3231-3245 Fraser St and 675 E 17th Ave rezoning application

City staff are currently reviewing the proposed parking plan in relation to the City’s parking by-law. In terms of allowing strata residents to obtain parking permits, you are encouraged to contact 311 with your suggestion. They can connect you with the appropriate staff members for that matter.

Please see this website for the City’s planned cycling infrastructure projects/upgrades. Your concerns regarding the need for a better link between Prince Edward and Windsor will be shared with Transportation staff. You can also email them directly via this email address: bikeupgrades@vancouver.ca

All comments from the public are considered when staff review a rezoning application. Comments that are relevant to specific review groups (such as engineering, landscape, housing, etc.) are shared with those groups for their consideration. Public feedback is also summarized in the referral report to Council. Members of the public also have the ability to write to Council and speak at the Public Hearing during which Council will make a decision on a rezoning application. The Public Hearing for this project is not yet scheduled, however the site sign and website will be updated once the Public Hearing date is set. It has been noted that there are concerns about parking, the existing soil conditions and the nearby infrastructure. Staff are reviewing concerns in relation to these issues, as well as in relation to applicable City by-laws, guidelines and regulations, such as the Parking By-law. Should the rezoning application be approved by Council, the developer would be subject to site- and project-specific conditions of approval relating to urban design, engineering, landscape, and housing. It should be noted that increasing rental housing, in particular projects with an affordability component, is a priority of the City.

CD-1 rezonings allow for a zoning by-law to be tailored to the form of development approved for a specific site, which differs from the form of development prescribed in the existing zoning district schedules, such as the RM zones. Rezoning enabling policies (such as MIRHPP which applies to this application) allows for consideration of development which differs from existing zoning, subject to specific requirements and criteria outlined in the policy. For more information on the rezoning application process see here.

The subject site is located within a Peat Area. As such, geotechnical and hydrogeological investigation reports were required to be submitted as part of the rezoning application. The City’s engineering staff are currently reviewing the reports, as well as the proposed recommendations made by the applicant’s engineers. Should this rezoning application be approved, there may be conditions of approval relating to this matter.

Fraser Street is an arterial street in Vancouver. 14 storeys can be considered under the MIRHPP rezoning policy at the intersection of Fraser (arterial) and 17^th, subject to context and design considerations. The appropriateness of the proposed form of development is currently under review by City staff. For your reference, a previous MIRHPP project was approved by Council at 14-storeys at the corner of Hastings (arterial) and Kootenay.

The applicant has advised that, if approved, the building is slated for completion in the fall of 2026. Since there is a extended period of time before the retail units can be leased out, it would be difficult to forecast the rent rates at this point other than it would be approximately the market rent rates that other similar listings will be going for in the area at that time.

The applicant has advised that they have not yet determined a pet policy for this building should it be approved, however they have developed pet-friendly buildings in the past and hope to continue their pet-friendly approach with this building.

This rezoning application is not being considered under the Broadway Plan, but rather the Moderate Income Rental Housing Pilot Program (MIRHPP), which provides incentives (including additional height and density) to encourage the construction of moderate income rental housing for projects where 100% of the residential floor area is secured rental housing and at least 20% of the residential floor area that is counted in the calculation of the floor space ratio is made available to moderate income households; earning between $30,000 and $80,000/ year.

Street trees can contribute to a more comfortable pedestrian experience. The City’s Landscape and Development Planning staff are currently reviewing the proposal from an urban design perspective, including how it will contribute to the public realm. If this rezoning is approved by Council, more detailed design development and review, including of the public realm and streetscape around the proposal, would occur at the next approvals stage: the development permit stage.