Zoning change on hold
Last Monday, Osoyoos Town Council considered a rezoning application for a property known as Casa Del Mila Oro, located on the northeast side of Lakeshore Drive.
The applicant, Chris Stewart, requested the amendment to change the land use designation from C4 – Tourist Commercial to CR – Commercial Residential.
Prior to council's consideration, a public hearing on the application was heard in council chambers. Stewart's business partner, Rob Boyce, attended the hearing and rezoning application.
The subject property is currently in the final stages of a 46 unit tourist commercial development (motel). The proposed rezoning from C4 to CR will permit accommodation from a minimum of one week to a maximum of full-time or permanent occupancy.
The CR zoning defines a Resort Multiple Family Dwelling as a minimum of four strata dwelling units used as resort residences within a building or group of buildings designed as an integrated development, operated by a business licenced strata council in accordance with an approved rental pool scheme, provincial guest registration and payment of room taxes, and all municipal bylaws.
Council heard a few concerns from the public about allowing the rezoning, including concerns that, without all the units sold, how there could be a strata corporation in place.
The rules we have today would be that every single person that has a share in that structure today would have to agree to the new bylaw, Mayor John Slater explained.
Osoyoos resident Vadim Kobasew asked council why they are considering a rezoning without looking at the Official Community Plan at the public hearing, especially with a property being converted from tourist commercial to full-time occupancy.
If the developer has 100 per cent control over the strata corporation, it's very convenient to change the zoning before any of the actual individual units have been sold.
Essentially, what you've done is you've allowed the opportunity to change the tourist commercial property to an R7 zone without going through the process. And with the number of projects that are pending in east Osoyoos of a similar slant, I think that council should take a close look at that proposal before anything further takes place, Kobasew said.
Developer Rob Boyce said the proposed zoning amendment amounts only to a slight change.
When you look at that general neighbourhood, the Bayview subdivision, we believe that a hotel usage in there and all that activity would have more of a negative impact on the neighbourhood than the CR purpose that we're using, said Boyce.
Developers are bound through the Disclosure Act to include our intended use within our disclosure statement. That property has an amended disclosure statement to reflect the proposed change that we're looking for, Boyce affirmed.
Boyce added that the strata council will abide by the CR zoning.
This issue has really been worked through and I believe it's a win/win situation for the entire community, Boyce said.
Others spoke to concerns about parking and increased traffic in the area, and concerns about the town's ability to enforce all the provisions of the CR zoning bylaw.
Lakeshore Drive resident Gerry Van Der Gulik expressed particular concerns about allowing full-time occupancy, and the resulting increased number of cars added to the area.
I'm surprised no one has been killed there yet. It's an extremely dangerous corner, Van Der Gulik said.
But what concerns me more is every time somebody goes to enquire about the units, they are told, 'Don't worry about the road, because the road will be closed.'rnRob Boyce said he was only stating his opinion about the traffic issue to prospective buyers, not stating the road closure as fact.
As we all know, there's all kinds of speculation about the east Lakeshore traffic study, Boyce said.
When a customer asks me why the town took this back corner easement, I explain to them that it could have something to do with the east Lakeshore traffic study, Boyce explained.
When the zoning amendment bylaw was up for consideration at the council meeting, councillor Dick Flintoft made a motion that only a second reading be given to the bylaw and that further information was needed before a third reading.
The motion was seconded by councillor Tom Shields.
Before we give it a third reading we need to give some assurances to everybody that it's going to be continuing in a 'touristy' vein, said Shields.
That's what we want to make sure, Mayor John Slater said.
