Date:

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Place:

Anderson Room

Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Bill McNulty, Chair

Councillor Greg Halsey-Brandt, Vice-Chair

Councillor Linda Barnes

Councillor Sue Halsey-Brandt

Absent:

Councillor Harold Steves

Call to Order:

The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m.

MINUTES

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Planning Committee held on Tuesday, January 18, 2011, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

Tuesday, February 22, 2011, (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room

PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT

1.

APPLICATION BY GURINDER S. BHANDAL FOR REZONING AT 10071 NO. 1 ROAD FROM SINGLE DETACHED (RS1/E) TO COACH HOUSES (RCH)

(File Ref. No.:  12-8060-20-8690, RZ 10-538208) (REDMS No. 3080011)

It was moved and seconded

That Bylaw No. 8690, for the rezoning of 10071 No. 1 Road from “Single Detached (RS1/E)” to “Coach Houses (RCH)”, be introduced and given First Reading.

CARRIED

2.

APPLICATION BY CHEN DESIGN STUDIO FOR REZONING AT 7900 BENNETT ROAD FROM SINGLE DETACHED (RS1/E) TO INFILL RESIDENTIAL (RI2)

(File Ref. No.:  12-8060-20-8699, RZ 10-521539) (REDMS No. 2972400)

In response to a query regarding access to the rear of the proposed two duplexes Wayne Craig, Program Coordinator, Development, advised that at the south-western perimeter of the subject site is an additional Right-of-Way wide enough to allow a turning radius for vehicles.

It was moved and seconded

That Bylaw No. 8699 for the rezoning of 7900 Bennett Road from “Single Detached (RS1/E)” to “Infill Residential (RI2)” be introduced and given First Reading.

CARRIED

3.

MILLTOWN MARINA AND BOATYARD APPLICATION TO PORT METRO VANCOUVER

(File Ref. No.: ) (REDMS No. 3139650)

Mr. Craig provided background information regarding the application, by Bastion Development and the Musqueam Indian Band, to develop a marina at Richmond Island. Mr. Craig remarked that Richmond Island lies within Richmond’s City boundaries, but that the site of the proposed installation of marina docks is owned by a subsidiary of Port Metro Vancouver (PMV).

Discussion ensued between Committee and staff, and in particular on:

PMV choosing to not proceed through a formal application with the City;

Richmond Island is not protected by a dyke so PMV should provide the City with appropriate documentation that would indemnify the City for all possible flooding or water damage to Richmond Island;

PMV would follow their own construction standards, and the City would have no influence over those construction standards; and

PMV should be encouraged to submit a Rezoning application to the City and include, with its Fraser River Estuary Management Program (FREMP) application, a request to amend the Area Designation Agreement with Richmond.

The Chair requested that staff use memorandums to keep the Planning Committee informed on the Milltown Marina and Boatyard Application.

It was moved and seconded

That staff be directed to:

(1)

convey Richmond’s strong preference that Port Metro Vancouver submit a formal application for Rezoning of the Richmond Island site to accommodate the proposed uses outlined in the Milltown Marina and Boatyard Application;

(2)

request that Port Metro Vancouver provide the City of Richmond with appropriate documentation indemnifying the City for any and all possible flooding or water damage to Richmond Island;

(3)

that Port Metro Vancouver include a request for an Area Designation Agreement amendment with their submission to the Fraser River Estuary Management Program (FREMP), and;

(4)

work with the various agencies and the City of Vancouver to resolve any service provision and tax agreements for this development as necessary.

CARRIED

COMMUNITY SERVICES DEPARTMENT

4.

SOCIAL PLANNING STRATEGY UPDATE

(File Ref. No.:  08-4055-20-SPST1) (REDMS No. 3060657)

In response to queries, John Foster, Manager, Community Social Development, and Sean Davies, Coordinator, Diversity Services, advised that:

to assist with the next steps of Strategy preparation, staff has issued a request for proposals for consultant services;

the majority of responses to the survey came from residents who were older than the “youth” category;

the survey underscored support for the Strategy, but the responses indicated no agreement on priorities; and

broad strategies and priorities will be identified in the Social Planning Strategy, with detailed implementation actions to be identified in subsequent Work Programs.

In response to the Chair’s query regarding the Strategy’s availability on the City’s website, Mr. Foster advised that a separate section has been established on the Community Services Department’s web pages for the Social Planning Strategy. The public would  be able to access the Social Planning Strategy update report from that section of the web.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report entitled “Social Planning Strategy Update”, dated January 17, 2011, be received for information.

CARRIED

5.

MANAGER’S REPORT

(a)

2041 OFFICIAL COMMUNITY PLAN (OCP) UPDATE  
- Staff Memo

(REDMS No. 3141184)

Terry Crowe, Manager, Policy Planning, provided background information on recent activities.  He advised that at a future meeting of the Planning Committee, staff would present analysis of the 488 received surveys in terms of the review of residential policies regarding densification of neighbourhoods outside the City Centre. 

A brief discussion ensued between Committee, Mr. Crowe and Joe Erceg, General Manager, Planning and Development Department, regarding the question of whether or not neighbourhoods have already indicated their aversion to densification.

Staff was asked to consider the issue of Land Use Contracts during the preparation of the forthcoming report regarding the 2041 OCP Survey Findings.

(b)

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE DRAFT DISCUSSION PAPER: “Bylaw Standard for Residential Use in the Agricultural Land Reserve”

– Staff Memo

(REDMS No. 3141401)

Mr. Erceg advised that when staff received the Ministry of Agriculture’s Draft Discussion Paper regarding residential uses in the Agricultural Land Reserve, staff communicated concern that the timeline for public input was unrealistic, and the Ministry agreed to extend the deadline for input to March 31, 2011.

The Agricultural Advisory Committee is scheduled to review the Ministry’s Draft Discussion Paper at its February 10, 2011 meeting.

Mr. Erceg stated that in terms of process, the Ministry should hold public discussions on the Draft Discussion Paper, and that City staff is encouraging the Ministry to do so.

Mr. Erceg remarked that, in asking the City to comment on a preferred proposal, the Ministry is asking for decision making at the municipal level. The City should not limit its comments on the Ministry’s preferred approach for residential uses in the Agricultural Land Reserve.

Discussion ensued between Committee and staff regarding:

the Ministry’s bylaw standards are not compulsory and municipalities can opt out if they so desire;

staff continues to communicate with Ministry representatives and encourage the Ministry to take a closer look at such issues as small lots in the Agriculture Land Reserve;

key stakeholders identified by the Ministry for consultation are: (i) planners; (ii) real estate industry representatives; and (iii) members of the agriculture industry; and

at a March, 2011 meeting of the Planning Committee, staff will present a report, and at that time residents can delegate on the issue.

Mr. Erceg advised that staff would communicate with the public regarding when the Ministry’s draft discussion paper on bylaw standard for residential use in the Agriculture Land Reserve would be discussed.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (4:39 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Planning Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Tuesday, February 8, 2011.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Councillor Bill McNulty

Chair

Sheila Johnston

Committee Clerk