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MINUTES - Special Council - 19960919TOWN OF AURORA SPECIAL COUNCIL -PUBLIC PLANNING MEETING NO. 25-96 Council Ch'ambers Aurora Town Hall Thuffiday,Se~ember19, 1996 7:30p.m. II MIN u TE s II ATTENDANCE COUNCIL MEMBERS Mayor Jones in the Chair; Councillors Griffith, Healy, McKenzie, Morris, Ochalski, Sorley, Wallace and Weller. STAFF MEMBERS Chief Administrative Officer, Dire.ctor of Corporate Services, Director of Planning, Director of Leisure Services, Director of Building Administration, Director of Public Works, Treasurer, Manager of Engineering Services, Senior Planner, Planning Staff, Administrative Coordinator and Administrative Assistant. OTHER ATTENDEES Ken Rosenberg -Legal Counsel, Craig Hunter and Ray Simpson -Hemson Consulting Ltd. and Connie Ni.chols -CB Commercial /Madison. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST There were no declarations of interest under the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. APPROVAL OF AGENDA #561. Moved by Councillor Griffith Seconded by Councillor McKenzie THAT the content of the Agenda be approved as outlined herein, with the additions of the following Correspondence from: • Carol Scott; • Ron Palmer of The Planning Partnership; • Cynthia Green of Whitwell Developments Limited; • Jim McAlpine of the Aurora Chamber of Commerce; and • Joseph Lebovic of Lebovic Enterprises. CARRIED Mayor Jones introduced the Town Staff and Consultants in attendance at the Council · table. Mayor Jones advised that this meeting had been called as a Public Planning Meeting to consider an amendment to the Official Plan to implement Council's direction in respect of the recommendations of the Growth Management Study Steering Committee concerning the location of future population ·and employment growth through to 2016, application number D09-08-96. Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Page 2 The Public Meeting procedures and the opportunities available for persons to ask questions related to the item tabled for considerationwere explained. Mayor Jones advised that any person who wished further notice of the passage of the proposed Official Plan Amendment under consideration could sign the information forms available. In addition, Mayor Jones advised that any concerns with the proposal must be expressed during the public meeting or in writing prior to the adoption by Council of any amendment in order to protect the right to appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board. Names and addresses of speakers are required as a part of the record of the . proceeding§. The Director of Corporate Services advised that the required Notices of Meeting for Application D09-08-96 were mailed on August 27, 1996. All notices were circulated in compliance with the Planning Act, by prepaid First Class Mail to every person and public body who provided the Clerk with a written request for such notice. In addition, notice was published in The Era Banner, a newspaper having general circulation in the area to which the proposed Official Plan amendment would apply, on August 27, 1996, in accordance with the rules of procedure under the Planning Act, and subsequent information was published on September 10, 1996 and September 17, 1996. PLANNING APPLICATION PL96-081-237-Proposed Official Plan Amendment No. 17 Implementing the Recommendations of the Growth Management Study Steering Committee The Director of Planning provided a history and overview of the subject application and · the Growth Management Study. The Growth Management Study Steering Committee was comprised of Councillors and residents. Three Consultants' Reports were prepared including Progress Report No. 1 dated September 1995, Progress Report No. 2 dated January 1996 and the Final Report dated May 1996. Input from the public was obtained through two public meetings, questionnaire, newsletters, two landowners meetings, and the Committee Report to Council on June 19, 1996. The process resulted in the Report prepared for Council this evening for the proposed Official Plan Amendment No. 17 including "Rural Policies" as directed by Council. The Director of Planning outlined the Economic Development Strategy for the Town's employment lands. The review of the employment land inventory found the inventory of "available" vacant land is less than the findings of the Growth Management Study by almost 70 acres. The need to retain the Aurora East Industrial Estates to maintain available employment land was confirmed. The recommendations of the Growth Management Study respecting the need to supply employment lands at Highway 404 was confirmed and reinforced. It was recommended that the Town make appropriate provision to reserve the Highway 404 corridor north of the Oak Ridges Moraine. for employment uses. The Director of Planning concluded her presentation and advised that the matters to be addressed include both the principles of the Growth Management Study and also the need for some fine tuning of issues as identified. The Director of Planning introduced Ray· Simpson of Hem son Consulting Ltd. to provide an overview of the Proposed Official Plan Amendment No. 17. Ray Simpson of Hemson Consulting Ltd. reviewed the purpose of Official Plan Amendment No. 17 and highlighted key aspects of the proposed amendment. The purpose of the proposed amendment is to expand the urban settlement boundary to accommodate growth to 2016, to provide a general policy framework to guide future secondary plans, and to change some existing policies to implement the Growth Management Study. The proposed Official Plan Amendment was initiated by the direction given by Council on June 19,~ 1996. Mr. Simpson highlighted Schedule "A" Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Page 3 of the proposed amendment that included future urban expansion areas of Yonge Street South, Bayview East and St. John's Sideroad/Bathurst Street. The Yonge Street South Urban Expansion Area requires a Secondary Plan to allow low-intensity environmentally sensitive residential dev~lopment on full urban services. In the Bayview East Urban Expansion Area, development is to follow a future Secondary Plan. Plans will accommodate three major components which are residential neighbourhoods, employment lands at Highway 404, and the Wellington Street . corridor. The Plan is to follow the preferred concept from the Growth Management Study. The St. John's Sideroad/Bathurst Urban Expansion Area is to accommodate low-intensity environmentally sensitive residential development on full services, and a further Official Plan Amendment is required. Mr. Simpson indicated two special rural policy areas on Schedule '"H" of the proposed amendment. These are Section 3.6.2c which discourages but allows limited residential aevelopment serviced by privately owned and operated communal wastewater and water systems, in cluster arrangements at an overall density comparable to estate residential policies. Section 3.6.2d is acknowledged as a future urban expansion area should additional lands be needed beyond 2016. Public Comments Katherine Vrancic. Chamber of Commerce Ms. Katherine Vrancic spoke on behalf of the Chamber of Commerce and read a letter dated September 17, 1996, a copy of which was filed with the Clerk. She indicated that the Town should preserve all its presently designated employment lands as well as the lands adjacent to Highway 404 for employment purposes. She noted that the Town should not land bank or joint venture with developers. Donald Given. Malone Given Parsons Mr. Given spoke on behalf of Magna International and provided a preliminary response to the Growth Management Study dated September 11 and 19, 1996, a copy of which was filed with the Clerk. He reviewed the development of the lands east of Bayview Avenue south of Wellington for a mix of uses including head office, industrial, research and development centre, golf course, residential and a mixture of uses along Wellington Street. Official Plan Amendments No. 7, No. 8 and No. 9 were adopted for the subject lands. Mr. Given indicated that the Growth Management Study has endorsed development on the Magna lands and generally confirms their request of 1993. Mr. Given requested that the recommendation of the Growth Management Study be changed from Employmentto Residential for land along Leslie Street. Mr. Given reviewed Magna's intended sequencing of development noting that the Wellington Street corridor is identified as the last stage in order to give the T o'wn the time required for further study. He also indicated that more time is needed to consider the southern portion of the lands and that the previous proposal for an arena still may be a possibility. Mr. Given also requested Council's endorsement of the on- line pond and support for the proposed use of part of the Class 6 wetland for the golf course. Lloyd Cherniak. West Hill Redevelopment Company Limited Mr. Cherniak spoke. on behalf of the West Hill Redevelopment application to redesignate lands at Leslie and Bloomington from Rural to Estate Residential. He advised of meetings with the Town and Regional staff regarding their concerns and requested that the lands be identified as a special policy area similar to the approach taken to the. lands at St. John's and Bathurst. He indicated that development under the proposed policies differs from their original intent but could be marketable. Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 1.9, 1996 Kim Philip. Canopy Development Comoratlon Page 4 Mr. Philip spoke on behalf of Jim Elde.r and Walter Pady, the owners of approximately 35 acres of land on the west side of Yonge Street, immediately north of the intersection with Elderberry Trail. He noted his correspondence dated September 12, 1996, a copy of which was filed with the Clerk. Mr. Philip indicated the major concern with the proposed amendment is the requirement that all of the lands in the Yonge Street South Urban Expansion Area be subject to a single Secondary Plan and requested more time to discuss alternatives with staff. Mr. Philip raised the timing for the Secondary Plan process and asked that consideration be given to the Yonge Street South area at the same time as the Aurora East stating that the Yonge Street South issues are less complex. ·Claudio Brutto. M.M. Dillon Limited Mr. Brutto spoke on behalf of various clients who own lands within the Study area. Mr. Brutto provided a detailed overview for each of his clients with. regard to their land holdings and the Growth Management Study and Official Plan Amendment as documented in correspondence filed with the Cler.k dated September 1 0, 1996. In respect of the Aurora South Urban Expansion Area, he agreed to the need for a master plan and for integration with existing uses but feels a secondary plan is not necessary. He also expressed concern with timing. In respect of the Bayview East Urban Expansion Area, he suggested that the Posinelli lands should be included in the . amendment for the Magna lands. He also noted the need for additional detailed study on the Ranke! lands and the need for flexibility in determining the boundary of the Wellington Street corridor, suggesting that the Wellington/Leslie intersection should be considered as a node. He expressed concern that the Economic Strategy Study did not consider topography and questioned the need to preserve 1 ,000 acres abutting Highway 404 in view of the projected need for 450 acres ofemployment land. John Emery. Fairmont Property Comoration Mr. John Emery spoke on behalf of Quaker's Lundy Lane and McLeod Farms, and filed a copy of his presentation with the Clerk. He identified that Quaker's Lundy Farm and a portion of McLeod Farms have been excluded from the urban envelope as outlined in the Growth Management Study. Mr. Emery endorsed the Economic Development Strategy. He questioned the Growth Management Study's use of 10 units per acre indicating that north west Aurora is developed at 2.9 upa and the area south east of Yonge and Wellington at 4 upa. He asked that the small. Town atmosphere be· maintained, that density be reviewed and decreased, and that the Town be planned out to the boundaries. Employment lands and low density housing should be made available to attract new industry. Michael Robertson. Resident Mr. Robertson explained that he does not endorse the document as it is development driven. He expressed concern with density intensification and the effect on residents. living in old Aurora. He indicated the need for a Secondary Plan to address the effects of intensification and growth on Old Aurora. He asked that the plan be further revisited and numbers on intensification be reviewed. A copy of the presentation was filed with the Clerk. In response to a question raised by Mayor Jones, Ray Simpson of Hemson Consulting Ltd. explained the intensification figure of 10,000 -12,000 persons applies to the entire area currently designated for development with the majority of growth attributed to green fields type development as opposed to intensification. Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Leslie Oliver. Resident Page 5 Mr. Oliver noted the heart of the Town at Yonge and Wellington in relation to the emerging centre at Bayview and Wellington. He identified cross town art~rial traffic as the most serious issues for the core area residents and urged that more thought be given to the matter. In response to a question raised by Mayor Jones, Ray Simpson of Hemson Consulting Ltd. commented that the Growth Management Study is an integral par( of the Official Plan. In response to a question raised by Mayo~ Jones, Craig Hunter of Hemson Consulting Ltd. responded that 1 0 units per acre is consistent with new development with a range of housing types, is net of roads and parks, and is an overall average as opposed to a target. Tony Blue Tony Blue noted that he owns property on the north side of St. John's Sideroad between Bayview and Leslie. He questioned the issue of 1 0 units per acre and the type of housing that such density would produce. He indicated that communi,ties will have to pay for themselves, and asked that the matter be postponed for further review. Evelyri Buck Ms. Evelyn Buck spoke on behalf of landowners for applications pertaining to lands on Bloomington east of Bayview from the Romano Storage Complex to Leslie, and lands on the east side of Bayview to the south of Vandorf. Official Plan Amendment No. 17 recognizes a great deal of work done and the path that the Town has taken for many years. She noted that the Bloomington lands are not rural, have been used for gravel extraction, and are located on a heavy used traffic corridor. The land is a waste land in need of improvement which will bring in tax revenue. The proposed use is compatible with the location, and with existing uses including the auto wrecking yard, storage units, and uses in Richmond Hill. The Bayview proposal consists of 1 0 units on 40 acres. They are willing to look at development on communal services. Ms. Buck indicated that Official Plan Amendment No. 1 7 would prohibit a number of applications because it imposes too many conditions: Carson Woods. Carson Woods Architects Limited Mr. Carson Woods spoke on behalf of BMVH holdings for lands to the north east of Yonge Street and Bloomington Sideroad, and filed correspondence with the Clerk dated September 19, 1996. He cited concerns with costs of completing secondary plans and an area specific development charge, indicating that these costs may discourage development and stall growth. Mr., Woods requested that a timeframe be established for the implementation of the Official Plan Amendment and that previously submitted applications be ,allowed to continue independently through the process, particularly those applications which already meet the Oak Ridge Moraine Guidelines, do riot represent land use conflicts with neighbouring lands, and can be serviced by the applicants at no cost to the Town. David Drake. EMC Group Mr. David Drake spoke on behalf of Minoo's 100 Investment Inc. He commended the effort of the Growth Management Study Committee and supported the approach of the Economic Development Strategy. He identified the location of lands in the middle ·-·----·····-·---~-~-_._....c.--~~--~~--------~"*-'""='=""~"""'="''"'""'="--~-------····-···-·--------·------------------- Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Page 6 causing a donut effect west of Leslie that should be included in the urban expansion boundary. Mr. Drake noted the costs of servicing and the need to attract more players and a larger pool of land to finance infrastructure costs. Control of growth on the lands can be maintained through phasing policies in the Secondary Plan. He noted there is less money available to municipalities and questioned the 1 0 upa density factor contending that higher density increases service demands but does not generate equivalent assessment and that affordable housing requirements have been relaxed. Keith Blinston. Shell Canada Products Limited Mr. Keith Blinston spoke regarding the application filed to permit a service station at the south east corner of Wellington and Leslie, and filed correspondence with the Clerk dated September 19, 1996. The Shell property is part of the 404 Employment lands, and Hemson Consulting Ltd. have indicated that such a use is acceptable if servicing arrangements could be made. He noted the need for a service station and their willingness to design it to integrate with a larger development, and the ability to proceed in advance of municipal services. He indicated Shell's intel)tion to add a car wash when services are available. Mr. Blinston asked that the Official Plan be amended and that the application to permit the service station move forward. At 9:30 p.m. Council recessed. At 9:40 p.m. Council reconvened. Gordon Barnes. Resident Mr. Gordon Barnes spoke regarding the need to distinguish between the interest of landowners to develop their lands and the needs of the Town. He indicated that there are opportunities for higher density development on Yonge Street which may help stop decay in the downtown. tldi Connor. Resident ·Ms. lldi Conner spoke regarding the need for growth but not at the expense of our ideals. She identified the sense of community in the Town and questioned the effects on the Town of a fast rate of new development.· She indicated that economics should not be the only consideration. Jane Pepino. Aird & Berlis Ms. Jane Pepino spoke on behalf of Ernst & Young Inc. in its capacity as receiver and manager of Beavertop Investments Limited, the registered owner of the lands commonly referred to as the Aurora East Business Park, Phase II Lands. She disagreed with the conclusions of Official Plan Amendment No. 17 and with previous comments that CIBC is not a Commercial/Industrial land developer and that this has contributed to constraining the Phase II lands. She stated that her client has a fiduciary duty to CIBC and to other creditors to achieve the greatest value and has been actively marketing the land over the past three years. The effort has not been constrained by a lack of expertise on her clients part but rather by the industrial designation of lands in that location. Ms. Pepino requested that the record be corrected, and filed correspondence with the Clerk dated September 19, 1996 on the matter. Jack Dodds. Resident Mr. Jack Dodds spoke regarding the contrast in public meetings held in connection with the Official Plan review that first involved residents· compared to the present developer and landowner interest in growth management. He indicated that Council is responsible to current and future residents. He asked for new and innovative planning concepts to enhance the quality of life while reducing ecological and economic costs and dependence on the private automobile. Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Roger Beaman. Thompson Rogers Page 7 Mr. Roger Beaman spoke on behalf of Bayview Wellington North Inc. with respect to its.proposal for residential development on lands lying north of the Bayview Wellington Centre lands and west of the Hydro Corridor, and filed correspondence with the Clerk· dated September 19, 1996. Mr. Beaman supported the need to secure prime employment lands at Highway 404 indicating that the Beavertop lands west of the Hydro Corridor are not marketable as industrial lands. Mr. Beaman reviewed possible initiatives required to encourage industrial development including the waiving of development charges, land banking and the reduction of performance stand9rds, and the associated financial cost and compatibility implications of these measures. He indicated that if the status quo is maintained, the lands will remain vacant and unproductive. Gary Templeton. Templeton-Lepek Limited Mr. Templeton spoke on behalf of his clients for parcels on the north side of Bloomington, and the north side of Vandorf Sideroad east of Leslie Street. In respect of the former he questioned the need for a Secondary Plan and over constrained density of 2 upa and spoke to the need to determine appropriate density on a site by site basis. In respect of the Vandorf site, he indicated that the lands meet the criteria for development but that it is not right to mandate that development be cluster, communal and condominium. Claudio Brutto. M.M. Dillon Limited Mr. Brutto spoke on behalf of Magum Petroleum .Inc. and indicated that he would send further correspondence on the matter. He indicated that the lands do not exhibit Moraine features and that further detailed study is required to establish the limit of the developable area. David Amborski. Citizen Member. Growth Management Study Steering Committee Mr. Amborski spoke regarding the Economic Strategy Study noting that the supply side analysis is adequate but that further analysis is required on the demand side. He indicated that we cannot rely on GTA trends and that a more detailed look at this sector of the GTA is required including demand in. Aurora in recent years and local leasing data. He noted that the Strategy included monitoring and recommended that this include a record of enquiries and follow up on firms not locating in Aurora. The public portion of the meeting closed at 10:22 p.m. and Council's deliberations began. #562. Moved by Councillor Healy Seconded by Councillor Ochalski THAT Planning Staff be directed to prepare a By-law to implement Official Plan Amendment No. 17 and in turn therefore the recommendations of the Growth Management Study recognizing the need to address some of the fine tuning issues as identified. On a recorded vote, the resolution was DEFEATED YEAS: 2 VOTING YEA: VOTING NAY: NAY: 7 Councillors Healy and Ochalski. Councillors Griffith, McKenzie, Morris, Sorley, Wallace, Weller and Mayor Jones. Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Page 8 #563. Moved by Councillor Ochalski Seconded by Councillor Morris THAT the provisions of the procedural By-law be. waived and the hour of adjournment be extended. CARRIED At 11 :05 p.m. Council recessed. At 11:10 p.m. Council reconvened. #564. Moved by Councillor Griffith Seconded by Councillor Wallace THAT the Special Council -Public Planning meeting recess, to be resumed at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 26, 1996. CARRIED At 11:15 p.m. Council recessed. Council reconvened the Special Council -Public Planning meeting of Thursday, September 19, 1996 at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 26, 1996 with all members of Council in attendance. Mayor Jones advised of the procedure for the continuation of the meeting. Thereafter considerable discussion ensued in response to the submissions made during the public portion of the meeting. #565. #566. #567. Moved by Councillor Griffith Seconded by Councillor McKenzie THAT staff be directed to prepare the necessary documentation so that draft Official Plan Amendment No. 17 will reflect a residential designation on the lands located at the south west corner of Wellington and Leslie Streets save and except for an employment land designation along the Wellington Street corridor similar to that presently shown on the north side of the street. CARRIED Moved by Councillor Ochalski Seconded by Councillor Morris THAT staff be directed to prepare the necessary changes to the text of the draft Official Plan Amendment No. 17, particularly to section 2. 7.5 to allow the Magna lands to be released from the single proposed Secondary Plan for the Bayview East Urban Expansion Area; and THAT the lands below the Wellington Street corridor in the schedule be separated to allow consideration of the Magna Secondary Plan issues ·independently. CARRIED Moved by Councillor Healy Seconded by Councillor McKenzie THAT Town staff be directed to initiate the Secondary Plan process for the Magna lands. CARRIED Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Page 9 #568. #569. #570. Moved by Councillor Morris Seconded by Councillor Griffith THAT staff be directed to review the proposed employment lands inventory to ensure an adequate supply of employment lands will remain. CARRIED Moved by Councillor McKenzie Seconded by Councillor Griffith THAT staff be. directed to make the necessary changes to the draft Official Plan Amendment No. 17 to establish a site specific policy area, similar to that proposed for the north west corner of the municipality, to be added to section 2.5 of the draft amendment for the Rural Policy area to address the Lebovic request; and THAT the text be changed to allow for development on arterial roads while ensuring that direct access to arterials is still precluded. CARRIED Moved by Councillor Healy Seconded by Councillor Morris THAT staff be directed to modify the text of draft Official Plan Amendment No. 17 in order to respect the priorities as identified in the Growth Management Study related to the Aurora South Area; and THAT Council have flexibility to look at alternative methods of working with the stakeholders to address their objectives without necessarily going through a formal Secondary Plan. process, while still ensuring servicing and environmental and other Growth Management Study priority matters are taken into due conside.ration. CARRIED 7:25 p.m. Council recessed. At 7:35 p.m. Council reconvened. #571. #572. Moved by Councillor Healy Seconded by Councillor Ochalski THAT staff be directed to modify the text of draft Official Plan Amendment No. 17 to incorporate stronger references to the need to establish east west trail connections through the Secondary planning processes. CARRIED Moved by Councillor Healy Seconded by Councillor Griffith THAT the Shell Canada application be considered in the context of '· implementation through a Temporary Use By-law; and THAT Shell also be required to participate in the overall site planning and development on a permanent basis at the appropriate time. On a recorded vote, the resolution was DEFEATED YEAS: 4 NAY: 5 VOTING YEA: Councillors Griffith, Healy, McKenzie and Weller. VOTING NAY: Councillors Morris, Ochalski, Sorley, Wallace and Mayor Jones. Aurora Special Council -Public Planning Minutes No. 25-96 Thursday, September 19, 1996 Page 10 #573. Moved by Councillor McKenzie Seconded by Councillor Griffith THAT the designation applying to the 90 acres of land in the Bayview Wellington Phase II be converted from industrial to residential; and THAT the Town work with all due process to try to get to the Highway 404 for future industrial land growth. On a recorded vote, the resolution was DEFEATED YEAS: 3 NAY: 6 VOTING YEA: Councillors Griffith, McKenzie and Weller. VOTING NAY: Councillors Healy, Morris, Oi:halski, Sorley, Wallace and Mayor Jones. #574. #575. #576. Moved by Councillor Sorley Seconded by Councillor Morris THAT staff be directed to table Official Plan Amendment No. 1 7, as amended, for the October 23, 1996 Council meeting for first and second reading consideration. CARRIED Moved by Councillor Griffith Seconded by Councillor Morris THAT the concept of expanding the existing on-line pond the Magna lands be endorsed subject to obtaining all necessary approvals. CARRIED Moved by Councillor Healy Seconded by Councillor Griffith THAT the design of the golf course for the Magna lands be supported provided it is undertaken in such a manner that if it utilizes part of the wetland, the result will be an improvement to the existing situation. CARRIED ADJOURNMENT #577. Moved by Councillor Wallace THAT :the meeting be adjourned at 1 0:00 p.m. CARRIED ~D~ T. JONES, ~--