REQUEST FOR DECISION
DATE: September 19, 2018 Report No. DEV-18-071
TO: Laurie Hurst, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Karen Hay, Planner and Bill Brown, Director of Development Services
SUBJECT:
Title
Housing Agreement - 1379 Esquimalt Road / 520 Foster Street (St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church)
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
1. That Council resolves that Housing Agreement Bylaw, 2018, No. 2935, attached as Appendix A of Staff Report DEV-18-071, for 1379 Esquimalt Road / 520 Foster Street (St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church), be considered for final adoption.
Body
RELEVANT POLICY:
Local Government Act
Official Community Plan Bylaw, 2018, No. 2922
Zoning Bylaw, 1992, No. 2050
Development Application Procedures and Fees Bylaw, No. 2791, 2012
STRATEGIC RELEVANCE:
This Request for Decision does not directly relate to a specific strategic objective.
BACKGROUND:
Appendix A: Housing Agreement (1379 Esquimalt Road/ 520 Foster Street) Bylaw, 2018, No. 2935
Purpose of the Application
CitySpaces Consulting, on behalf of the owner of St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church (the Anglican Synod of the Diocese of British Columbia), has requested an amendment to the Official Community Plan and a change to the property’s zoning to facilitate the subdivision of the subject property into four separate parcels and the construction of a new building on the site. Twenty-four new, affordable, non-market rental housing units for seniors and persons with disabilities would be located in a proposed new building above a new ministry centre.
The owners have offered the housing agreement to assure Council that the twenty-four units will be rented at an ‘Affordable Rent’. The Housing Agreement Bylaw was given third reading on August 27, 2018. The Agreement has now been signed by the owner’s representative, and staff are recommending that the Bylaw now be adopted by Council.
Should this Housing Agreement Bylaw be adopted, a Notice of this Housing Agreement will be placed on the title of the subject property.
The Official Community Plan amendment bylaw and the zoning amendment bylaw are scheduled to be returned to Council for final reading and adoption, upon completion of the registration of the Section 219 Covenant on the property title by the Land Title and Survey Authority.
ISSUES:
1. Rationale for Selected Option
Registration of this Housing Agreement would ensure that the twenty-four non-market rental housing units, for seniors and persons with disabilities, would be rented at rents equal to or less than 85% of the market rent for a comparable sized dwelling unit in Victoria, British Columbia, and calculated as an average rate over the total occupied dwelling units rented.
Should Council adopt Housing Agreement Bylaw, 2018, No. 2935, it would authorize the Mayor and Corporate Officer to execute the Housing Agreement, and staff to register a Notice on the title of the subject property.
2. Organizational Implications
This Request for Decision has no organizational implications.
3. Financial Implications
This Request for Decision has no financial implications.
4. Sustainability & Environmental Implications
This Request for Decision has no environmental implications.
5. Communication & Engagement
A housing agreement to secure the rental of affordable housing units is offered as part of the rezoning application. The Local Government Act does not require that notification be provided when a municipality is considering approval of a Housing Agreement Bylaw.
ALTERNATIVES:
1. That Council adopt Housing Agreement Bylaw, 2018, No. 2935.
2. That Council defeat Housing Agreement Bylaw, 2018, No. 2935.