A proposed modular home park in the Hart is returning to city council Monday, March 10 to have its property rezoned after developers’ first attempt was rejected almost two years ago.
On behalf of Westcan Property Ltd., L&M Engineering is asking for 10.6 hectares of 9153 Twinberry Drive to be rezoned from a combination of RS2: Single Residential, RM1: Multiple Residential, RM3: Multiple Residential and AG: Greenbelt to RM9: Manufactured Home Park.
The applicant also wants a 0.6-hectare portion of the property containing significant slopes and a riparian area to AG: Greenbelt. The remaining 41.2 hectares of the property would remain zoned as-is.
In April 2023, The Citizen reported that the applicants’ original attempt to rezone the property was rejected by council at the third reading of the bylaw. The city received 18 letters opposing the development, six in support and one that just raised some concerns.
At that meeting, Coun. Brian Skakun said the existing road infrastructure was insufficient to support he development while Coun. Ron Polillo said it was inconsistent with the character of the neighbourhood.
Only Coun. Cori Ramsay supported the application, saying she understood the neighbourhood’s concerns but saw the potential to add hundreds of new homes.
According to a report attached to the agenda for the upcoming meeting, city staff said: “This application was denied following concerns related to the preservation of wildlife habitat and form and character of the proposed development. The applicant has revised their proposal within the current application to address these concerns.”
The report goes on to say that administration supports the rezoning as it represents infill development it believes will be at a similar scale to the existing neighbourhood, helps address the city’s identified housing needs and would not require off-site traffic improvements according to a traffic impact study.
However, the report does note that there are some anticipated challenges for water and sewer service capacity and recommends that construction not start until improvements are made.
An attached servicing brief states that the water demands from the development wouldn’t allow for an appropriate flow of water in a fire-fighting scenario. Two new watermains in the area, with one a diameter of 300 millimetres and another with a diameter of 450 millimetres would be required to get the needed fire flow of 67 litres per second.
One of the sanitary sewer mains in the area is considered overcapacity under current conditions. To help deal with that, the city is looking to replace and relocate and existing lift station. The installation of a second sanitary service to the subject property is likely also needed.
Two restrictive covenants and one right-of-way are being proposed to accompany the rezoning bylaw.
The right-of-way would give the city legal access to existing infrastructure on the property.
One of the restrictive covenants would limit the density of mobile homes on the property to 15 units per hectare, which administration says would address some nearby residents’ concerns that were aired when the project went before council the first time.
This would restrict the total number of potential homes on the site to 160.
This covenant would also prohibit the installation of mobile homes built to the CAN/CSA Z240 MH on the site. Those are defined as transportable, one-storey dwellings in either a single section or divided into multiple sections.
In other words, mobile homes would not be allowed on the site, just modular homes.
The second covenant would prohibit construction until those water and sewer service improvements are made.
A report from L&M attached to the agenda summarizes feedback received during a public consultation period held between Sept. 24 and Oct. 16 last year as well as an open house held on Oct. 9.
That report said area residents asked about the size of the modular homes, whether they would be mobile homes, why the developer wasn’t just building single-family homes, on-site parking, the nature of the road going through the site, sewer issues in the neighbourhood and more.
L&M also submitted a package containing 49 letters of support for the project, which they said came from residents of other Westcan Properties development, Hart residents and other members of the general public.
Many of the letters from Westcan residents are form letters where the signatories entered their name, address, signature and the date they signed it to a pre-written block of text declaring support for the company and praising the work it does at its other sites.
Two letters of opposition, both from residents of 9286 Twinberry Dr., were received as well. They express disbelief that the project is up for consideration again and argue that there is little difference between modular and mobile homes, which they do not want in the neighbourhood.
An environmental assessment dated Aug. 27, 2024 prepared by Triton Environmental Consultants notes the presence of a sensitive riparian area and a wetland buffer surrounding an unnamed lake on the property.
It notes that any development will have to follow the provincial water sustainability act as any works “in or about a stream” requires approval from the BC Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.
Part of the property is high-value breeding habitat for the Western Toad, which is designated as a species of special concern under the federal Species at Risk Act. Additional permits may be required for construction work at the site if it involves the collection, transfer, salvage or release of the toads.
Beavers also live on part of the property and the removal of any dams of harvesting of the animals would require approval from the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.
First three readings of the rezoning bylaw are up for discussion at Monday's council meeting as well as a proposal that final reading not be passed until the two restrictive covenants and the right-of-way are established.
