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APPELLANT’S SUBMISSION:
Ya
Nan Deng submitted an application to allow
for the construction of a new single family home with secondary suite and
attached garage at 4958 Portland Street.
Joe
Yue and Ya Deng appeared before members of the Board of Variance.
BURNABY
PLANNING AND BUILDING DEPARTMENT COMMENTS:
The subject site, which is zoned R2
Residential District, is located in the Sussex-Nelson area, in a mature
single family neighbourhood. This slightly irregular (trapezoid shaped)
interior lot is approximately 198.8 ft. wide along its frontage onto Portland
Street to the north and approximately 178.8 ft. deep along the east (side)
property line. Abutting the site to the west and south are single family
dwellings. Immediately east is Frogger’s Creek Ravine Park. (The undeveloped section
of Portland Street right of way continues into the park area further to the
east of the subject.) Vehicular access to the site is provided from Portland
Street; no lane access is available.
The site topography presents a
challenge by the fact that the south-eastern (diagonal) portion of the site
(approximately a half of the overall lot area) is occupied by the Frogger's
Creek steep ravine. The terrain within the ravine drops significantly,
approximately 87.0 ft., towards the south-eastern corner of the site. The
remaining north-western portion of the lot observes a moderate downward slope
of approximately 10.0 ft. from the north-west corner towards the ravine to
the south-east.
Due to the presence of Frogger's
Creek, which runs roughly on angle in relation to the east (side) property
line, this
proposal is subject to the Streamside Protection and Enhancement Area (SPEA)
regulations provided in Section 6.23 of the Zoning Bylaw. In 2016 August 10, the
Environmental Review Committee (ERC) supported the proposal to vary the SPEA
streamside setback requirement of 32.8 ft. (10 m) to 26.2 ft. (8 m) at the
southeastern portion of the site, This decision is subject to registration of a Section
19 covenant for protection and enhancement of the SPEA, including a
‘no-build’ restriction consistent with the recommendations in the
geotechnical report, which is now in process.
It is noted that the
location of the creek and the associated ‘no build’ setback significantly
impacts the area available for development, by limiting this area to the
north-western corner of the site. A triangular space remaining between the
required front yard setback and these features would be approximately 5 % of the
lot area.
The subject site is proposed to be
re-developed with a new single family dwelling, including a secondary suite
and an attached garage, for which two variances have been requested.
The second b) appeal will be
discussed first and the first a) appeal comments will follow.
The second b)
appeal proposes
the relaxation of Section 102.8(1) – “Front Yard” of the Burnaby Zoning Bylaw
from 24.6 ft. to 19.5 ft. The purpose of this variance is to allow the
construction of a single family dwelling encroaching into the required front
yard abutting Portland Street. Section 6.12
– “Yards” of the Zoning Bylaw which allows specific projections into the
front yard will also be applicable.
The intent of the Bylaw is to
mitigate the massing impacts of new buildings and structures on neighbouring
properties and to preserve a unified streetscape.
The requested variance is directly
related to the unusual site topography, which, as mentioned above, limits the
developable area to a small triangular space in the north-western corner of
the lot. This is reflected in the proposed footprint of the dwelling, which
closely follows the angled SPEA streamside setback along its south-eastern
parameter, with not much room left for modifications.
In this case, the front yard setback
is measured to the foundation of the main body of the building, with two
proposed bay windows at the main floor and two bay windows at the upper floor
which project a further 1.5 ft. into the front yard. The proposed dwelling
would also have various recesses at the main floor and upper floor. For
example, the one-storey garage attached to the most eastern portion of the
dwelling would be set back 1.33 ft. from the main front face. In addition,
the upper floor would be set back 15.0 ft. from the main front face at its
most eastern portion (which does not extend over the attached garage to the
east).
The proposed siting of the subject
dwelling in the north-western corner of the site would be consistent with the
siting of the previous dwelling (now demolished) in the same area. (The
previous dwelling observed a front yard setback of approximately 21.5 ft.,
which was legal non-conforming with respect to the front yard setback.)
The proposed siting would be in line
with the neighbouring dwelling to the west, which observes a front yard
setback of 19.48 ft. As such, there would be no significant change to the existing
massing relationship between the proposed dwelling and the neighbouring
residence to the west.
Further, the proposed
stepped design of the upper floor in both directions: from the north (front)
and east (side), would help mitigate massing impacts of the proposed front
yard on the neighbouring properties across Portland Street to the north.
With regard to the
broader neighbourhood context, the two lots remaining in the subject block,
immediately west of the subject site, observe similar or lesser setbacks
(19.48 ft. and 10.5 ft. respectively) than proposed front yard setback. As
such, the siting of the proposed dwelling would be not out of ordinary within
the existing streetscape.
In summary, given the presence of
the stream setback on the subject site and the minimal impacts of this
proposal on the neighbouring properties and the existing neighborhood, this
Department does not object to the granting of this second b) variance.
The first a)
appeal proposes
the relaxation of Section 102.6(1)(a) – “Height of Principal Building” of the
Burnaby Zoning Bylaw from 29.50 ft. (a maximum
height permitted for a building with a sloping roof) to 33.30 ft., as
measured from the average rear elevation.
The intent of the Bylaw is to
mitigate the massing impacts of new buildings or structures on neighbouring
properties.
In this case, the height calculation
is based on existing natural grade at the rear elevation, which is also the
proposed grade. As noted above, the grade difference from the front to the
rear of the subject site contributes to the excess height at the rear elevation.
The proposed height encroachment of 3.8 ft. would extend approximately from
the mid-point of the roof area to the roof peak. This encroachment area would
be set back approximately 8.0 ft. - 9.0 ft. from the rear south façade. When
viewed from the west and east sides, the proposed dwelling would appear to
not exceed 29.5 ft. in height, as a result of the sloping terrain. Further, it should be noted that
the principal building height measured from the average front elevation would
be 29.10 ft., which is 0.4 ft. less than the permitted maximum height.
In any case, the large size of this
property will alleviate any potential impacts on the neighbouring properties
to the south. The proposed over height condition would occur approximately
120.0 ft. from the rear property line. Further, it is not expected that the Frogger’s Creek ravine
area, which extends into the lots immediately south of the subject site,
would be developed in the future.
In summary, considering the size of
the property, the site topography, and the proposal’s minimal impacts on the
neighbouring properties, this Department does not object to the granting of this first
a) variance.
ADJACENT
OWNER’S COMMENTS:
Correspondence dated May 23 and May
25 was received requesting confidentiality. The writer advised that they
were opposed to the variances due to the unstable soil and the possibility of
the home sinking or sliding down the slope.
A local resident appeared expressing
concern regarding the stability of the soil/slope in the area.
No further correspondence was
received regarding this appeal.
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