February 28, 2018 - Minutes
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Development Permit Panel
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
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Time: |
3:30 p.m. |
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Place: |
Council Chambers |
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Present: |
Cecilia Achiam, Chair
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The meeting was called to order at 3:30 p.m.
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Minutes |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That the minutes of the meeting of the Development Permit Panel held on January 31, 2018 be adopted. |
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CARRIED |
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1. |
Development Permit 16-721500 |
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APPLICANT: |
Western-Citimark River Front Townhouse Project Ltd. |
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PROPERTY LOCATION: |
10311 River Drive |
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INTENT OF PERMIT: |
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Permit the construction of 86 townhouse units and a two-storey mixed-use building with amenity space and a child care facility at 10311 River Drive on a site zoned “Residential Mixed Use Commercial (ZMU17) – River Drive/No. 4 Road (Bridgeport)”; and |
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Vary the provisions of Richmond Zoning Bylaw 8500 to reduce the required West Side Yard from 6.0 m to 4.5 m. |
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Applicant’s Comments |
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Wayne Fougere, Fougere Architecture Inc., provided an overview of the proposed development and highlighted the following: |
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the project is the third phase of the four-phase Parc Riviera development which includes townhouses and a two-storey mixed-use building with amenity space and a City-owned child care facility; |
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the child care facility is sited at the southwest corner of the subject site to allow for maximum sunlight exposure and to facilitate easy access into the facility; |
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pedestrian access to townhouse entries is provided from the street, the public pedestrian walkway along the east edge of the site, mews at the centre of the site, and the internal drive aisles; |
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one public and two semi-private pedestrian walkways are provided from River Drive to the dike through the subject site; |
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a one and a half-meter reduction of the required minimum setback for the west side yard for one building is requested; and |
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the proposed setback variance is mitigated by grade changes in the adjacent park which reduces the apparent height of the three-storey building adjacent to the park to a two-storey building. |
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Mary Chan Yip, PMG Landscape Architects, briefed the Panel on the main landscaping features of the project and noted the following: |
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street fronting townhouse units and front yards facing the internal mews provide a pedestrian-friendly character to the project; |
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all townhouse units are provided with semi-private outdoor spaces at grade; |
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the project has been designed to utilize the character of the dike edge along the waterfront to tie the neighbourhood together; |
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the depression between the dike and townhouse units on the north edge creates a symbolic slough design along the dike frontage; |
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the two proposed planting schemes consist of native planting along the river’s edge and urban planting along River Drive to provide transition to the single-family neighbourhood across the street; |
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proposed planting for the Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) modified enhancement area along the north edge of the site is pulled into the site, providing a transition from natural to urban landscape; |
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primarily drought tolerant species are proposed for the project; |
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while the project is located adjacent to a new Tait Park and in close proximity to the Tait Neigbourhood School Park across River Drive, smaller scale on-site indoor and outdoor amenity spaces will also be provided; |
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separate outdoor play areas are provided for the two age group program areas in the child care facility; |
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pervious pavings are proposed in some areas on the site for groundwater recharge; and |
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lighting will be provided for the mews and street edges. |
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Panel Discussion |
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In response to queries from the Panel, Mr. Fougere advised that (i) raising the finished grade of the site to meet the future height of the dike was not considered due to potential additional cost to the project and height transition to the dike, park and neighbourhood, (ii) all the townhouse units meet the required minimum floodplain elevation of 2.9 meters, and (iii) the living spaces of the four-storey townhouse units adjacent to the dike and the three-storey units adjacent to the park are proposed to match the grades. |
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In response to a query from the Panel, Wayne Craig, Director, Development, noted that the proposed child care facility will be transferred to the City as a strata lot as part of the zoning requirements, and the strata plan will include, among others, general guidelines for maintenance. |
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In response to further queries from the Panel, Mr. Fougere noted that (i) the common outdoor amenity area on the roof deck of the mixed-use building is adjacent to the indoor amenity room and can be accessed through an elevator on the ground floor, (ii) the ground floor stair and elevator access to the indoor and outdoor amenity spaces on the second floor is separate from the child care facility, (iii) seven parking spaces are provided for the exclusive use of the child care facility, and (iv) the child care facility will have separate metering and electrical and mechanical room. |
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In response to a further query from the Panel, Mr. Craig confirmed that the applicant will not build affordable housing units on-site as the entire site provided funding towards the City’s capital Affordable Housing Reserve which was used to provide funding towards the Storeys project. |
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In response to a query from the Panel, Ms. Chan reviewed the extent of the ESA in the subject site, noting that townhouse decks along the north edge of the site will be contained with low rail fencing to provide separation between the semi-private outdoor amenity space and the ESA. |
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Staff Comments |
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Mr. Craig advised that (i) servicing agreements associated with the proposal include frontage works along River Drive, the construction of the public pedestrian walkway along the east edge of the site and dike improvements, (ii) the child care facility is a collaborative effort between City staff and the developer to fulfill zoning requirements, (iii) the ESA will be subject to a legal agreement to ensure maintenance by the future strata, (iv) five convertible units are proposed for the project, and (v) the project has been designed to achieve EnerGuide 82 rating standards and the City’s aircraft noise mitigation standards. |
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In addition, Mr. Craig noted that the proposed west side yard setback variance for the subject site is similar to the variance granted to Phase 2 development on the west side of the City park. |
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Gallery Comments |
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None. |
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Correspondence |
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None. |
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Panel Decision |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That a Development Permit be issued which would: |
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permit the construction of 86 townhouse units and a two-storey mixed-use building with amenity space and a child care facility at 10311 River Drive on a site zoned “Residential Mixed Use Commercial (ZMU17) – River Drive/No. 4 Road (Bridgeport)”; and |
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2. |
vary the provisions of Richmond Zoning Bylaw 8500 to reduce the required West Side Yard from 6.0 m to 4.5 m. |
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CARRIED |
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2. |
Development Permit 16-741741 |
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APPLICANT: |
Vancouver Airport Fuel Facilities Corporation (VAFFC) |
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PROPERTY LOCATION: |
15040 Williams Road |
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INTENT OF PERMIT: |
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Permit the construction of a Marine Terminal Facility for aviation/jet fuel delivery at 15040 Williams Road on a site zoned “Industrial (I)” and partially designated as an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA). |
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Applicant’s Comments |
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Mark McCaskill, FSM Management Group, briefed the Panel on the applicant’s response to Panel’s referral at the November 29, 2017 meeting of the Panel and highlighted the following: |
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planting to the north triangle area of the property has been increased by 25 per cent after allowing for the minimum space required for operational and maintenance activities; |
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proposed tree sizes and pot sizes for shrubs and groundcovers have been increased to the largest reasonable sizes without compromising survivability in the north triangle area and elsewhere in the site; |
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the design of the viewing platform has been modified and the proposed voluntary cash-in-lieu payment has been increased to approximately $204,000; and |
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an intertidal bench planting area is proposed to be added in the intertidal Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA). |
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In addition, Mr. McCaskill provided details on the proposed intertidal bench. |
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In reply to queries from the Panel, Mr. McCaskill acknowledged that (i) the intertidal bench has been raised to just below the high water mark to enhance the survivability of plant species, (ii) the bench cannot be expanded to the north as it will encroach into the dike structure, (iii) a few pre-engineered service structures are proposed on site, (iv) the marine terminal facility will be fully operational twice a month or weekly depending on the size of the vessel delivering the fuel, (v) the intertidal bench will be filled with substrate to mitigate the effects of strong current and wave action to bench planting, and (vi) the unplanted strip at the north triangle area will be used to provide a gravel access road and equipment storage area. |
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Staff Comments |
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Mr. Craig advised that (i) the new planting area at the north triangle area combined with the previously committed Riparian Management Area (RMA) and landscape planting will result in total planting area of 46 per cent of the entire triangle area, (ii) the viewing platform will be constructed by the City at a later date and that Parks Department has determined the platform location and design meets the City’s open space and trail objectives for the area, (iii) part of the applicant’s voluntary cash-in-lieu contribution will be used for enhancements to the existing city park trail to the west of the subject site, (iv) City staff solicited the opinion of third party experts regarding intertidal ESA planting in compliance with Panel’s recommendation, (v) the City’s third party review was conducted by PGL Environmental Consultants and Northwest Hydraulics and these consultants supported the provision of the proposed intertidal bench and have provided recommendations to improve the bench survivability which the applicant and City staff have reviewed and agreed to, (vi) the design of the intertidal bench planting will form part of the servicing agreement for the dike construction on the site, and (vii) there will be legal agreements to ensure maintenance of all ESA planting on the site. |
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In response to queries from the Panel, Mr. Craig confirmed that (i) ESA planting will be subject to a three-year monitoring period, (ii) the proposed intertidal bench planting will be monitored for five years, and (iii) the City will have monetary securities provided to ensure that these areas are installed and maintained accordingly. |
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Gallery Comments |
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None. |
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Correspondence |
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None. |
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Panel Discussion |
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The Panel expressed support to the applicant’s response to Panel’s comments at the previous consideration of the proposal. |
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Panel Decision |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That a Development Permit be issued which would permit the construction of a Marine Terminal Facility for aviation/jet fuel delivery at 15040 Williams Road on a site zoned “Industrial (I)” and partially designated as an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA). |
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CARRIED |
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3. |
Date of Next Meeting: March 14, 2018 |
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4. |
Adjournment |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That the meeting be adjourned at 4:10 p.m. |
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CARRIED |
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Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Development Permit Panel of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Wednesday, February 28, 2018. |
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Cecilia Achiam |
Rustico Agawin |