LONDON — Polocorp Inc., a local developer in the city, has applied to build a development at 1515 Trossacks Avenue. The development proposes a 6-storey, 100-unit building with surface and underground parking and amenity spaces.
The development would be rental-use units comprised of one and two-bedroom units, some of which would have dens.
Patios and balconies for many units would also be provided, along with 147 sq m of indoor and 84 sq m of outdoor amenity spaces.
Polocorp proposes a building height of approximately 19.2m (63 ft.) and a floor space ratio (FSR) of 1.94.
The total property size is 0.84 acres after accounting for the possibility of future road widening.
Regarding bedroom layouts, the building proposal contains approximately 50 one-bedroom units, 35 one-bedroom plus den units, four two-bedroom plus den units, and 26 two-bedroom units.
The surface parking lot proposal provides 33 parking spaces, including one barrier-free space, and the underground parking offers 27 spaces, including two barrier-free spaces.
Bicycle parking would have 90 spaces in a parking room, 16 of which are easily accessible, and ten spaces would be grade level.
The planning justification report states the building would have a step back of 2.4m from the third to the sixth floor to allow for terraces and balconies.
The step back gives the appearance of townhouses from the street view.
The property’s location is at the intersection of Trossacks and Fanshawe Park Road.
The subject lands require a zoning by-law amendment to add special provisions for the development to have approval.
The current zoning is (R9-3*H21). The city council has approved residential R-9 zoning with special provisions (R9-3(_)*H21) to allow the development proposal to meet the city’s requirements.
The R-9 zoning allows for medium-high residential density, and special provisions are required in this area to allow for site-specific requests from developers that don’t meet the city requirements in place, such as setbacks or increases in density.
Specific to this property, the special provision requests included an increase from the set maximum of 150 units per hectare up to 269 units per hectare, a reduction in the minimum requirement of six metres for a front yard patio to zero metres, and a reduction in the rear yard setback requirement of 7.68m to 5.9m.
Also, more requests included a front yard setback from the required six metres to 2.2 metres and an exterior side yard setback reduction of the required eight metres to two metres.
The city of London’s Official Plan declares Fanshawe Park Road as a ‘walking and cycling route.’
The subject lands are also in the Urban Growth Centre, a primary transit area, and a ‘built-up area’ in the city, as declared in the Official Plan of London.
The staff have reviewed these requested zoning by-law amendments and have agreed with the proposals for setbacks and the density increase.
The ‘built-up area’ focuses on intensification and properly utilizing available spaces for urban development projects.
Active transportation routes are a crucial factor in providing primary transit areas. Routes 25 and 34 for the London Transit are within 800m of the subject property.
Therefore, the property is situated in a big market area as it provides close access to commercial, institutional, and recreational facilities through active transportation.
Facilities such as restaurants, medical centres, parks, law offices, and public trails are near the property. The planning report suggests the subject land’s location is excellent for an area of development.
The city council has approved the zoning by-law amendments, and the city is one step closer to reaching its goal of ‘inward and upward’ to achieve a compact form of developing land, as suggested in the Official Plan of London.
September 26, 2023, meeting covers council members discussing the subject property and approving the zoning by-law amendments in a vote of 14-1.
A future application to remove holding provisions (H21) for
the site is required to move the development forward.
Comment Disclaimer:
The views and opinions expressed in the comments section of this blog are solely those of the individuals who submit them and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or beliefs of the author or the website owner. We do not endorse or support any comments that may be offensive, discriminatory, or harmful in nature.
We encourage open and respectful discussions and welcome diverse perspectives. However, it is important to remember that comments are the personal opinions of the commenters and not official representations of our stance or values. We reserve the right to moderate or remove comments that violate our comment policy or that we deem inappropriate.
Please engage in discussions with courtesy and respect for one another, keeping in mind that differing opinions can coexist in a constructive manner. Thank you for being a part of our community and for helping to maintain a positive and inclusive environment.
