updated planning report updated planning report - City of Guelph

Updated Planning Report September 2008
Proposed Lafarge/Silvercreek Development
through on-site detention within the undeveloped area east of Howitt Creek to
attenuate off-site storm drainage flows related to the creek, and on-site detention
within the commercial development site west of the creek, without compromising the
feasibility of the uses and the layout proposed.
• Environmental impacts have been exhaustively analyzed, and documented, and
where required, appropriate mitigation measures have been advanced. The key
natural heritage feature on the subject lands, namely Howitt Creek and its associated
valleyland/floodplain, will be substantially protected and enhanced, and as required,
construction impacts related to the proposed SWM detention facilities suitably
mitigated.
• The updated traffic impact study indicates that the proposed development can be
accommodated without undue impact to the surrounding pubic road network, subject
to appropriate road improvements, including the recommended vital extension of
Silvercreek Parkway to Paisley Road through a new underpass at the CNR.
The layout of the proposed development concept can readily accommodate appropriate
redevelopment phasing, as end-user commitments are secured over time, in relation to
the usual market, economic and infrastructure considerations.
The surrounding land use context does not give rise to any meaningful or legitimate
concerns about land use compatibility. The site is effectively isolated on all sides by
major transportation infrastructure, including main and secondary rail lines to the north
and south respectively, and Hanlon Expressway to the west. In addition, the topography
of the site is such that it sits lower than neighbouring lands to the north and south, with
the resultant embankments of the abutting railways providing substantial screening of
the uses proposed. All of the above factors effectively mitigate any meaningful potential
for land use conflict, subject to appropriate site plan design and implementation
requirements. Accordingly, in our opinion, the proposed concept can readily co-exist
with the existing uses to the north and south, without any undue adverse impacts.
In summary, all of the above site suitability factors support a planning conclusion
that the subject lands are well-suited to the prospective mix and layout of
proposed uses on the subject lands.
6.2 Policy and Related Considerations
Section 4 of this planning report set out in some detail the various land use policy
considerations of relevance to the proposed development, including the Provincial Policy
Statement, and in particular, the City of Guelph Official Plan. This subsection will
address the suitability of the subject proposal in the context of those key policy
considerations.
6.2.1 Provincial Policy Statement (2005)
As set out in Section 3.1 of this report, the PPS provides a number of relevant policy
considerations, and it is our conclusion that this mixed development proposal is
consistent with those PPS matters.
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