Public Hearing Minutes - March 18, 2002

Regular Council Meeting for Public Hearings

Monday, March 18, 2002

Place:	Council Chambers Richmond City Hall 6911 No. 3 Road
Present:	Mayor Malcolm D. Brodie Councillor Lyn Greenhill Councillor Evelina Halsey-Brandt Councillor Rob Howard Councillor Kiichi Kumagai Councillor Bill McNulty Councillor Harold Steves David Weber, Acting City Clerk
Absent:	Councillor Linda Barnes Councillor Sue Halsey-Brandt
Call to Order:	Mayor Malcolm Brodie opened the proceedings at 7:07 p.m.

	1.	ZONING AMENDMENT BYLAW 7325 (RZ 01-198983) (10091 Williams Road; Applicant: Chane Singh)
		Applicants Comments:
		The applicant was present to answer any questions that may have come forth.
		Written Submissions:
		None.
		Submissions from the floor:
		Prior to submissions being heard from the floor staff were requested to provide clarification on how the two applications before Council would proceed due to the status of the four applications heard at the Public Hearing held on February 18, 2002.
		Mr. George Smith, 10451 Ainsworth Crescent, referred to the minutes of the February 18, 2002 Public Hearing and said that item (iii) of the comments under his name should have said "two feet below development grade after new infrastructure goes in" and not two feet below lane grade. Mr. Smith also referred to the last paragraph on page two of the staff report and said that he thought that the applicable Lot Size Policy should be Single-Family Lot Size Policy 5433. A cap to a sanitary sewer outlet in the lane was reported to be missing.
		Mr. Smith also expressed the following concerns, i) the site remediation and/or mitigation referred to in the report would only affect the immediate site and would not deal with the infrastructure deficiencies; ii) due to the problems identified within the infrastructure it would not be unfeasible for development to wait for the completion of the sanitary and storm water reports. Mr. Smith believed that developers would benefit from waiting for improvements and would not incur future problems as a result of the current deficiencies in the system; iii) that any Development Cost Charges collected would go to General Revenue and not specifically benefit the infrastructure deficiencies; and, iv) whether a risk would be incurred by the City if development was to proceed under the present circumstances.
		Mr. Smith concluded his comments by requesting that Council reject the application. Mr. Smith said that he was not opposed to the subdivision philosophy but was concerned about the possible effects the proposed development would have on the existing infrastructure and ultimately on the residents of the area.
		In response to a question from the Mayor, the Acting City Clerk, David Weber, provided information on the options open to Council for dealing with this matter. In response to a question from Cllr. Howard, the Manager, Development Applications, Joe Erceg, said that it was the Engineering Departments opinion that the existing infrastructure could accommodate the seven applications currently in process.
		Ms. Sandy Hanawalt, 10651 Dennis Crescent, said she has owned her home for twenty four years. Ms. Hanawalt was in favour of new development as she felt that new development, i.e. affordable new housing, would revitalize an area currently going downhill due to the number of rental houses. Ms. Hanawalt requested that the new development occur on Williams Road and No. 4 Road before Shell Road. The drainage problems of the home next door to Ms. Hanawalt, subsequent to the development of the lot adjacent to her neighbour, were mentioned. Ms. Hanawalt also expressed concern about the erosion that occurs in the unpaved alleyways and the effect that the increased number of accesses would have on this. A copy of a letter sent by Mr. and Mrs. Hanawalt to Jenny Beran, Planner, was provided and is attached as Schedule 1.
		Ms. Jennifer Rule, 10080 Albion Road, said she was concerned about the drainage issues and traffic safety, ie. the lack of posted speed limits or other signage in the alley ways.
		Mr. Archie Roberts, 10695 Aintree Place, said that he was not against the rezoning but that, in addition to his previous experiences with the present infrastructure not being capable of handling peak storm water volumes, he had now had his first encounter with the sanitary sewer system overflowing (into the lane).
		Mr. Albert Drinovz, 11340 Seaton Road, said that he was not opposed to the rezoning requests but rather was reiterating the problems with the storm and sanitary sewer infrastructure with the note that nine days out of ten the catch basins are full. Mr. Drinovz said that it was possible that thirty-two new homes could result from the current rezoning applications on Williams Road alone. He also said that some existing homes are 2.5 to 3 feet below street grade and would have to be raised for new development. A pump station located behind Mr. Drinovzs property was reported to be working overtime and that a bad smell was noticeable. In addition to the current burden on traffic and sewer systems, Mr. Drinovz questioned whether the schools in the area could accommodate the proposed new development.
		Mr. Archie Roberts, speaking for the second time, said that he preferred the low maintenance lanes as the potholes slowed down the traffic in the lanes.
PH03-01		It was moved and seconded
		*That Zoning Amendment Bylaw 7325 be tabled and brought back to a future public hearing pending the results of the Planning Committee deliberation of all seven applications.*
			CARRIED

	2.	ZONING AMENDMENT BYLAW 7326 (RZ 02-199174) (11271 Williams Road; Applicant: Joe Uppal)
		Applicants Comments:
		The applicant was present to answer any questions that may have come forth.
		A discussion then ensued on the appropriateness of proceeding with the public hearing on Zoning Amendment Bylaw 7326 in light of the action undertaken on Zoning Amendment Bylaw 7325. As a result of the discussion:
PH03-02		It was moved and seconded
		*That Zoning Amendment Bylaw 7326 be tabled and brought back to a future public hearing pending the results of the Planning Committee deliberation of all seven applications.*
			CARRIED

	3.	ZONING AMENDMENT BYLAW 7327 (RZ 01-198010) (10631 Bridgeport Road; Applicant: AFCO Construction Ltd.)
		Applicants Comments:
		The applicant was present to answer any questions that may have come forth.
		Written Submissions:
		Mr. Brian Cray, 10651 Bridgeport Road Schedule 2.
		Submissions from the floor:
		None.
PH03-03		It was moved and seconded
		*That Zoning Amendment Bylaw 7327 be given second and third readings.*
			CARRIED

4.

ADJOURNMENT

		It was moved and seconded
		*That the meeting adjourn (7:50 p.m.).*
			CARRIED

	Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the Regular Meeting for Public Hearings of the City of Richmond held on Monday, March 18, 2002.
_________________________________	_________________________________
Mayor (Malcolm D. Brodie)	Acting City Clerk (David Weber)

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