HomeMy WebLinkAboutPD-21-97UNFINISHED BUSINESS
THE CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
DN: PD -21 -97 C ®T
REPOR
General Purpose and Administration Committee 1
Meeting: p File
Date: Monday, February 3, 1997 Res. #9
Report #: PD -21 -97 File #: PLN 16.1.2 By -law #
Subject: REQUEST FOR EXEMPTION FROM PARKLAND DEDICATION BY -LAW 95 -104
BY JOURDAN AT CLARINGTON INC.
FILE: PLN 16.1.2
Recommendations:
It is respectfully recommended that the General Purpose and Administration
Committee recommend to Council the following:
1. THAT Report PD -21 -97 be received;
2. THAT Council endorse one of the following three options for parkland dedication:
Option 1: Parkland Dedication at 5% of the site area $22,500
Option 2: Alternative Parkland Dedication at
1.0 hectares per 300 dwelling units $156,000
Option 3: Alternative Parkland Dedication at
0.33 hectares per 300 dwelling units $51,500
3. THAT the attached amendment to the Parkland Dedication By -law be forwarded
to Council for approval; and,
4. THAT the interested parties listed in this report and any delegation be advised of
Council's decision.
1. BACKGROUND
1.1 On November 1, 1996, Jourdan at Clarington Inc. submitted a site plan approval
application for a 52 unit condominium apartment building at Temperance and
Wellington Streets in downtown Bowmanville. Upon reviewing the development
plans for the project, Staff informed the applicant that a cash -in -lieu of parkland
dedication at the rate of 1.0 hectare per 300 dwelling units would be required.
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The applicant has indicated that this requirement is excessively onerous and
stated that he is prepared to pay cash -in -lieu for parkland dedication at the rate
of 5 %. As a result, he appeared before the General Purposes and Administration
Committee on Monday, January 20, 1997, and Staff was directed to prepare a
report on the subject matter.
1.2 The applicant's lands comprise a 0.5 hectare parcel at the southeast corner of
Temperance and Wellington Streets. The property in legal terms is known as Part
Lot 12, Concession 1 in the former Town of Bowmanville.
2. PLANNING ACT REQUIREMENTS
2.1 The Planning Act permits a municipality to acquire parkland for all forms of
residential development on the basis of 5% of the area subject to the application.
This dedication can either be accepted as parkland or cash -in -lieu of parkland.
This standard is typically applied to low density residential development. Where
residential development occurs at a higher density, the need for parkland is
greater than for lower density forms of development. Therefore, the alternative
parkland dedication standard in the Act enables municipalities to obtain parkland
at a rate of 1.0 hectare per 300 dwelling units provided the municipal official plan
contains appropriate policies to permit this alternative standard to be used.
3. OFFICIAL PLAN POLICIES
3.1 The parkland dedication policies in the former Town of Newcastle Official Plan
and in the Clarington Official Plan permit the municipality to acquire parkland as
part of a residential application at the rate of 5% of the land proposed for
development /redevelopment or 1.0 hectares /300 dwelling units, whichever is
greater.
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3.2 The proposed development is located in within the Bowmanville East Main Central
Area Secondary Plan which contains the following development goals:
To retain and strengthen the role of the East Main Central Area as the focal
point of economic, social and cultural activity, through the provision of
vibrant shopping areas, housing, symbolic points of interest, and key
institutional and cultural facilities; and,
To provide for ongoing redevelopment in the Downtown and East Business
District with emphasis on increased densities, heritage preservation, and
quality urban design.
The proposed development implements these goals in the following manner:
• It provides for the development of 52 apartment units on a vacant site in
the downtown area. This helps to strengthen the downtown and increase
its vibrancy.
• Residents of these units will have a variety of services, shopping, and
possibly employment opportunities within close proximity. This helps to
foster independence for some members of society.
• The increased density of the development also utilizes land more efficiently
than low density housing.
■ I • A ��
The Parkland Dedication By -law 95 -104 permits the Municipality to acquire
parkland in accordance to the provisions of the Planning Act. Section 3 of this
By -law permits the Municipality to acquire parkland at 5% of the area subject to
the application. Alternatively, Section 4 of this By -law permits the Municipality to
acquire parkland at the rate of 1.0 hectares /300 dwelling units where this rate
would yield a dedication greater than 5 %. Finally, Section 5 of this By -law permits
the Municipality to accept cash -in -lieu of parkland where a dedication would
render a site undevelopable or where a land dedication does not meet the
Municipality's park development goals or standards.
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wmtu i =•
In implementing the By -law, staff have consistently applied the alternative
parkland requirements at 1 ha /300 dwelling units, which is the maximum rate
allowable under the By -law for all medium and high density developments. One
such recent example is the townhouse development project at the north west
corner of Highway 2 and Courtice Road which the developer was assessed and
has paid the cash -in -lieu of parkland at the rate of 1 ha /300 units.
It should be noted that Section 4 of the Parkland Dedication By -law states the
Municipality may require the conveyance of land for park purposes at a rate of
to 1 ha per 300 dwelling units. This would appear to allow a lower rate to be
assessed at the discretion of Council.
5. ALTERNATIVE PARKLAND DEDICATION REQUIREMENTS IN OTHER
MUNICIPALITIES IN DURHAM REGION
5.1 Staff have investigated the parkland dedication policies of Pickering, Ajax, Whitby,
and Oshawa and would like to offer the following observations.
Town of Pickering
The Town of Pickering currently only utilizes the 5% parkland dedication
requirement for all residential development. The current official plan does not
contain the necessary policies which permits the utilization of the alternative
parkland dedication provision; however, the draft Pickering Official Plan does
contain this policy provision. No alternative parkland dedication policy has been
determined to date.
Town of Ajax
The Town of Ajax only utilizes the 5% parkland dedication requirement for all
residential development. Their official plan does not contain policies which would
permit Ajax to use this provision.
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REPORT PD -21 -97 PAGE 5
Town of Whitby
The Town of Whitby Official Plan contains policies enabling Staff to utilize an
alternative parkland dedication rate of 1.0 hectares per 312 dwelling units. The
policy is applied consistently for medium and high density development, both
within and outside of Central Areas. For some large developments which contain
only minor amounts of medium or high density development, the municipality
generally takes a parkland dedication rate slightly in excess of 5 %. Staff
concluded that Whitby's requirements are very similar to Clarington.
City of Oshawa
The City of Oshawa uses the alternative parkland dedication provision, for all
medium and high density residential development in the following manner:
a) development within a plan of subdivision or condominium:
• The rate for the Central Business District (Downtown Oshawa) is 0.1
hectares /300 dwelling units where the net residential density is greater than
148 units /hectare;
• The rate for Main Central Areas, Sub - Central Areas, and Community
Central Areas is 0.15 hectares /300 dwelling units where the net residential
density is greater than 101 units /hectare; and,
• The rate for development located outside of the Central Business District,
Main Central Areas, Sub - Central Areas, and Community Central Areas is
0.3 hectares /300 dwelling units.
Apparently, the City has implemented these variable rates to encourage high
density residential development within Central Areas. The 0.15 hectares /300
dwelling unit rate corresponds to a 5% parkland dedication rate:
b) development not within a plan of subdivision or condominium:
The City has also devised a second standardized cash -in -lieu of parkland
dedication requirement used for medium and high density residential
development not contained within a plan of subdivision or condominium. This
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REPORT PD -21 -97 PAGE 6
includes development subject to site plan approval, residential infill, and land
severance applications. The cash -in -lieu requirements are $875.00 /unit for
townhouse units and $625.00 /unit for all types of apartment units.
6. STAFF COMMENTS
6.1 Based on the information received from other municipalities in Durham Region,
it appears the approaches taken in assessing parkland dedication varied. The
following discussion will provide Council with three options for obtaining parkland
from the lands in question.
Option 1
Committee could opt to request a cash -in -lieu of parkland dedication equal to 5%
of the site area. The applicant would be required to dedicate the equivalent of
0.025 hectares for park purposes. Based on the purchase price for the property,
the Municipality would receive a cash -in -lieu of parkland payment of
approximately $22,500. This is the amount the owner indicated that he is
prepared to pay. Staff note that this is equivalent to 0.15 ha /300 units which is
used in Oshawa.
Should Council determine there are merits to the request, it may do so without the
need to amend the Parkland Dedication By -law.
Option 2
Committee could require the cash -in -lieu of parkland dedication at the rate of 1.0
hectares /300 dwelling units which is the rate implemented by staff for all medium
and high density development.. Based on the number of proposed units, the
applicant would be required to dedicate the equivalent of 0.173 hectares for park
purposes, or 34.4% of the site area. Based on the purchase price for the
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property, the Municipality would receive a cash -in -lieu of parkland payment of
approximately $156,000.
Option 3
With this option, Staff are proposing an amendment to the Parkland Dedication
By -Law 95 -104 by introducing the following variable rates for high density
residential apartment development within all Main Central Areas as designated in
the Clarington Official Plan.
bachelor / 1 bedroom unit 0.33 ha / 300 unit
2 bedroom units 0.67 ha / 300 unit
3 bedroom units 1 ha / 300 unit
The above variable rates are based on the number of bedrooms contained within
an apartment unit. The rationale is that apartment units with fewer bedrooms
should generate fewer residents and therefore less demand for park facilities.
These variable rates would only be applicable to Main Central area locations as
an incentive for development or redevelopment.
In the case of the current proposal, the variable rate of 0.33 ha /300 units will
apply as it contains 52 - 1 bedroom units. This rate is equivalent to a cash -in -lieu
payment of $51,500.
CONCLUSIONS
None of the above 3 options requires Council to amend the Parkland dedication
By -law. However, in the interest of clear direction to staff to deal with similar
situations in the future, we recommend that the attached by -law be passed to
implement the concept of variable rates explained Option 3.
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Respectfully submitted,
Franklin Wu, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.,
Director of Planning
and Development
RH *FW *km
Attachment #1 - Amending By -Law
Reviewed by,
W. H. Stockwell
Chief Administrative
Officer
Interested parties to be notified of Council and Committee's decision:
Jourdan at Clarington Inc.
9 Woodlawn Avenue East
Toronto, Ontario
M4T 1 B9
Attn: Izzy Jourdan
•
THE CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON
BY -LAW NUMBER 97-
being a By -Law to amend By -Law 95 -104, the Parkland and Open Space Dedication
By -Law for the Corporation of the Municipality of Clarington.
WHEREAS the Council of the Corporation of the Municipality of Clarington deems it advisable
to amend By -Law 95 -104 of the Corporation of the Municipality of Clarington in accordance
with a request to amend the alternative parkland dedication standard;
AND WHEREAS the Council of the Corporation of the Municipality of Clarington deems it
appropriate to amend By -law 95 -104.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT the Council of the Corporation of the Municipality
of Clarington enacts as follows:
By -Law 95 -104 is hereby amended by inserting the following new definition:
"(a) "Apartment" shall refer to an apartment building as defined in the
Comprehensive Zoning By -Law 84 -63, as amended, for the former Town of
Newcastle."
The subsequent sections will be renumbered accordingly.
2. By -Law 95 -104 is hereby amended by inserting the following new section:
"5. Notwithstanding Section 4, the Municipality may require the conveyance of
land for park purposes for apartment developments within Central Areas as
designated within the Clarington Official Plan where these rates would yield a
conveyance greater than five percent provided that such lands have been
excluded from lands subject to the five percent parkland dedication
requirements under Section 3:
(a) developments containing bachelor units or apartment units with one bedroom
shall be required to convey land for park purposes at a rate of up to 0.33
hectares per 300 dwelling units;
(b) developments containing apartment units with two bedrooms shall be required
to convey land for park purposes at a rate of up to 0.67 hectares per 300
dwelling units;
(c) developments containing apartment units with three or more bedrooms shall
be required to convey land for park purposes at a rate of up to 1.0 hectares
per 300 dwelling units;
(d) developments containing apartment units with a combination of either bachelor
units, one, two, or three bedroom units shall be required to convey land for
park purposes calculated on the basis of the percentage of the number of
bachelor units, one, two, or three bedroom units of the total number of units
contained within the development at the following rates:
(i) bachelor units or apartment units with one bedroom shall be required to
convey land for park purposes at a rate of up to 0,33 hectares per 300
dwelling units;
(ii) apartment units with two bedrooms shall be required to convey land for
park purposes at a rate of up to 0.67 hectares per 300 dwelling units;
and,
(ii) apartment units with three or more bedrooms shall be required to
convey land for park purposes at a rate of up to 1.0 hectares per 300
dwelling units.
1
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(e) in all cases, the amount of the conveyance shall be a minimum of two percent
of the land; and,
(f) where development proposals contain residential and commercial
components, the parkland dedication shall only be applied to the residential
component."
The subsequent sections will be renumbered accordingly.
3. By -Law 95 -104 is amended on the date of passing hereof,
By -Law read a first time this day of 1997.
By -Law read a second time this day of 1997.
By -Law read a third time and finally passed this day of 1997.
Mayor
Clerk
i fi'0