An east end developer has received a green light to put extra wide driveways on 10 homes.
In a 3-2 vote on Friday, the city’s Committee of Adjustment agreed to allow four single detached homes with five-metre wide driveways and six others with six-metre wide driveways in the Cityview subdivision off York Road, west of Elizabeth Street.
David Kendrick, committee chair, and member James Smith voted against approval.
“It means that hard surface is going to represent pretty much half of all the lots in question,” said Smith. “I’m a little uncomfortable with that.”
In response to those concerns, the city’s senior development planner, Lindsay Sulatycki, explained the areas zoning bylaw was approved 10 years ago and didn’t specifically mention driveway widths.
“This was meant to be a flex zone to allow both singles and semis,” she said, noting the requested widths are allowed in other zones.
“It seems to me more like an oversight,” commented member Karlie Meads.
The properties where a five-metre driveway are now allowed are 10.9 metres wide, with plans to build a single detached home with a double car garage on each.
Where six-metre driveways are planned, the lots are 12.19 metres wide. They, too, are proposed to have single family homes with a double car garage.
The committee also deferred an application from Fusion Homes that would allow 0.6-metre side yard setbacks within phase two of the development. That passed 3-2 as well.
Much like the extra wide driveways, city staff recommended approval of reduced side yard setbacks.
However, a staff report notes utility company Alectra urged the committee not to approve side yard reductions.
“Alectra doesn’t ask us to uphold bylaw requirements too often,” noted Meads. “I think we should defer to get clarification as to why.
“Maybe there’s something we’re not aware of.”
Fellow committee member Keith Hamilton pointed out that when utility companies oppose applications, they typically attend decision meetings to explain their reasons, which didn’t happen this time.
