April 8, 2026 - Minutes
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Planning Committee
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Date: |
Wednesday, April 8, 2026 |
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Place: |
Anderson Room |
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Present: |
Councillor Bill McNulty, Chair |
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Also Present: |
Councillor Kash Heed (by teleconference) |
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Call to Order: |
The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 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 Planning Committee held on March 17, 2026, be adopted as circulated. |
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CARRIED |
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PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION |
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1. |
(File Ref. No. RZ 25-015421; AG 25-016791) (REDMS No. 8218100) |
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Staff provided a brief overview of the report. |
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In response to queries from Committee, staff advised that (i) the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) will be reviewing the necessity of the accommodation in relation to the scale of the agricultural operation, (ii) the applicant is a large scale agricultural operation, (iii) the bridge is a partially failed culvert that requires repair and maintenance, (iv) the application necessitates going to the ALC as the building is larger than what the ALC permits, (v) the applicant has provided a conceptual drawing for the purpose of stating where a future proposed farm labour accommodation may be located; the access will be reviewed at the time of any future building permit or development application, and (vi) any changes to the agreed to Environmentally Sensitive Area compensation would be dealt with through the Development Permit process, which would ultimately go to Council for issuance and consideration. |
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It was moved and seconded |
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(1) |
That the application by Stephen Easterbrook for an Agricultural Land Reserve Non-Adhering Residential Use to allow full-time farm labour accommodation at 17720 River Road be forwarded to the Agricultural Land Commission; and |
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(2) |
That Richmond Zoning Bylaw 8500, Amendment Bylaw 10733, for the rezoning of 17720 River Road from “Agriculture (AG1)” zone to “Agriculture (AG3)” zone to permit full-time farm labour accommodation, be introduced and given first reading. |
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CARRIED |
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2. |
(File Ref. No. RZ 21-933877) (REDMS No. 8339580) |
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Staff provided a brief overview of the application noting (i) one of the five townhouse units proposed will contain a secondary suite, with a second townhouse unit to be designed as a convertible unit, (ii) the application is consistent with the “Arterial Connectors – Tier 1” land use designation in the Official Community Plan (OCP) to support future development of adjacent sites and to reduce the number of vehicle access points along Garden City Road, (iii) the applicant is required to register a Statutory Right of Way for public passage on Title for the area of the drive aisle prior to final adoption of the rezoning bylaw, and (iv) as part of the future Development Permit application, the applicant will be seeking two variances to the zoning bylaw to reduce the minimum required lot width from 40.0 m. to 30.0 m. |
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In response to queries from Committee, staff advised (i) the future potential redevelopment to the north would have the ability to use the access via the Statutory Right-of-Way (ROW) that will be registered on Title over the site (a drive aisle), which could be used to provide access to the north in the future or to the south, and (ii) the agreement and the covenant will both be registered on Title of both the common property (where the physical ROW will occur) and the covenant will show on each of the strata lots; the wording of the agreement also requires the owner to disclose this to the initial purchasers as well as installed signage in their sales centre to ensure purchasers are aware at the time of purchase. |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That Richmond Zoning Bylaw 8500, Amendment Bylaw 10746, for the rezoning of 9600/9620 Garden City Road from the “Two-Unit Dwellings (RD1)” zone to the “Low Density Townhouses (RTL4)” zone, be introduced and given first, second and third reading. |
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CARRIED |
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3. |
Application by Leslie Gordon for a Temporary Commercial Use Permit at 7791 Steveston Highway (File Ref. No. TU 26-002761) (REDMS No. 8325309) |
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Staff provided a brief overview of the report noting the application is for a three-year Temporary Use Permit (TUP) to allow a second-hand retail store in a multi-unit commercial building at the northwest corner at Steveston Highway and No. 3 Road, and (ii) no further changes are being proposed at the site. |
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In response to a query from Committee, staff advised (i) the TUP was at the applicant’s request as it is consistent with their business needs and leasing arrangements, (ii) a zoning text amendment or rezoning process was not considered on this site as opening up the zoning at this time would introduce other requirements such as frontage works and other improvements to the site, therefore a TUP was proposed based on the immediate needs of the occupier. |
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It was moved and seconded |
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(1) |
That the application by Leslie Gordon for a Temporary Commercial Use Permit for the property at 7791 Steveston Highway, to allow “retail, second hand” as a permitted use, be considered for a period of three years from the date of issuance; and |
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(2) |
That this application be forwarded to the May 19, 2026, Public Hearing at 5:30 pm in the Council Chambers of Richmond City Hall. |
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CARRIED |
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4. |
(File Ref. No. 08-4045-30-02) (REDMS No. 8343643) |
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With the aid of a PowerPoint (attached to and forming part of these minutes as Schedule 1), staff provided an overview of the report, prepared in response to the staff referral to (i) analyze existing policies that prohibit new aircraft noise sensitive uses, including new residential development in Bridgeport and Aberdeen Village; and (ii) evaluate the merits and procedures for changing the OCP to permit mixed-use and high-density residential and rental in areas within Bridgeport and Aberdeen Village. |
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Staff further noted the two options for the Committee’s consideration with respect to the technical procedure for changing the OCP. |
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In response to queries from Committee, staff advised (i) for the properties in the subject areas, the current zoning for residential properties are either single-family or duplex, with the exception one apartment property in Aberdeen Village as the result of being an in-stream application at the time at which the ANSD policy was adopted, with most of the other sites generally light industrial, commercial, limited retail office uses and a few sites more recently developed with their zoning reflective of designations in the OCP, (ii) of the 22 applications currently in process, and in various stages of approvals, there are a variety of primarily hotel and commercial applications throughout the Bridgeport area, ranging from approximately nine storey structures up to 14 storeys, and some development permits for a variety of commercial, industrial, institutional, and office within Aberdeen Village, all consistent with existing policies, (iii) residential uses within Bridgeport and Aberdeen Village would be contrary to the City’s policy and would require an OCP amendment; the use could be restricted to rental only using rental tenure zoning, (iv) permitted building heights within the study area would be in accordance with Provincial Legislation, ranging from eight to 12 storeys depending on proximity to a Canada Line station, (v) in terms of the study areas, it is important to point out that Aberdeen Village is under south runway, which is a 24 hour per day runway, and Bridgeport Village is primarily under a daytime operation runway, (vi) in terms of internal noise mitigation, it is possible to mitigate noise within a building with windows closed, however the City has a requirement that all residential have access to outdoor amenity space on site, which would difficult to design to be insulated from the aircraft noise, (vii) city-wide the City has lower industrial and office vacancy rates compared to regional averages, (viii) there has been a lot of opportunities for residential, especially through Provincial legislation and the updated OCP, but what staff are finding with employment lands is that there isn’t additional land for new industrial, and the only areas that could be considered for new industrial, commercial or office opportunities is Aberdeen or Bridgeport as those areas are going through a transition, whereas all the other employment areas are built out, (ix) the new Aberdeen Village elementary school recently announced is on a site that has been zoned School for decades, but if it was a rezoning for a proposed new school, it would not be permitted, (x) hotels are permitted in Bridgeport and Aberdeen Village, however the maximum length of stay is typically limited to 30 days, (xi) there is a Record of Understanding with the City and Vancouver International Airport Authority related to intensions to minimize impacts from aircraft noise; the NAV Canada guidelines suggest that any Noise Exposure Forecast (NEF) of 30 or greater be areas where new noise sensitive uses be not permitted, and in the case of Bridgeport and Aberdeen Village, those areas are at a minimum of 30 NEF and some are over 40 NEF, so they are heavily impacted areas, and (xii) there are specific mitigations in the City’s bylaw that requires acoustic engineering for residential developments that are underneath noise sensitive areas which will inform the building envelope of how noise (whether traffic or aircraft) may be mitigated. |
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As a result of the discussion, a referral motion to refer the report back to staff to separate Aberdeen Village from Bridgeport for further consideration was introduced but failed to receive a seconder. |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That the existing approach applied in the Aberdeen and Bridgeport Village area (Option 1) as outlined in the report titled “Review of Existing Aircraft Noise Sensitive Land Use Policies and Consideration of the Merits and Implications of Supporting New Residential Development in Affected Areas”, dated March 20, 2026, from the Director, Policy Planning, be preserved at this time. |
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CARRIED |
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DEPUTY CAO’S OFFICE |
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5. |
Housing Agreement Amendment Application for 7557 Cst. Jimmy Ng Road (formerly 6551 No. 3 Road) (File Ref. No. 08-4057-05) (REDMS No. 8277021) |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That Housing Agreement (Affordable Housing) (6551 No.3 Road) Bylaw No. 9952, Amendment Bylaw 10708 be introduced and given first, second, and third readings. |
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CARRIED |
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6. |
MANAGER’S REPORT |
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(i) |
2026 Lulu Awards |
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Staff noted the deadline for the 2026 Lulu Awards program for urban design has been extended to April 30, 2026. The extension provides additional time for nominees to prepare their submissions for the jury’s consideration, with awards anticipated to be presented in the fall. |
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ADJOURNMENT |
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It was moved and seconded |
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That the meeting adjourn (5:06 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 Planning Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Wednesday, April 8, 2026. |
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_________________________________ |
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Councillor Bill McNulty |
Lorraine Anderson |