June 24, 2020 North West Planning Advisory Committee Special Meeting

Date:

Time: 7:00 p.m.

Location: Virtual Meeting

Agenda

* A dial-in or live broadcast of this meeting is not available. In accordance with the March 22, 2020 direction of the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing under section 14 of the Emergency Management Act, draft minutes of this meeting will be made available on halifax.ca within 24 hours of this meeting.

REVISED AGENDA

1. CALL TO ORDER

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – NONE

3. APPROVAL OF THE ORDER OF BUSINESS 

4. CALL FOR DECLARATION OF CONFLICT OF INTERESTS

5. CONSIDERATION OF DEFERRED BUSINESS - NONE

6. CORRESPONDENCE, PETITIONS & DELEGATIONS
6.1 Correspondence
6.2 Petitions
 7. REPORTS
7.1 STAFF
7.1.1 Case 21355: 
Application by Armco Capital Inc. to enter into a development agreement to allow a residential development on a portion of PID 41071069 between Lively Road and Wilson Lake Drive in Middle Sackville. [PDF]

The subject lands are zoned Comprehensive Development District and a residential subdivision may be considered on the lands by development agreement under policy SU-6 of the Regional Plan. A previous application was submitted in 2014 for a 270-unit residential development on the subject lands comprising of single unit dwellings, semi-detached dwellings, townhouses and multiple unit buildings (Case 19166). At a public meeting, on October 27, 2014, residents expressed concern with the higher density uses proposed (townhouses and apartment buildings), traffic and servicing. The community felt that the proposal was not compatible with the established residential community. This application was subsequently cancelled, and the applicant explored alternate development options for the property, considering concerns raised by staff and the community.

The current application (Case 21355) was originally submitted in August 2017 for a 241-unit residential development. Revised plans showing 165 units were presented at a public information meeting on November 26, 2018 (Minutes of PIM provided below). 

The applicant has revised the concept plan in response to public feedback and staff’s review of the proposal. The major aspects of the most recent proposal are:
•    A residential subdivision with a total of 167 units serviced by municipal water and sewer service
•    60 ft. frontage single unit dwellings – 52 units
      50 ft. frontage single unit dwellings – 55 units
      35 ft. frontage semi-detached dwellings – 56 units
•    A new 1,789 sq. metre neighbourhood park
•    New public street connections at Lively Road and Wilson Lake Drive

In preparing the recommendation to North West Community Council, the Committee is being asked to assess potential impact on the community. The following is before the Committee: 
•    Mix of housing types
•    The development does not detract from the general residential character of the community
•    Adequate and useable lands for community use
•    The development is capable of being serviced without exceeding capacity of existing systems

The following is before the Committee:

The following is before the Committee:
•    Revised Concept Plan – April 2020 [PDF]
•    Revised Servicing Plan – April 2020 [PDF]
•    Proposed Park Grading Plan – December 2019 [PDF]
•    Traffic Impact Study Addendum – December 2019 [PDF]
•    Supplementary Traffic Impact Study – September 2019 [PDF]
•    Phase II Environmental Site Assessment – June 2019 [PDF]
•    Grading Plan – February 2019 [PDF]
•    PIM Minutes – November 26, 2018 [PDF]
•    Phase I Environmental Site Assessment – January 2018 [PDF]
•    Original Concept Plan – August 2017 [PDF]
•    Original Traffic Impact Study – August 2017 [PDF]

For a copy of the materials presented to the Planning Advisory Committee, please contact the Clerk’s Office. 

7.1.2 Case 20110: Application by WSP, on behalf of Marque Investments, to enable the development of an open space subdivision design on four properties, identified as PID No. 41043597, 40010514, 41398694 and 41401159, located along Windgate Drive, between Rivendale Drive and Terry Road, in Beaver Bank, NS.

An application for an Open Space Design Development for the subject lands was originally submitted in January 2014 (Case 19059), prior to the adoption of the 2014 Regional Plan Review (RP+5) in June 2014. Therefore, this application is grandfathered under the 2006 Regional Plan policies. Open Space Design Development applications are generally reviewed in two stages: Stage I involves a site analysis identifying primary and secondary features to be avoided and potential development areas; Stage II is also known as the conceptual design process whereby the site layout, number of residential units, unit types, street network, open spaces and trails are reviewed. The Stage II application (Case 20110) included a request to extend the Municipal Water Service Boundary. The service extension component of the application proceeded through the planning process under a separate case number (Case 20264) and was approved by Regional Council in May 2016.

This proposal was previously presented to North West Planning Advisory Committee on January 7, 2016 and November 1, 2017 (Meeting Minutes provided below). Since then, the applicant has made additional revisions to the concept plan in response to public feedback and technical requirements to service the development. The major aspects of the most recent proposal are:
•    A Classic Open Space Design Development with a total of 368 residential units serviced by municipal water service and private on-site sewer systems
•    197 single unit dwellings and 171 seniors housing units in the form of townhouses (45 units) and multiple unit dwellings (126 units)
•    18.4 acres of parkland including an extension to the Monarch Rivendale Park, a new park at the end of Valerie Court and a trail connecting Duck Lake Brook Greenway and Monarch Rivendale Park
•    New public street connections off Wingate Drive, Elise Victoria Drive, Rivendale Drive, Briancrest Drive and Galloway Drive
•    Rezoning the lands from Mixed Industrial (I-1) and Mixed Resource (MR-1) to Mixed Use 1 (MU-2)

In preparing the recommendation to North West Community Council, the Committee is being asked to assess potential impact on the community. The following is before the Committee: 
•    Land use
•    Site layout
•    Building design
•    Transportation network, traffic generation, access to and egress from the site and parking
•    Site suitability

The following is before the Committee:

Minutes from Public Information Meetings

Most Recent Submission – March 2020

•    Revised Concept Plan [PDF]

•    Revised Phasing Plan [PDF]

•    Preliminary Stormwater Management Plan [PDF] 

•    Sightline Analysis Letter [PDF]

Revised Submission - July 2019: 
•    Revised Concept Plan [PDF]
•    Revised Traffic Impact Study Addendum [PDF]

Previous Submission:
•    Original Concept Plan [PDF]
•    Original Traffic Study [PDF]
•    Application Letter [PDF]
•    Concept Plan A [PDF]
•    Concept Plan B [PDF]
•    Phasing Plan A [PDF]
•    Phasing Plan B [PDF]
•    Previous Traffic Impact Study Addendum [PDF]

•    North West PAC Minutes, dated January 6, 2016 [PDF]

https://www.halifax.ca/business/planning-development/applications/case-20110-windgate-drive-beaver-bank-road

Information at the above link will be updated as required. For a copy of the materials presented to the Planning Advisory Committee, please contact the Clerk’s Office. 

7.1.3 Case 21996: HRM Corporate Real Estate is requesting to amend the Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS) and Land Use By-law (LUB) for Bedford to allow low-density residential uses (single-unit and two-unit dwellings) on a large portion of 18 Scotia Drive, Bedford. This proposal cannot be considered under existing MPS policies. [PDF]

Background:
18 Scotia Drive was home to the Sunnyside Elementary School (Waverley Road Site) from 1952 to 2012 before the school was closed by the Halifax Regional School Board. The subject site was conveyed to HRM in 2014. After obtaining the subject site, Regional Council declared the subject site as surplus, in accordance with Administrative Order 50, which guides the disposal of surplus real property.

Subsequently in 2015, Regional Council asked that the property be re-assessed to determine if a portion of the subject site should be retained as open space. On February 16, 2016, Regional Council passed a motion declaring that:
•    A southern portion of the lands be retained for a small pocket park; 
•    A portion of the lands, opposite of the Bedford By-pass, be retained for the Bedford    Educational Centre soccer field; and 
•    The Balance of the lands be declared surplus, in accordance with Regional Council’s previous  motion. 

The school was demolished in 2017.
 
Proposal:
HRM Corporate Real Estate’s desire is to re-designate the subject site from the Institutional Designation to the Residential Designation and re-zone the subject site from the Institutional (SI) Zone to the Residential Two Dwelling Unit (RTU) Zone, so that a large portion of the site can be used for low-density residential dwellings. If approved, HRM Corporate Real Estate will attempt to sell the subject site to a private developer (at market value) who could subsequently extend Scotia Drive, subdivide lots, and develop one and/or two-unit dwellings.

Process:
The application is a request for new planning policy. Staff are reviewing the application, and will prepare a recommendation for Regional Council to consider. Before Regional Council can make any decision about the proposal, a public information meeting and a public hearing shall be held. 

Additional information on process can be found in staff’s initiation report to Regional Council. [PDF]
 
Status:
North West Planning Advisory Committee (NWPAC) was scheduled to discuss this proposal at their regularly scheduled meeting on April 1, 2020. NWPAC is an advisory committee that will make a recommendation on this proposal. Due to COVID-19, the meeting was cancelled, and the item will be considered on June 24, 2020.

On November 26, 2019, Regional Council initiated a process to consider site-specific amendments to the Bedford Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law to permit the proposal. Planning staff are undertaking a detailed review of the proposal, in partnership with other municipal teams and external partners. 

The North West Planning Advisory Committee hosted a public information meeting (PIM) on February 24, 2020 at the Bedford Education Centre, Bedford. At this meeting, staff and the applicant presented, answered questions and received feedback. The meeting minutes are below. 

Documents Submitted for Evaluation:
The applicant has submitted plans and studies required by municipal staff to properly evaluate the application. The documents are also available for review at the Planning Applications office at 40 Alderney Drive, Dartmouth.  The details of this application may change before consideration or approval by Regional Council.

•    21996 Application Letter [PDF]
•    February 24, 2020 NWPAC hosted PIM minutes [PDF]

8. ADJOURNMENT
____________________________________________________________________________

INFORMATION ITEMS - NONE