” in order to ensure efficient, cost efficient development and the protection

of resources. Zoning By-law Amendment applications are required to be consistent with

these policies.

3.1.1 Relevant Policies of the PPS

The policies outlined in Sections 1.1.1, 1.1.3.2, 1.1.3.4, 1.1.3.6, 1.3.2.1, 1.6.3.a, 1.6.6.1,

1.6.7.4, 1.7.1a), 1.8.1.b, e and g) of the PPS are relevant with respect to the proposed

development. These sections relate to promoting economic development through

redevelopment and the efficient and cost-effective use of infrastructure and public

services.

3.1.2 Analysis of the PPS

The development of the underutilized subject parcel is consistent with the Provincial

Policy Statement (PPS) and the provision for “efficient land use and development

patterns to support strong liveable and healthy communities” as follows:

The subject lands are located within the City of London Urban Growth Boundary

and are already connected to full municipal services (Section 1.1.3.2) and as

such, the proposed development promotes cost-effective development to

minimize land consumption and servicing costs by reusing existing facilities

(Sections 1.1.1 and 1.1.3.6);

The necessary infrastructure and public service facilities are already available for

the subject lands (Section 1.1.1);

The proposal consists of the development of a vacant parcel of land and

promotes compact form (Section 1.7.1a);

The proposed development is within a long-established area within the City and

is surrounded by existing development in all directions (Section 1.1.3.6);

The proposed development utilizes existing infrastructure (Sections 1.6.3.a and

1.6.6.1);


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The proposed development supports an increased density in a location that

promotes alternative modes of transportation and minimizes the length and

number of vehicle trips. It is located just north of the Wonderland/Commissioners

commercial node and is within walking distance of amenities and services

(Sections 1.6.7.4);

The proposed development is located along a major transit route and has direct

access to bus stops (1.8.1.b) and e); and

The proposed development provides a notable amount of landscaping at 42%

(Section 1.8.1.g).

The proposed development is consistent with the PPS.

3.2 CITY OF LONDON OFFICIAL PLAN

The Multi-Family, Medium Density Residential designation is intended to support

multiple-unit residential developments, having a low-profile, as well as secondary uses

intended to serve the surrounding residential areas, as set out in Section 3.3 of the

Official Plan. The proposed development is consistent with these policies as they relate

to use, intensity and form as follows.

The subject lands are an ideal location for the proposed development, given its location

at the intersection of an arterial road (Wonderland Road) and a secondary collector road

(Teeple Terrace) and its proximity to Wonderland and Commissioners Roads community

commercial node to the south. The site is also within walking distance to Springbank

Park and the Thames River corridor open space areas to the north as well as the

Berkshire Park just east of the subject lands. A Multi-Family, High Density Residential

area is located north of the subject lands and contains several existing apartment

buildings. A new 13-storey, high-rise apartment building has been approved and is set to

start construction shortly (Section 3.3.2).

Lands immediately surrounding the subject lands include one-storey townhouse units as

well as one- and two-storey single detached dwellings on large lots, fronting onto Old

Wonderland Road. However, the subject lands are much lower than the surrounding

properties, reducing the height and scale impacts from the proposed residential building

on surrounding properties. Moreover, although the previously approved office building

was only two-stories in height its building height was 9.0m, the equivalent of a three-

storey apartment building. Therefore, the increase in impact from the proposed four-


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storey apartment building is negligible. Moreover, the proposed apartment building

generates far less traffic than a medical/dental office use, allowing the apartment site to

reduce the number of parking spaces and overall hard surface area, and increasing

landscape open spade on site (Section 3.3.2.i).

The proposed site plan has provided for notable setbacks from the existing adjacent

residential lands which will allow for appropriate landscape buffering and fencing. The

setbacks provided on the proposed plan are greater than those presented with the

proposed office development through the Ontario Municipal Board hearing. The

landscape open space along Wonderland Road is also greater, allowing additional green

space for landscaping and buffering of the proposed parking area from street view

(Section 3.3.2.i).

A water modeling report was completed for the proposed development and confirms that

there are no issues from a municipal water perspective. Municipal sanitary and storm

sewers are already connected to the subject lands and are of sufficient size and capacity

to accommodate the proposed development (Section 3.3.2.ii).

Given the sites proposed access onto Teeple Terrace, a secondary collector road, the

traffic flows generated by the proposed development can be readily accommodated

within the existing road fabric. The proposed entrance has also been oriented to align

with the entrance to the existing commercial plaza to the south. As noted above, the

proposed apartment building will also generate less traffic that the previously proposed

office use (Section 3.3.2.iii).

The subject lands are sufficient in size for the proposed development, as can be seen

through the 26% lot coverage and 42% landscape open space, which are well within the

required zoning regulations for low-rise apartment buildings. The proposed building has

been sited at the southwest corner of the site, away from existing residential uses to the

east. Fencing, large trees and landscape plantings are proposed along the east property

line to further buffer the proposed building from the existing dwellings (Section 3.3.2.iv).

The proposed building height at four stories is within the normal height limitation for

Medium Density Residential lands. The lower site grade also assists in minimizing the

scale of the building in relation to the adjacent residential uses to the east (Section

3.3.3.i).



An Urban Design Brief has been prepared outlining compliance of the proposed

development with the relevant Urban Design Policies under Section 11.1 of the Plan.

A noise study has been prepared outlining mitigation measures for the proposed

residential use adjacent to an arterial road.

The proposed Zoning By-law Amendment application is consistent with the intent and

purpose of the Official Plan for multi-family, medium density residential uses.

3.3 THE LONDON PLAN

The proposed development is consistent with the policies set out in the Neighbourhood

place type with residential uses being permitted to a maximum building height of four

stories. The proposed Zoning By-law Amendment will bring the site into conformity with

the policies of the London Plan given that the previously approved stand-alone office

building is not permitted under the current place type for these lands.

Based on the above, the proposed development meets the intent and purpose of the

London Plan.

3.4 CITY OF LONDON ZONING BY-LAW

The proposed amendment applies an implementing zone consistent with the current

designation within the City of London Official Plan and the place type as identified in the

London Plan.

The proposed building height is within the standard R8-4 maximum building height and

has a net increase of only one additional storey above the previously proposed office

building.

The reduced front and exterior side yard setbacks will allow the building to be located

close to the street to frame the intersection and provide a design consistent with the

urban design policies in the Official Plan and London Plan.



4.0 CONCLUSIONS

The proposed Zoning By-law Amendment is consistent with the PPS and is in conformity

with the City of London Official Plan and the London Plan policies. Moreover, the

proposed amendment will bring the site into conformity with the London Plan policies.

The separation of the proposed building from the existing residential uses to the east,

together with appropriate fencing, tree plantings and landscape buffering through the site

plan approval process with ensure there are no adverse impacts from the proposed

development. The building location will also serve to buffer noise from traffic along

Wonderland Road from the adjacent residential properties.

The proposed Zoning By-law Amendment represents good land use planning and is in

the public interest.

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