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Bylaws Item #: 9.b.

Regular Council Meeting

C-712-09 - First Reading - Land Use Bylaw Text Amendment - Spruce Village Stage 17 & 18 - Hales

Date:	09/14/2009
Submitted By:	Planning & Infrastructure
Department:	Planning & Infrastructure

Information

Recommendation

That first reading be given to Bylaw C-712-09 - Land Use Bylaw Amendment - Text Amendment - Spruce Village Stage 17 & 18.

Purpose

This Bylaw will allow for aesthetic changes to the single detached dwellings in Stage 17 and 18 of Spruce Village, in the SVSLR (Spruce Village Small Lot Residential) and SVSDR (Spruce Village Single Detached Residential) Districts. The effect of the amendment will allow for a double car garage to be constructed at each dwelling, as well as increase the setback requirement between the front garage wall and the front door of the dwelling. The dwellings will also require an architectural feature to be added to the front of the home to reduce the visual impact of the changes.

Background

Beaverbrook Developments approached the City early this summer regarding an amendment to the Land Use Bylaw. They requested the changes presented here in order to respond to current market demand for housing. Specifically, the change requested was in regard to the 60/40 split on the front facade of the house, where a maximum of 60% of the front wall of the dwelling could be part of the garage. Due to the lot sizes in the remaining phases of Spruce Village, only a single car garage would be possible. Most buyers would prefer a two-car garage, so the change to allow for a 67/33 split would allow for a larger, two-car garage to be constructed. Development Officers have currently been allowing for a variance of up to a 63/37 frontage split, so this allows for an extra 4% of garage frontage over and above current practice.
The change to the setback for the front entrance of the house has been made in relation to the wider garage. With a widened garage, the front entry to the dwelling is effectively narrowed, creating a long interior entrance hallway with little functional living space. According to builders in Spruce Village this is not a desirable feature for most home buyers, given the cost of the square footage.
In order to compensate for the change to the "look" of the street face, the City requested that an architectural requirement be added to the bylaw to mitigate the enhancement of the garages in phases 17 and 18, by extending the roofline over the entryway. In order to accommodate the architectural feature, the builders require more flexibility to the second story setback above the garage. The setback requirement is being changed from a 4 foot setback to 6 feet over the garage in order to allow for structural stability with the extended roofline feature.

Options

N/A.

Impacts/Consultation

The impact of this amendment is solely aesthetic in nature. Since the affected residential areas are internal cul-de-sacs, the impact of the proposed design changes will not be felt outside the plan area cited in the bylaw.

Implementation/Communication

Should Council approve this Bylaw, the Planning Department will accept responsibility for implementation of the changes at the development permit stage.

Core Strategies

Fiscal Impact

Attachments

Bylaw C-712-09

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