89-97 Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa, ON
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Engineering Land / Site Development Municipal Infrastructure Environmental / 89-97 Beechwood Avenue, Ottawa, ON Water Resources Traffic / Planning Rationale in Support of a Revision to a Transportation Structural Site Plan Control Application Recreational Planning Land / Site Development Planning Application Management Municipal Planning Documents & Studies Expert Witness (OMB) Wireless Industry Landscape Architecture Urban Design & Streetscapes Open Space, Parks & Recreation Planning Community & Residential Developments Commercial & Institutional Sites Environmental Restoration 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue PLANNING RATIONALE IN SUPPORT OF A REVISION TO A SITE PLAN CONTROL APPLICATION Prepared By: NOVATECH Suite 200, 240 Michael Cowpland Drive Ottawa, Ontario K2M 1P6 June / 23 / 2020 Novatech File: 114091 Ref: R-2014-102 June 23, 2020 City of Ottawa Planning, Infrastructure and Economic Development Department 110 Laurier Avenue West Ottawa, Ontario K1P 1J1 Attention: Erin O’Connell Dear Ms. O’Connell: Reference: 89, 91, and 97 Beechwood Avenue Revision to a Site Plan Control Application Our File No.: 114091 The following Planning Rationale has been prepared in support of a revision to a Site Plan Control application for the proposed redevelopment of the property at 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue. The proposal is for the development of a six-storey, mid-rise apartment building. Based on the findings of this Planning Rationale, the proposed zoning is consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement (2014), conforms to the policies of the City of Ottawa Official Plan, meets the general intent of the Beechwood Community Design Plan and the City’s Comprehensive Zoning By-law, and represents good land use planning. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned. Yours truly, NOVATECH Serene Shahzadeh Planner M:\2014\114091\DATA\Applications\Zoning + Site Plan\2020 Site Plan Revision\Beechwood_PlanningRationale.docx Suite 200, 240 Michael Cowpland Drive, Ottawa ON K2M 1P6 Tel: 613.254.9643 Fax: 613.254.5867 www.novatech-eng.com Report Title 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue Table of Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION & CONTEXT ....................................................................................... 2 1.1 Purpose .......................................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Site Description and Location ......................................................................................... 2 1.3 Surrounding Uses ........................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Transportation Network ................................................................................................... 4 2.0 DEVELOPMENT PROPOSAL ........................................................................................ 6 3.0 PLANNING POLICY AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK ............................................ 8 3.1 Provincial Policy Statement (2020) ................................................................................. 8 3.2 City of Ottawa Official Plan ............................................................................................. 9 3.2.1 Traditional Mainstreet .............................................................................................. 9 3.2.2 Design and Compatibility ....................................................................................... 11 3.2.3 Review of Development Applications ..................................................................... 13 3.3 Beechwood Community Design Plan ............................................................................ 20 3.4 Urban Design Guidelines for Development Along Traditional Mainstreets ..................... 23 3.5 Zoning By-law 2008-250 ............................................................................................... 25 4.0 CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................25 Novatech Page i Report Title 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue 1.0 INTRODUCTION & CONTEXT 1.1 Purpose Novatech has prepared this Planning Rationale in support of a revision to a Site Plan Control application, to permit the redevelopment of the properties located at 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue (the “Subject Property”), in the City of Ottawa. A Zoning By-law Amendment (By-law 2016-140) was passed on April 27, 2016, in support of the proposed development. The Zoning By-law Amendment application was submitted concurrently with the Site Plan Control application for this development. The proposed development has since changed slightly; the commercial uses have been eliminated, the number of residential units has increased from 67 units to 95 units, vehicle parking spaces have increased from?? To 82 spaces, and the number of bicycle parking spaces has increased from ??? to 49 spaces. The built form remains consistent with the original Site Plan application, and conforms to the Zoning By-law. The redevelopment plan is to demolish the existing two-storey commercial/office building located on the site, and to construct a six-storey apartment dwelling containing 95 residential units, 82 vehicle parking spaces, and 49 bicycle parking spaces. This Planning Rationale will demonstrate how the proposed development is: • Consistent with the policies of the 2020 Provincial Policy Statement; • Conforms to the policies of the City of Ottawa Official Plan; • Conforms to the general intent of the Beechwood Community Design Plan; • Has regard to the City’s Urban Design Guidelines for Development along Traditional Mainstreets; and • Complies with the policies of the Zoning By-law 2008-250. 1.2 Site Description and Location The Subject Property is located on the north side of Beechwood Avenue, between Champlain and Langevin Avenues (Figure 1). The lands that make up the Subject Property are legally described as Plan 74, Part Lots 10 to 12 in the City of Ottawa. The lands are municipally known as 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue. The irregularly shaped lot is approximately 1,900 m2 (0.19 ha) in size, with nearly 50 metres of frontage on Beechwood Avenue. The Subject Property also has over 20 metres of frontage on both Champlain Avenue and Langevin Avenue. 2 Report Title 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue Figure 1. View of the Subject Property The Subject Property is currently occupied by a two-storey commercial use building at the corner of Beechwood Avenue and Champlain Avenue. The existing building was formerly occupied by a Caisse Populaire bank on the ground floor and an office for a consulting firm on the second floor. The existing building has been vacant since December 2013, and is proposed to be demolished. The rest of the site is used for surface parking. The site is accessible by all modes of transportation, and is located in proximity to many neighbourhood services along Beechwood Avenue. 1.3 Surrounding Uses North: The area to the north of the Subject Property is generally characterized by low-rise residential use buildings of varying types, including detached and semi-detached dwellings, duplexes, triplexes, and low-rise apartments up to three-and-a-half storeys in height. Further north is a high-rise building. East: Immediately east of the Subject Property, at the north-east intersection of Beechwood Avenue and Champlain Avenue, there is a two-and-a-half storey residential use building, followed by several other two to two-and-a-half storey buildings along the north side of Beechwood Avenue. 3 Report Title 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue West: Immediately to the west of the Subject Property, there is a two-and-a-half storey residential use building at the corner of Beechwood Avenue and Langevin Avenue, as well as a two-storey residential building located on Langevin Avenue. South: To the south of the Subject Property, on the south side of Beechwood Avenue, there are several two and three storey commercial/mixed-use buildings (including the El Meson restaurant), vacant land, as well as the prominent St. Charles Church at the corner of Beechwood Avenue and St. Charles Street. Figure 2. View of the Subject Property and Surrounding Uses 1.4 Transportation Network The Subject Site has frontage along Beechwood Avenue, which is identified as an Arterial Road on Schedule E of the City of Ottawa Official Plan (Figure 3). 4 Report Title 89, 91 and 97 Beechwood Avenue Figure 3. Schedule E – Urban Road Network Annex 1 – Road Classifications and Rights-of-Way states that: Arterial roads function as major public and infrastructure corridors in the urban communities and villages they traverse. They not only accommodate car and truck traffic, but also serve pedestrians, public utilities, cyclists and public transit buses. The roadway and its boulevard are therefore designed to meet the needs of these users through the provision, where appropriate, of such features as sidewalks, cycling lanes, and bus stops and shelters. In parts of the urban area and villages additional roadside features include: street furniture, pedestrian- scale lighting, and trees and other landscaping. This greenery provides visual appeal, summer shade and a defining sense of the linear nature of these travel corridors. The planning of land uses and the local road network on lands adjacent to arterial roads may occur in a manner that can reduce the need for noise attenuation barriers or fencing along extensive lengths of roadway. Beechwood Avenue, which is an Arterial Road, accommodates