MINUTES
of a regular meeting of COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE of the Municipal
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PRESENT: |
Mayor C. M. Causton,
Chairman Councillor
H. Braithwaite
(arrived at 7:56 p.m.) Councillor
S. F. B. Carson Councillor A. R.
Cassidy Councillor P. Copley Councillor N. B.
Jensen |
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STAFF: |
Municipal
Administrator, W. E. Cochrane Municipal
Clerk, L. Hilton Confidential
Secretary, K. Green Director
of Building and Planning, N. Beattie Municipal
Treasurer, P. A. Walker Director
of Engineering Services, D. |
FINANCE SECTION: (Acting Chairman
– Mayor Causton)
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1. |
2007-258 2007-256 2007-256-1 |
MUNICIPAL TREASURER, September 26, 2007 OAK BAY KIWANIS HOUSING SOCIETY, September 20, 2007 MUNICIPAL ADMINISTRATOR,
September 20, 2007 Re Application for Permissive Tax Exemption for |
The Municipal
Treasurer noted that staff was requested to prepare a report to be brought
forward to Committee of the Whole with respect to the existing senior’s housing
complexes and their associated taxes.
Ms. Walker gave
a brief overview of the permissive tax exemption application received from the
Oak Bay Kiwanis Housing Society saying that it came about following notice to
the Municipality that the entire property at 2075 Milton Street (Kiwanis Manor)
had been incorrectly identified by BC Assessment as being exempt, where in fact
the only statutory tax exemption should have applied to the building and the
land it sits on and exemption for the remainder of the property would require
Council to adopt a permissive tax exemption bylaw specifically for this
property. Ms. Walker said she then
advised Oak Bay Kiwanis Housing Society of the situation, which prompted the application
for permissive tax exemption that is now before Committee of the Whole.
Attention was
drawn to correspondence item no. 2007-256-1 being a memorandum from the
Municipal Administrator that notes the Kiwanis Manor building was exempt by
virtue of “grandfather” legislation, which grants an automatic exemption for
the building and the land it sits on provided it was built before April 1, 1974
and with the aid of a grant from the Province as well as being a building used
for non-profit senior housing. It was
confirmed that the Kiwanis Manor was built in 1972.
The Municipal
Administrator, responding to questions, noted that Council may want to satisfy itself
that the Kiwanis Manor situation is distinctive from other senior housing
developments in the Municipality if it goes forward with the exemption, and if
it is not prepared to grant exemptions to other senior’s housing development.
Members of
the Committee acknowledged that there are no other senior’s housing
developments in the same situation, where they had always been tax exempt then
faced being taxed long after the development had been established.
MOVED by Councillor Carson
Seconded by Councillor
Jensen, That a Permissive Tax Exemption Bylaw with respect to
It was surmised that the
business plan for Kiwanis Manor had been based on being tax exempt from when it
was first built, whereas other non profit senior’s housing developments were
faced with business plans based on different assumptions, and it was the view
of the Committee that through a tax exemption for the lands surrounding the
statutorily exempt building and land under the Kiwanis Manor, was supportable
in this situation.
The question was then
called.
CARRIED
LAND USE SECTION: (Chairman –
Councillor Cassidy)
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2. |
2007-259 |
DIRECTOR OF
BUILDING AND PLANNING, September 25, 2007 Re Development Variance Permit Application – |
Brian Town, J.
Town Developments Ltd., was in attendance representing the property
owners, saying he encourages homeowners to consider installing a heat pump as
an energy efficient addition to their home.
The preferred location for the heat pump at
Members of
the Committee acknowledged that an immediate neighbour would be most affected
by the installation of the heat pump at the proposed location, and Mr. Town
noted that neighbour is away and expected back next week. It was suggested that if the neighbour had
not returned prior to Council considering final approval of the variance,
following the notification stage, that the resolution to issue the development
variance permit could be re-tabled until such time as the neighbour had
returned.
MOVED by Councillor Jensen
Seconded by Councillor
Copley, That a resolution authorizing the issuance of a development variance
permit for
CARRIED
Councillor Braithwaite
arrived at 7:56 p.m.
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3. |
2007-260 |
DIRECTOR OF
BUILDING AND PLANNING, September 25, 2007 Re Development Variance Permit Application – |
Ben Kelley, ben kelley
design consultant inc., on behalf of the applicants, explained the
plans for the proposed new single family dwelling noting that in order to
proceed with construction of the dwelling a variance is required for the
maximum floor area. Mr. Kelley went on to say that thought went into ensuring the
proposed design would fit this site without overpowering it.
Discussion ensued
regarding the floor area required and its distribution on various levels of the
house and Mr. Kelley answered questions from the Committee in this regard.
Attention was drawn to
the two driveways, which are permitted on a corner lot, and Mr. Kelley noted
that the two parking areas would be useful for guests and would reduce parking
on the street.
There was further
discussion and concerns were raised regarding how the proposed home would fit
in with the existing streetscape, including the adjacent homes and public park,
and it was suggested that additional elevation drawings be submitted to
illustrate this.
It was the majority view
of the Committee that inasmuch as this is the first development variance permit
application since the implementation of the new floor area regulations that
would apply to a new single family dwelling versus renovations to an existing
home, caution should be exercised in moving forward into this new area.
It was noted that Council
in the past has been reluctant to grant variances with respect to new dwellings,
as it has been felt that when dealing with a vacant lot, applicants should be
able to comply with the regulations, and the view was expressed that further
information regarding the request would be desirable prior to considering
undertaking notification to neighbours.
MOVED by Councillor Jensen
Seconded by Councillor
Braithwaite, That the applicant be requested to provide additional elevation
drawings to show the property in the context of the neighbouring properties for
consideration by Committee of the Whole.
CARRIED
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4. |
2007-261 2007-251 |
DIRECTOR OF
BUILDING AND PLANNING, September 25, 2007 DIRECTOR OF
BUILDING AND PLANNING, September 10, 2007 Re Proposed Amendments – Land Use
Application Procedure and Fee Assessment Bylaw |
The Director of Building
and Planning provided an overview of the proposed amendment to the Land Use
Application Procedure and Fee Assessment Bylaw noting that it would implement a
sliding scale method for calculating development permit security requirements.
There was discussion
regarding a common method used by other municipalities for calculating security
deposits based on charging 125% of the landscaping cost, and it was the view of
the Committee that the sliding scale method would be a more preferable means of
calculating security deposits, which is similar to the method used for
calculating building permit fees in Oak Bay.
Responding to questions,
Mr. Beattie confirmed that he felt that the proposed sliding scale would
provide adequate amounts of security for the Municipality.
MOVED by Councillor Jensen
Seconded by Councillor
Braithwaite, That staff draft an amendment to the Land Use Application
Procedure and Fee Assessment Bylaw No. 4213 that would introduce a sliding
scale method to determine the required security on developments, and would
implement the three other proposed amendments as indicated in the
correspondence item no. 2007-261, being a memorandum from the Director of
Building and Planning dated September 25, 2007.
Mr Beattie noted that should
the amendment be adopted, it would be staff’s intention to provide a partial
refund of the security deposit paid with respect to the Oak Bay Beach Hotel
redevelopment, which is the only development that is currently affected by the
change, keeping only what would be warranted under the new bylaw.
The
question was then called.
CARRIED
PUBLIC WORKS SECTION: (Acting Chairman
– Mayor Causton)
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5. |
2007-262 2007-262-1 |
DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING SERVICES, September 27, 2007 ANDREA
HUGHES, October 1, 2007 Re
Boulevard Encroachment Application – |
MOVED by Councillor Jensen
Seconded by Councillor
Copley, That it be recommended to Council that approval be given to amend the
existing boulevard encroachment agreement for
CARRIED
ADJOURNMENT:
MOVED by
Councillor Jensen
Seconded by
Councillor Braithwaite, That the meeting of Committee of the Whole be adjourned.
CARRIED
The meeting adjourned at
8:55 p.m.
Certified Correct:
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Municipal
Clerk |
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Acting
Chairman, Finance Section |
|
Chairman,
Land Use Section |
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Acting
Chairman, Public Works Section |