Help for frustrated Newmarket homeowners who had the brakes put on their remodelling plans has arrived just in the nick of time.
On Monday, council discussed an exemption process to its one-year, temporary building ban that is meant to put a pause on so-called monster homes and other developments deemed inappropriate.
Town staff have proposed a mechanism similar to what exists in the Town of Halton Hills, and also suggests charging applicants a $465 fee. Once approved, the process could still take months for residents to get the green light on their renovation projects.
Known as the interim control bylaw, the move essentially freezes until Jan. 21, 2020 all new home building on single or vacant lots and includes most larger additions to existing homes in many of the town’s established and emerging neighbourhoods.
Vacant lots that may be suitable for subdivision development also fall under the ban, while all building projects approved prior to Jan. 21, 2019, continue as planned.
In the meantime, consultants are carrying out a $150,000 study to identify the unique character of Newmarket’s many neighbourhoods and recommend planning policies that complement and are compatible with existing streetscapes.
“We’ve put in an exemption process because we’ve discovered there are some very modest changes that don’t need to be held up,” Mayor John Taylor said at the April 29 committee of the whole meeting. “But there’s been numerous people in our community who feel affected, as neighbours, by what they believe is not appropriate or compatible infill homes or additions. But this exemption process allows those who don’t really fall into that category to move forward.”
Two Newmarket families turned up at the municipal offices Monday seeking exemptions for additions to their respective houses. Both say they’ve outgrown their current homes and want to build additions so they can continue to live in Newmarket.
Another deputant presented council with a different perspective with respect to the interim control bylaw.
Lawyer Andrea Skinner, who represents Giocon Developments and its Howard Road property, said the “rules of the game changed right at the finish line” for her client and, subsequently, that building project has been caught by the interim control bylaw, even though the application process had begun in April 2016.
While the proposed site-specific exemption process to the interim control bylaw still needs council approval, here is how it’s expected to work, according to a staff report:
- The owner of the property will submit a written exemption request to the town’s Planning and Building Services department, including the address and lot dimensions, photos of all four sides of the existing dwelling (front, sides, and rear), as well as photos of the streetscape that depict the relationship between the existing dwelling and adjacent dwellings; the gross floor area of the existing dwelling and the gross floor area and conceptual site plan of the proposed dwelling or addition; four-dimensioned elevations of the proposed dwelling or addition (front, sides, and rear), along with an explanation of how the proposed dwelling or addition is compatible with the existing character of the neighbourhood; and, the applicant’s contact information.
- It's also been suggested that an applicant submit photos of compatible land uses, as well as letters of support for the project from neighbours.
Exemption requests will be evaluated against the following two criteria:
- Physical character compatibility of the proposed dwelling or addition with the physical character of the existing neighbourhood, inclusive of height, massing, roof lines, and built form and;
- Streetscape character compatibility of the proposed dwelling or addition with the streetscape character of the existing neighbourhood, inclusive of setbacks, building projections, siting on property, and relationship to adjacent dwellings.
The town will notify all abutting and adjacent property owners of the applicant’s request for exemption from the interim control bylaw and provide those property owners with 10 days to make a written submission to the town for staff consideration.
Exemption requests and written submissions are to be reviewed by staff and a recommendation is presented in a staff report to committee/council for approval. If an exemption is granted by council, the town will notify abutting/adjacent property owners that a council-approved site-specific exemption has been granted as well as post notice of the amending bylaw in the local paper.
As required under the Planning Act, any council-approved exemption from the interim control bylaw will be subject to a 60-day appeal period. The town will only issue the required building permits for proposed residential dwellings or additions after a site-specific exemption has been granted by council and the associated appeal period has lapsed.
Staff propose a $465 fee for the exemption request to cover the costs associated with posting the notice in the paper. In the event the exemption is not granted, the fee will be reimbursed.