Hello and welcome to Issue #14 of Zone In, Situate’s newsletter on what’s happening at Edmonton City Council public hearings on land development. The next City Council public hearing is tomorrow, Tuesday October 18. Below is our summary of what’s on the agenda. But first—find out what Council approved at the last public hearing on October 4.

THE ‘WHY’ BEHIND ZONE IN

We created Zone In to make it quicker to find out what’s happening at City Council public hearings, and easier to show your support for rezoning applications that make sense for our city. Zone In focuses on applications related to infill and urban redevelopment; Situate’s client files are highlighted in orange.

October 4, 2022 PUBLIC HEARING RECAP

Let’s start with a recap of what happened at the October 4th public hearing.

The agenda had a total of 16 applications (25 agenda items). The October 4 public hearing agenda had a total of 11 applications (15 agenda items). Of the six redeveloping area (infill) applications, three were approved unanimously without debate. The other three (shown in bold text below) were selected for debate. If you’d like to review the details of the files approved with no debate, check out past Zone In Issue #13.

Infill Agenda Items: 3.9    3.10/3.11    3.12    3.13    3.14    3.15

Item 3.10/3.11 was an application to rezone a 697 square metre lot in Britannia Youngstown at the corner of 161 Street and 103 Avenue. The application was submitted by a private landowner and proposed to rezone the site from the RF4 (semi-detached residential) zone to the RF3 (small scale infill development) zone. The rezoning would allow for the development of small-scale multi-unit (row) housing. The rezoning required an amendment to the Jasper Place Area Redevelopment Plan to redesignate the site from “Small Scale Housing” to “Active Edge Housing.” The site is located within the Stony Plain Road Primary Corridor. At the public hearing, there were two speakers in opposition who raised concerns around parking, density, building height, social cohesion, and safety. The rezoning was approved unanimously, with Councillor Knack stating that new row housing will bring people back to the neighbourhood, which has lost a significant amount of its population, and bring more stability to the community.

Item 3.14 was an application to rezone a 713 square metre lot in McKernan at the corner of 114 Street and University Avenue. The application was submitted by a private landowner and proposes to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RA8 (medium rise apartment) zone. The rezoning would allow for mid-rise multi-unit housing (6 storeys) with limited commercial opportunities at the ground level. The rezoning aligns with the McKernan-Belgravia Station Area Redevelopment Plan. The site is located within the University of Alberta Major Node and is within 350 metres of both the McKernan / Belgravia and Health Sciences LRT Stops.  At the public hearing there was one speaker in opposition who raised concerns that the neighbouring single detached houses will become an island that will be impossible to redevelop, causing property values to decrease. Administration responded that the adjacent lots are large enough to be redeveloped into a mid-rise building in the future, and that waiting for more lots to be consolidated would inhibit densification of corridors. The rezoning was approved unanimously.

Item 3.15 was an application to rezone a 1,347 square metre site consisting of two adjacent lots in Glenora at the corner of 138 Street and 102 Avenue. The application was submitted by Situate on behalf of a group of private landowners and proposed to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RA8 (medium rise apartment) zone. The rezoning would allow for mid-rise multi-unit housing (6 storeys) with limited commercial opportunities at the ground level. The site is located within the Stony Plain Road Primary Corridor and just over 200 metres from the future Grovenor/142 Street LRT Stop.

There were three speakers in favour (Situate and one of the landowners) and six speakers in opposition to the rezoning. Concerns from the speakers in opposition primarily centered around loss of mature trees and greenspace, suitability of mid-rise density, heritage and neighbourhood preservation, traffic and safety, and housing affordability. 

The lengthy debate was about 2.5 hours long (and too much to summarize here!) so we’ve just captured a few highlights. A few speakers noted concerns related to the loss of greenspace and mature boulevard trees due to the LRT alignment as well as a potential heat island effect. Councillor Salvador noted that two of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions are land use and transportation, and that increasing density can help mitigate those things.

Regarding concerns about density, various Councillors stated that the rezoning application aligns with City Plan policy direction for Primary Corridors and will provide transit-oriented development to support the new LRT. Various Councillors noted that the target of achieving 50% of new housing units through infill across all neighbourhoods cannot be achieved unless the density is spread across all neighbourhoods.

Ward Councillor Knack stated that more housing choice and a greater variety of housing is needed (particularly for seniors) so that residents can stay in the neighbourhood. He also noted that the City and Edmontonians need to have broader conversations about heritage and what should be preserved. This was further reiterated by Councillor Hamilton who noted that Council hears from many neighbourhoods that they are unique, and that neighbourhoods need to also think about what their heritage is beyond the single detached dwelling form. The rezoning was approved unanimously.

OCTOBER 18, 2022 PUBLIC HEARING AGENDA OVERVIEW

The October 18 public hearing agenda has a total of 13 applications (19 agenda items).

The agenda includes 7 applications in the redeveloping area. These applications are profiled below, with the exception of Item 3.1 which is a rezoning to allow for a dry pond in Kenilworth.

3.1    3.2    3.3    3.4    3.5    3.6    3.7    3.8/3.9/3.10    3.11/3.12/3.13    3.14/3.15 3.16/3.17  3.18   3.19

Item 3.4 is an application to rezone a 864 square metre lot in Crestwood at the corner of 146 Street and 95 Avenue. The application was submitted by Franken Homes and proposes to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RF3 (small scale infill development) zone. The rezoning would allow for the development of small-scale multi-unit (row) housing. The site is not located within any nodes or corridors, but it aligns with City Plan policies that support infill development in all residential areas.

Item 3.5 is an application to rezone a 742 square metre lot in Grandview Heights that is surrounded on three sides by roadways; 122 Street, 123 Street, and 63 Avenue. The application was submitted by Trike Construction Ltd. and proposes to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RF3 (small scale infill development) zone. The rezoning would allow for the development of small-scale multi-unit (row) housing. The site is not located within any nodes or corridors, but it aligns with City Plan policies that support infill development in all residential areas.

Item 3.6 is an application to rezone a 682 square metre lot in High Park at the corner of 150 Street and 109 Avenue. The application was submitted by Franken Homes and proposes to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RF3 (small scale infill development) zone. The rezoning would allow for the development of small-scale (row) multi-unit housing. The site is located within the 149 Street Secondary Corridor.

Item 3.7 is an application to rezone a 688 square metre lot in Jasper Park at the corner of 154 Street and 89 Avenue. The application was submitted by a private landowner and proposes to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RF3 (small scale infill development) zone. The rezoning would allow for the development of small-scale (row) multi-unit housing. The site is not located within any nodes or corridors, but is 650 metres from the future Meadowlark LRT stop.

Item 3.18 is an application to rezone several lots in Boyle Street on 96 Street between 101a Avenue and 103a Avenue. The application was submitted by Invistec Consulting Ltd. on behalf of AUM Hotel Group Inc. and proposes to rezone the area from DC1 (direct development control provision) to a new DC1 provision. The rezoning would allow for developer sponsored affordable housing contributions within Area 1 of the Armature Quarter to be satisfied by converting existing hotel rooms to affordable residential units. The site is located within the Centre City node.

Item 3.19 is an application to rezone a 1,869 square metre site in Sherwood at the corner of 156 Street and 93a Avenue. The application was submitted by a private landowner and proposes to rezone the site from the RF1 (single detached residential) zone to the RA7 (low rise apartment) zone. The rezoning would allow for low-rise multi-unit housing (4 storeys) with limited commercial opportunities at the ground level. The site is located within the 156 Street Secondary Corridor and is within 300 metres of the future 156 Street/95 Avenue LRT stop.

All of the infill files have support from the City of Edmonton Administration and align with City Plan.

HOW TO SHOW SUPPORT

It’s easy to show support. Simply send a quick email to Council at council@edmonton.ca and city.clerk@edmonton.ca with the subject line “SUPPORT re: Item #.##, October 18, 2022 Public Hearing” and body text along the lines of “I am an Edmontonian who supports the City Plan goals of creating a more livable, sustainable and compact city with attainable housing options for all Edmontontians. For that reason I fully support the above referenced project.” The City recommends that submissions be sent by 4:30PM the day before the public hearing (next Monday). Submissions sent thereafter will be shared with Council the morning of the public hearing.

HOW TO WATCH PUBLIC HEARINGS

If you really love infill and municipal politics, tune in and watch the public hearing live on the City’s YouTube channel! The action starts at 1:30 PM on Tuesday, October 18.

ZONING BYLAW RENEWAL AND DISTRICT PLANNING

Help refine the draft Zoning Bylaw, Edmonton’s “rulebook” for development, and the draft District General Policy and district plans, which together provide the long-term direction for growth and change in Edmonton. Register for one or more of the following online workshops to learn more and provide your feedback on:

Guiding Neighbourhood Redevelopment (Nov 5): REGISTER NOW!

Enabling Growth in Nodes and Corridors (Nov 17): REGISTER NOW!

Fostering 15-Minute Communities (Oct 20 or Nov 26): REGISTER NOW!

Sessions are limited to 60 participants. You can also tour the new draft Zoning Bylaw here.

THAT’S A WRAP

Thank you for reading this far! We hope you found the content useful. If you have any feedback for us, hit reply and let us know. You can subscribe to this newsletter or check out old editions on our webpage, here. And of course, if you don’t want to receive emails from us, please unsubscribe anytime by using the link in the footer. The next City Council public hearing is Tuesday, October 4. Watch your inbox for our next issue!