A revised zoning bylaw for Traffe Road has been given initial readings by Powell River Regional District board. A public hearing on the draft bylaw has been scheduled for 7 pm on Monday, July 22 at the Therapeutic Riding Association Clubhouse, 4356 Myrtle Avenue.
The zoning bylaw had been developed originally as a result of a petition received from Traffe Road residents concerned about a community care facility in their neighbourhood. The purpose of the bylaw is: to preserve the suburban residential character and lifestyle of the area; ensure the level of development is consistent with available services, including water, sewer and fire protection; and protect the area’s aquifer by restricting the density of residential development and land uses which generate waste, increase the speed of runoff and consume large volumes of groundwater.
The bylaw was revised after the Electoral Area B official community plan (OCP) was adopted, because there were a number of incompatibilities with the draft bylaw and the new OCP.
Some of the changes from the first to the second draft included removing a section that detailed regulations around setbacks from riparian areas and the sea because the new OCP includes development permit areas to protect riparian areas. The minimum parcel size is larger as well, to match the OCP, which has larger parcel sizes than in the previous OCP for the area to meet provincial legislation around protecting water. Density provisions are in sync with those provisions.
The regional district held a public information meeting about the draft bylaw in May. About 20 property owners attended and provided comments on the document.
Based on the feedback, regional district planning staff revised the bylaw again.
References to land uses permitted on specific parcels have been removed. This addresses the concerns of residents that permitting land uses on specific parcels is discriminatory.
As well, secondary suites are listed as a permitted secondary use provided that property owners meet provincial water and sewer servicing standards. Some residents at the meeting expressed concerns about not being able to build a secondary suite in their homes because, while secondary uses are allowed for accessory home occupation, only some lots were identified to allow existing guest cottages and secondary suites.
Some residents at the meeting questioned whether a zoning bylaw was needed at all. Laura Roddan, regional district manager of planning, explained that zoning provides a number of benefits. “More than anything else, it provides certainty around land use,” she said. “Someone can’t come in and set up a small sawmill or a recycling station...It gives security to property owners and that in turn protects your investment.”
At the June 27 board meeting, directors gave second reading to the revised zoning bylaw and passed a motion delegating directors Colin Palmer, Electoral Area C, Stan Gisborne, Electoral Area B, and Patrick Brabazon, Electoral Area A, to the public hearing committee.
