By Don Urquhart, Times Chronicle
Osoyoos Town Council considered not one, but three applications seeking rezoning to build housing ranging from a single-family dwelling up to a 40-unit townhome complex during a council meeting on May 10.
All three represent litmus tests of the Official Community Plan’s stated intent to contribute to the housing stock in Osoyoos, but not all garnered whole-hearted support. Each of the applications will soon be open for public comment.
In particular, an application to amend the Official Community Plan (OCP) designation and zoning in order to build a mixed residential use property of 22 homes consisting of five three-level townhouses and a 17-unit condominium/apartment met with some resistance.
The developer of the project, West Vancouver-based Sterling Pacific Holdings Inc. said the proposal represents Osoyoos’ first residential development that satisfies the need for the ‘missing middle’ housing stock which is outlined in the Official Community Plan.
Sterling Pacific said it aims to create a “dynamic and much-needed development on the currently empty lot in order to add housing options that Osoyoos is severely lacking.
“The units will be offered to Osoyoos residents first, as it is very important that all community members remain and continue to create the vibrant community that is Osoyoos,” it said.
The property, located at 7808 Spartan Drive, is currently designated as ‘Institutional’ and as such requires both an OCP amendment from ‘Public Institutional’ to ‘Comprehensive Development’ as well as a rezoning from Institutional to CD 13 Comprehensive Development Zone.
In a staff report to Council, it was noted that the proposed amendment to the OCP would allow for a use “which is consistent with the community needs which were established as part of the development of the Town’s new OCP,” and will address a specific need for housing in Osoyoos.
In the final analysis, staff supported the rezoning and redesignation of the property based on the fact the project will aid in addressing the housing shortage in the community. The developer is proposing that 75 per cent of the apartment units will be rentals for 20 years with 33 per cent of the rental stock being “below market” pricing for a minimum of five years.
Gina MacKay, director of Planning and Development Services clarified that “below market rental prices” are not determined by the Town, but rather from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data. She added that typically these rates are about 30 per cent below prevailing market rates.
Commenting on the proposal Jim Zakall, director and deputy/acting CAO of the Town of Osoyoos highlighted that under the OCP, land use policies explicitly underscore the need for institutional land. “These uses will continue to play an increasingly important role as the community continues to grow and demand for public facilities increases as a result,” he said.
“It is my recommendation that Council deny this request, a lot of work was done during this OCP review, the demand for future public facilities was noted and removing one of the remaining institutionally zoned properties reduces the available properties for public facilities,” he added.
Like Zakall, Mayor Sue McKortoff opposed the redesignation of the property out of the Institutional category. “I agree with CAO at this point. I don’t see the need to change the zoning in order to accommodate more rentals and apartments when we have already done that for many other areas and many are in process now,” McKortoff said.
“I’m not convinced that we need to remove a small piece of property from Institutional in order to provide housing. I agree housing is a huge concern in our town but we do have many, many projects . . . which are being developed and are being built, many with affordable housing components with them.” The mayor noted there are over 500 housing starts in the works.
Councillor Brian Harvey meanwhile, disagreed, throwing his support behind the proposal. He noted that while there are a number of housing units coming along, most of them are units destined to be sold on the market “and we know what the market is like here, million-plus,” he added.
“Rental stock is a different question and for me adding rental stock is a way higher priority than having space for another place of worship. No direct for people who go to places of worship but the priorities just do not compare,” Harvey said.
In response, McKortoff countered that she is “totally in favour of rental stock,” but has concerns over the cost. “This is a pretty high-end rental place and I would think that considering the area where it is proposed to be built, the rental stock would certainly not be low-cost rental. It would probably be high level and we seem to have quite a few of those.”
The proposal received a first and second reading with only McKortoff in opposition. A public hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, May 31 in council chambers.
Redesignating Tourist to Residential
Council also considered an application for a zoning amendment in order to change the property at 5003 Lakeshore Drive (the former Osoyoos campground and waterslides) from tourist to residential zoning.
Mission-based Hot-Sand Developments Ltd. is proposing to develop the eastern portion (Lot B) of the property into a 40-unit townhome project. The western portion of the property (Lot A) will remain as a commercial site and will include a small café.
This will require a zoning amendment to change from C4 Tourist Commercial to R7-High Density Residential (Lot B portion of the property). The proposed density of 40 units is far less than the 75 per hectare allowed under this high-density zoning.
McKortoff expressed concern that Lakeshore Drive may not have the capacity for the traffic that will be generated as more housing and facilities are added.
Zakall agreed, highlighting that the issue of development on this road “again brings up the issue of a second access to Lakeshore Drive. As these properties develop and traffic flows change it puts extra pressure on us to get this done. It has been a very, very slow process with highways,” he added.
MacKay noted that with the rezoning, traffic would be lighter than it would be under the previous tourist commercial zoning.
She also said there is some “additional road width” on Lakeshore Drive that is undeveloped and with the right of way that would enable widening without needing to undertake any land expropriation, but warned “it wouldn’t be easy or cheap.”
McKortoff said she is hopeful for a new entrance to Lakeshore Drive from Hwy 3, but “at a minimum, we want a traffic light.” She understands that the Osoyoos Indian Band is also in discussion with the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure about Nk’Mip corner.
Council approved first and second readings and a public hearing will be held soon.
Housing via densification
The remaining proposal before Council involved a slightly different aspect of the housing development intention of the OCP, this time involving densification.
In this matter, Council was being asked to approve a zoning amendment for the subdivision of a property into two small lots.
The property located at 4008 Oleander Drive was zoned R1 – Single Family Residential with the applicant seeking to have it amended to R2 – Single Family Residential Small Lot. The proposed re-designation would allow for a minimum lot size of 400 square metres, which meets the requirement to subdivide the property into two small lots, according to Town staff.
Adequate services have been confirmed for the proposed new lot.
MacKay commented on a couple of factors that made the lot a perfect candidate for subdivision, including the fact it was a corner lot and that the original house had been built at the very front of the lot. “Under the Official Community Plan many of these lots can be developed as duplexes,” she also noted.
Council approved the application which underwent first and second readings. A public hearing on the rezoning will be held on May 24.
