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Updated Planning Report September 2008 Proposed Lafarge/Silvercreek Development of 41,800 sq. m (450,000 sq. ft.), including the potential for some office space. A “village” concept was proposed, mixing both neighbourhood-type facilities with larger format users not suited to a downtown setting. From an access perspective, this original concept was premised on a direct connection to/from the northbound side of Hanlon Expressway, with additional access to/from the south via a widened Silvercreek Parkway. The original concept also proposed the preservation of Howitt Creek and its associated valley, and included provision for a new public park on the portion of the site east of the creek, which totals about 4.4 ha (10.8 ac.) in area. Consistent with the then-prevailing Official Plan context, the initial application sought approval for an Official Plan amendment which would re-designate the site “Community Commercial” (with “Non-Core Greenlands Overlay” for the Howitt Creek) and “Open Space” (park land) to the east of the creek, with site-specific permission for a mixed commercial node of up to 41,800 sq. m (450,000 sq. ft.) in size. A parallel application for rezoning sought a “Community Commercial (CC)” Zone on the developable portion of the site, west of the creek, a “Floodplain Lands (FL)” Zone on Howitt Creek and its associated valleyland, and “Community Park (P.3)” Zone on the portion east of the creek. That rezoning would be on a special (site-specific) basis, to the maximum aggregate floor space proposed. The above-noted Official Plan land use designation originally requested at the time of the 2005 application was modified by Silvercreek in conjunction with their appeals to the OMB, in July 2007. That modified designation request was driven by the changes in the underlying Official Plan policy framework which had resulted from the City’s completion of the Commercial Policy Review (CPR) and the adoption of OPA 29, subsequent to the original Silvercreek application. OPA 29 introduced comprehensive commercial structure changes into the Guelph Official Plan, flowing from the results of the CPR process -- with respect to both governing policies and commercial land use designations. Since the originallyrequested “Community Commercial” land use designation had ceased to exist due to the approval of OPA 29, Silvercreek revised their request in July 2007 (in the context of their appeals) to the logical land use category under the new commercial policy regime -- “Mixed Use Node.” 2.2.2 Revised Scheme (November 2007) As noted, in November of 2007, a revised development concept was submitted to the City, supported by updated or additional supporting technical reports, in response to technical issues and public comments/concerns which had emerged through the application review process. This revised submission was also intended to foster continued dialogue between Silvercreek and the City, in the context of the OMB appeals which by then had been submitted, in the hope of narrowing or even eliminating the issues of concern. The November 2007 concept is illustrated on the accompanying Figure 2A – Revised Redevelopment Concept (2007), and differed from the original 2005 scheme in the following key ways: 4
Updated Planning Report September 2008 Proposed Lafarge/Silvercreek Development • based on a refined marketing concept which, in part, responded to the findings of the City’s market peer reviewer, the overall scale of the retail/service commercial component was reduced to 37,160 sq. m (400,00 sq. ft.); • two principal large-format retail operators were now specifically proposed -- a warehouse membership club and a home improvement/furniture operation -- adjacent to the respective abutting rail lines, together with a range of medium and small retail/service commercial uses; • in light of MTO’s prohibition on any access directly to/from Hanlon Expressway, site access was formally revised to focus on a widened and improved Silvercreek Parkway, most notably including a connection north and south of the CNR mainline via a grade separation; and, • the urban design concept was revised to reflect the following key characteristics: o focus the commercial development around an urban “village marketplace” straddling Silvercreek Parkway, based on smaller retail buildings with twostorey massing and associated outdoor amenity spaces defining a primary “gateway” intersection providing access to the development from Silvercreek Parkway; o locate the large-format retail structures on the least-visible parts of the site, and buffered with vegetation; o provision of an internal private roadway (grid/block) pattern intended to facilitate intensification over time; o primary pedestrian routes which converge on the village marketplace, including provision of an east/west greenway between Howitt Creek and the village marketplace; and, o connection of Silvercreek Parkway to the north (via a grade separation at the CNR) and enhancement with double rows of trees, transit, on-street parking, broad sidewalks and bike lanes. The November 2007 revised concept continued to protect the existing Howitt Creek and its associated valleylands, and carried forward the specific proposal for a new public park (“Junction Park”) on the lands east of the creek valley. A revised stormwater management concept was also put forward to manage off-site, upstream storm flows in Howitt Creek during major storm events; this involved flood storage (temporary stormwater detention) within a portion of the proposed public park east of the Creek. 2.2.3 Refined Concept (2008) The November 2007 scheme has been further refined as additional processing has occurred, and further technical work has been completed to address City and other agency concerns. A copy of that further refinement is shown overleaf, as Figure 2B -- Revised Redevelopment Concept (2008). 5
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updated planning report updated planning report - City of Guelph

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