BYLAW - OPA #58 Whitwell - 20050524 - 466805D(Whitwell Developments Limited)
THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWN OF AURORA
By-law Number 4668-05.D
BEING A BY-LAW to adopt Official Plan Amendment No. 58
The Council of the Corporation of the Town of Aurora, under Section 17 (22) of
the Planning Act, RSO 1990 Chapter P. 13 as amended, hereby enacts as
follows:
1. Official Plan Amendment No. 58 for the Town of Aurora, consisting of the
2.
attached explanatory text and schedules, is hereby adopted.
The Clerk is hereby authorized and directed to make such application on
behalf of the Corporation and to execute under the Corporate Seal such
documents as may be required for the above purposes.
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3. This By-law shall come into force and take effect on the day of the final
passage thereof.
READ A FIRST AND SECOND TIME THIS 24th DAY OF MAY, 2005.
READ A THIRD TIME AND FINALLY PASSED THIS 24th DAY OF MAY, 2005.
B.
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.RECEIVED
OCT 2 1 200S
Ianning and Development Services Department
Corporate Services Dept.
October 19, 2005
Bob Panizza
Clerk
Town of Aurora
1 Municipal Way
Aurora, ON, LAG 6Jl
Dear Mr. Panizza,
File: D06.0PA 58A
f" CORP. SERViCES DEPT. I COPIES CIRCULATED TO:
'l_ Members of Council ~
C.A.O. .IJ.
Directors jj~ p~
Other A· 'lit MUI"
Re: Amendment No. 58 to the Official Plan for the Town of Aurora Planning Area
Whitwell Developments Ltd.
On October 18, 2005, the above noted official plan document came into force.
The Original and Duplicate Original have each had a certificate of approval attached thereto. One
ofthe Originals is enclosed and the other has been retained for the Region's records.
Yours truly,
Senior Planner
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Sue Seibert, Director of Planning, Town of Aurora ept f
Michael Mallette, MCIP, RPP
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Don Larke, Whitwell Developments Ltd.
Mike Bissett, Wood Bull LLP
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The Regional Municipality of York, 17250 Yonge Street, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 6Zl
Tel: 905-830-4444, 1-877-464-YORK, Fax: 905-895-3482
Internet: www.region.york.on.ca
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Certificate of Approval
AMENDMENT No. 58
TO THE
OFFICIAL PLAN FOR THE
TOWN OF AURORA PLANNING AREA
This official plan document which was adopted by the Council of the Corporation of the Town of Aurora is
approved pursuant to Sections 17 aud 21 of the Planning Act and came iuto force on October 18, 2005.
Date: October 18. 2005
Michael Mallette, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.
Senior Planner
The Regional Municipality of York
(Whitwell Developments Limited)
THE CORPORATION OF THE TOWN OF AURORA
. By-Jaw Number 4668-05.D
BEING A BY-LAW to adopt Official Plan Amendment No. 58
The Council of the Corporation of the Town of Aurora, under Section 17 (22) of
the Planning Act, RSO 1990 Chapter P. 13 as amended, hereby enacts as
follows:
1. Official Plan Amendment No. 58 for the Town of Aurora, consisting of the
attached explanatory text and schedules, is hereby adopted.
2. The Clerk is hereby authorized and directed to make such application on
behalf of the Corporation and to execute under the Corporate Seal such
documents as may be required for the above purposes.
3. This By-law shall come into force and take effect on the day of the final
passage thereof.
READ. A FIRST AND SECOND TIME THIS 241h DAY OF MAY, 2005.
READ A THIRD TIME AND FINALLY PASSED THIS 24th DAY OF MAY, 2005.
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AMENDMENT NO. 58
TO THE OFFICIAL PLAN
FOR THE TOWN OF AURORA
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AMENDMENT NO. 58
TO THE OFFICIAL PLAN FOR THE TOWN OF AURORA
STATEMENT OF COMPONENTS
PART 1-THE PREAMBLE
1.
2.
3.
4.
Introduction
Purpose of The Amendment
Location
Basis of The Amendment
PART II-THE AMENDMENT
1.
2.
3.
Introduction
Details of The Amendment
Implementation and Interpretation
PAGE
1
1
1
1
5
5
8
PART I-THE PREAMBLE
1. Introduction
This part of the Amendment, entitled Part I -The Preamble, explains the purpose and
location of this Amendment, and provides an overview of the reasons for it. It is for
explanatory purposes only and does not form part of the Amendment.
2. Purpose of The Amendment
The purpose of this Amendment is to establish a combined land use designation of
"Business Park -Regional Commercial Centre" and related site-specific policies for the
subject lands, which are located on the north side of Wellington Street East, west of
Highway 404, as shown on Schedule "A" attached hereto and forming part of this
Amendment.
This combined designation is intended to permit regional-serving retail commercial
uses, in addition to those uses already permitted by the underlying "Business Park"
designation previously approved for the subject lands in Official Plan Amendment No.
30, the Bayview Northeast Area 2B Secondary Plan. In tandem with planned business
park uses on the easterly balance of the lands currently under the same ownership, the
resultant integrated development is to be known as the "Aurora Gateway Centre", which
will form a component of the larger "Aurora Gateway Business Park."
3. Location
The lands which are affected by this Amendment are located within Part of Lot 21,
Concession 3, in the Town of Aurora, as schematically shown on Schedule "A". The
subject lands are generally bounded to the east by vacant lands planned for business
park uses (fronting Highway 404) on lands currently under the same ownership,
Wellington Street East to the south, Leslie Street to the west, and the future corporate
office complex (and associated business park uses) of State Farm Insurance to the
north.
4. Basis of .The Amendment
A regional retail centre has been anticipated by the Aurora Official Plan since the early
1990's, in a location to be focused somewhere along the Wellington Street East
corridor. The 1991 Plan called for the exact location to be determined through a
secondary planning study for that area.
The ensuing secondary planning and market studies that were contemplated by Section
3.2.6 of the 1991 Plan were completed for Aurora in 1993, largely prompted by three
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parallel applications for major retail facilities in the Wellington Street East area.
It was concluded that there was indeed longer-term potential for a regional retail centre
in Aurora -preferably in the vicinity of Highway 404 -but it was also recognized that
such a facility would not likely be warranted for a period of 10 years or more.
Accordingly, no specific site was designated for regional retail purposes at that time, in
anticipation of a future proposal appropriately supported by the requisite studies, when
warranted by market conditions and other planning considerations.
Locating a regional retail centre in the Wellington Street East corridor is consistent with
the planned commercial structure and hierarchy of Aurora and consistent with the Plan's
commercial goal (in Section 3.2) to provide "A full and viable range of commercial
centres, at the regional, community and neighbourhood levels ... (to meet) ... the material,
social and employment needs of the people in Aurora."
This broader policy intent was re-affirmed through the adoption and approval of Aurora
Official Plan Amendment No. 30, the Secondary Plan for the Bayview Northeast Area
28 planning precinct, which includes the subject lands.
OPA 30 provides, among other things, that:
"Regional-serving Retail Commercial uses shall be considered by the Town subject to a
public process and amendment to this Plan on lands designated Business Park on the
north side of Wellington Street between Leslie Street and Highway 404 ... " (S. 3.4.1 (b))
The subject lands are located on the north side of Wellington Street East between
Leslie Street and Highway 404, and thus, are at the location contemplated for a
regional-serving retail commercial centre in Aurora.
The policies of that secondary plan, Section 3.4.1(b), expressly contemplate the
submission and consideration of a proposal (by Official Plan Amendment) for a regional-
serving retail commercial centre, within the broader business park context planned for
the lands adjacent to Highway 404.
At the same time, the addition of this major retail component is not to be accommodated
at the expense of the long-term viability, functionality and attractiveness of that planned
business park, given the prominence of its location at this strategic gateway to urban
Aurora.
2
Before approval of the regional commercial designation can be obtained, a number of
requirements must be satisfied -including pre-eminent design, comprehensive
planning, acceptable impacts on s.urrounding uses, and the provision of acceptable
market and traffic studies.
The Aurora Gateway Centre development proposal has been supported by a
comprehensive range of appropriate studies, to address Official Plan requirements and
other matters, including market feasibility and impact, traffic impact, economic impact,
functional servicing, urban design and land use planning considerations.
These studies have provided a foundation for this Amendment, which is seen to be
appropriate on the following land use planning grounds:
• all of the relevant site location and other suitability factors indicate that the
subject lands are very well-suited to the proposed regional-serving
commercial uses;
• the development proposal reflects due regard for the relevant aspects of the
Provincial Policy Statement;
• the proposal accords with all of the relevant considerations and requirements
in the York Region Official Plan;
• the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan does not impinge on the
development potential of the site;
• the subject proposal will provide a viable complement to the Town's existing
and planned commercial structure and hierarchy, and thereby notably
improve current and future levels of retail service to Aurora's residents;
• the proposed development will benefit both the Town's economy and sense
of community;
• the Town's market study (feasibility and impact) requirements have been
appropriately met, with a particular focus on relevant public interest
concerns;
• the results of the market study support the appropriateness of the proposed
region-serving retail centre, from market feasibility and impact perspectives;
3
• the Plan's various policy requirements which relate to the consideration of a
regional commercial development on the subject lands have all been
appropriately addressed by this proposal; furthermore, the current proposal
seeks to fulfill a long-recognized potential to serve a regional retail market
from this strategic location;
• the supporting economic analysis shows that the Town's longer-term supply
of employment lands will be adequate to meet projected needs, in the
context of the prospective region-serving retail/service commercial facility on
the subject lands, at the scale proposed, and;
• the subject development proposal reflects due regard for the symbolic
importance and related urban design emphasis placed on the site and vicinity
by the Town's planning policy regime.
4
PART II-THE AMENDMENT
1. Introduction
All of this part of the document entitled Part II -The Amendment, consisting of the
following text and attached map designated as Schedule "A" (Land Use Plan),
constitutes Amendment No. 58 to the Official Plan for the Town of Aurora.
2. Details of The Amendment
The Official Plan of the Town of Aurora is hereby amended as follows:
Item (1): Schedule "AA" Land Use Plan, being part of the Bayview Northeast Area 2B
Secondary Plan (Official Plan Amendment No. 30), is amended by changing
the land use designation for the lands described as Part of Lot 21,
Concession 3 EYS, from "Business Park" to "Business Park -Regional
Commercial Centre", as shown on Schedule "A" attached hereto and forming
part of this amendment.
Item (2): Section 3.4 Commercial Policies of the Bayview Northeast Area 2B
Secondary Plan (Official Plan Amendment No. 30) is hereby amended as
follows:
I) subsection 3.4.1 b) is deleted in its entirety and replaced with the
following:
"The development of lands at Highway 404 has been identified by Council
as a high priority, with an intent to encourage high quality building and site
design in the near to long term. These lands, as shown on the attached
Schedule "A", are designated for a combination of Business Park and
Business Park -Regional Commercial Centre uses, in recognition of the
high visibility and accessibility of lands between Leslie Street and Highway
404, and the attractiveness of this location for uses serving not only the
growing population of Aurora but also the surrounding urban and rural
areas. The development of these lands shall be subject to site plan
approval to ensure pre-eminent site, building and landscape design."
2) subsection 3.4.1.c) is amended by the addition of the words "iii) Business
Park -Regional Commercial Centre" as a third classification in the list of
commercial categories established by this Secondary Plan, and by the
deletion of the subsequent sentence which reads, "A Regional-serving
Retail Commercial designation may be added by amendment to this Plan
subject to Section 3.4.1 b) of this Plan."
5
3) a new Section 3.4.4 "Business Park -Regional Commercial Centre" is
added, with site-specific policies as follows:
a) The Business Park -Regional Commercial Centre designation
applies to certain lands along the north side of Wellington Street
East between Highway 404 and Leslie Street as shown on
Schedule "A" attached hereto. As detailed in subsections b) to h)
inclusive below, this designation shall maintain underlying policy
permissions for Business Park uses, while also enabling major,
regional-serving retail/service commercial uses on the subject
lands. This mix of permitted uses shall be designed and developed
in a manner compatible with and complementary to the planned
business park uses on adjacent lands to the east, as well as other
planned business park development to the north and south. A key
design objective shall be a cohesive overall development scheme
which exhibits a high standard of urban design, commensurate with
the prominent regional location of the site at this important gateway
to Aurora. Development of the subject lands shall also reflect due
regard for the Urban Design Guidelines of the Wellington Street
East Corridor.
b) The underlying use and development policies applicable to
Business Park uses on the subject lands, as set out in Section 3.5
of this Secondary Plan, shall continue to apply. It is the intent of this
Plan that the Business Park-Regional Commercial Centre be fully
integrated and support the planned function of the surrounding
lands designated Business Park. Expansions of the limits of the
Business Park -Regional Commercial Centre shall not be
permitted.
c) In addition to the Business Park uses permitted in Section 3.5 of
this Secondary Plan, also permitted on the subject lands are
Regional Commercial uses, including a department store as an
anchor along with a full range of complementary retail and service
commercial, recreational, cultural, office, entertainment, institutional
and hospitality service uses. Commercial uses are anticipated to
include a mix of large-floorplate, mid-size and smaller operators.
d) There shall be a minimum of two (2) primary (large-floorplate) retail
operators having a minimum commercial floor area of 9,300 sq. m.
and 7,000 sq. m. respectively; and,
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i) the maximum aggregate commercial floor area for the
Regional Commercial Centre component shall be
approximately 50,200 sq. m.
ii) Development of regional-serving retail commercial uses shall
occur on a phased basis, with the first full year of operation
of the initial development phase not to occur before 2006.
Appropriate phasing details shall be established on a site-
specific basis through implementing zoning provisions.
e) The primary uses shall be regional-serving in nature. The number
and size of smaller retail uses (under 370 square metres) shall be
controlled through the implementing site specific zoning by-law. It is
not the intent of this Plan that the uses replicate or impair the
planned functions of other existing commercial areas within the
Town. In this regard certain uses such as liquor stores and beer
stores are not permitted uses at this time in order to encourage
these uses continue to provide anchor functions within the Yonge
Street retail area. A beer store or liquor store may be established
without an amendment to this Plan, if it is additional to any beer
store or liquor store that exists in the Yonge Street retail area or if
such use no longer exists in the Yonge Street retail area. Any
proposal to permit a beer store or a liquor store may be considered
through an application to the Committee of Adjustment.
f) The development of the subject lands shall be consistent with the
Wellington Street East Corridor (Area 2B) Urban Design Guidelines
prepared by Brook Mcilroy Inc. dated November 2002 and more
specifically with the Aurora Gateway Business Park Urban Design
Guidelines prepared by Turner Fleischer Architects Inc. dated May
2, 2005. The development of the lands shall be subject to a site
plan agreement that shall be reviewed in accordance with the
Urban Design Guidelines to ensure pre-eminent site, building and
landscape design. The master plan included within the Urban
Design Guidelines is conceptual and may be revised during the site
plan process provided such revisions are in accordance with the
objectives of the Guidelines.
g) The development of the site as implemented through a site plan
agreement shall promote efficient on-site circulation to provide
convenient pedestrian and vehicular access to parking areas,
loading spaces, building entrances, adjacent streets, and future
transit routes, having specific regard for the business park/office
component.
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h) Subsection 3.5.2 e) is deleted in its entirety, and the subsequent
subsections f), g) and h) are re-labeled e), f) and g), respectively.
3. Implementation and Interpretation
This Amendment has been considered in accordance with the approved site specific
principles within OPA 30 which apply only to the subject lands rather than the provisions
of Sections 3.3.1.1, 3.3.1.2 and 3.2.6 of the Aurora Official Plan. The implementation
and interpretation of this Amendment shall be in accordance with the respective policies
of the Aurora Official Plan and the Bayview Northeast Area 28 Secondary Plan (Official
Plan No. 30.)
8
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Re: Official Plan Amendment No. 58
Official Plan Amendment No. 58 has the following purpose and effect:
The application will replace the "Business Park" designation on the north side of
Wellington Street east of Leslie Street to "Business Park -Regional Commercial
Centre".
The Business Park -Regional Commercial Centre designation will permit approximately
540,000 square feet of commercial development on the site including a department
store, warehouse membership club, either a large format supermarket or a home
improvement outlet, ancillary retail uses, and service commercial uses (restaurants,
personal services). The designation will also maintain underlying policy permissions for
Business Park uses.
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I StJbjoect Lands redesignated
"'-~H•·n.~ '"Business Park" to
"Business·Park-Regional
~~=--1/b~j(~Commercial Centre".
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I
SCHEDULE "AA"
Land Use Plan
Bayview Northeast
Secondary Plan
LEGEND
fR] Low· Medium Density l2iiJ Residential
•
Medium· High Density
Residential
!I!~~-Convenience Commercial
o 0 o
o 0 o
~ Community Gomma~clal
• MlxedUse
~ Business Park
-Secondary School
-Separate Elementary School rna Public Elementary School
1:~~~;1 Neighbourhood Park
bW.~:j Wlldllle Park
~ Linear & Other Open Sp~e
~ll~lDIIIJll
Trail System
Stormwater Management Facility
(locations conceptual only)
Recommended Environmental
Protection Una
Secondary Plan Boundary
THIS IS SCHEDULE "A"
TO OFFICIAL PLAN
AMENDMENT NO. 58
FOR THE TOWN OF
AURORA