The items in these minutes are not necessarily in the order discussed.

Mayor Burton called the meeting to order at 1:02 p.m. 

There were no regrets.

Moved by Councillor Duddeck

a.

Employment and Commercial Review: Preliminary Directions Report

Duran Wedderburn, Policy Planner, provided an overview of the Employment and Commercial Review advising that it falls under the umbrella of the Official Plan Review.  The study is a major component of the Official Plan review as it provides guidance to the town for planning Employment and Commercial growth until the year 2041.

The following are main objectives of the study:

·         Confirm that the supply of employment and commercial land is able to meet the projected need of 2041.

·         Assess current employment land use designations and policies.

·         Identify lands that would be appropriate for conversion to non- employment uses.

·         Provide policy directions to facilitate town goals and objectives for employment and commercial growth.

The Study Process for the Employment and Commercial Review includes:

·         Phase 1: Background research and project kickoff, Fall 2014.

·         Phase 2: Analysis including stakeholder meeting and first public

open house,  Spring 2015.

·         Phase 3: Preliminary findings and recommendations provided to Livable Oakville Council Sub-committee, then Planning Development Council, followed by a public comment period.

·         Phase 4: Final report and recommendations to be presented to Livable Oakville Council Sub-committee, then Planning and Development Council.

A team of consultants led by Dillon Consulting Inc. undertook the required background research and technical analysis, and provided preliminary directions. That work is summarized in the staff report and appendices presented.

Mr. Wedderburn advised that Halton Region has been identified as one of the fastest growing areas in the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Population is expected to increase 92% from 2011-2041, and employment is expected to increase by 68%. The strong population growth within the Greater Toronto Area is showing an increase in demand for service and retail jobs. There is also a noticeable shift from manufacturing to office based jobs. The ability to provide transit and service amenities will fuel the attraction of office investments.

Commercial lands have been identified north of Dundas in Palermo Village North, as well as the Dundas, Trafalgar and Neyagawa Urban Core Areas. The study identified there is currently 2.5 million square feet of commercial space available, while 3.5 million square feet is the projected requirement for 2041, leaving Oakville roughly 74,000 square metres short of the 2041 target.

The report acknowledges there is an unbalanced supply of commercial development lands in Oakville.  South of Dundas Street there is a significant deficiency of available land, and north of Dundas Street there is a substantial amount of available land.   There may be pressure on commercial lands south of Dundas Street to intensify with residential and commercial uses.

Mr. Wedderburn presented the consultants’ five Preliminary Commercial Policy Directions and eighteen Preliminary Employment Policy Directions to the committee. There were seventeen Employment Land Conversion Requests, of which three properties were recommended for conversion.

Mr. Wedderburn indicated that the Planning Services department is hoping to bring this report to Planning and Development Council on April 18, 2016 [project timelines have since been amended].

Following the staff presentation, a committee member inquired as to the difference between Community Commercial and Core Commercial land use designations. Mr. Wedderburn advised that the Community Commercial designation permits uses like restaurants and food stores, and the Core Commercial designation permits restaurants and food stores, as well as large format retail, retail warehouse, entertainment, and recreational uses.

Responding to questions from the members with respect to the recommendations regarding land conversions, Mr. Wedderburn advised that the three land conversions recommended for approval out of the seventeen submitted are recommended by the consultants, not recommended by staff.  The consultants only identify them as meeting requirements for consideration by the town.

In response to further questions, staff indicted that the consultants also suggested that Oakville look to broaden the services provided within designated employment areas.  Lesley Gill Woods, Senior Planner, Planning Services, advised that the town had already moved in this direction. Changes to the Business Employment designation through OPA 4 that were recently approved by the OMB now allow for service commercial uses, limited to restaurants, financial institutions and drive-throughs, so long as employment is the primary use on a lot . 

In response to a question about retail stores in Employment Areas, staff indicted that some Employment designations allow for a small retail area to sell items manufactured on-site. Some retail uses are legal non-conforming. In the E2 zone, which implements the Business Employment designation in Livable Oakville, the 20% of space that can be now be occupied by  service commercial uses will not be adjusted.

Replying to questions from the committee about the shortfall of designated commercial space, Mr. Wedderburn advised that the square footage being projected is based on actual buildable space, taking into account both ground level and multi-level developments.

Discussion ensued and members made the following requests and comments:

·         Consider the residents’ feedback when redeveloping and expanding current business areas, such as Kerr Village.

·         Review the existing function of the Speers Road corridor to ensure that the residential area to the south remains free of garbage and noise from adjacent uses.

·         The development monitoring program is a great way to monitor progress and ensure that goals are being achieved.

·         Conduct a thorough review of the 3 areas recommended by the consultants for conversion, specifically RioCan Burloak.

·         Provide the committee with detailed information on all 17 conversion requests.

·         Review the current state of Downtown, Bronte Village and Kerr Village and how to improve them.

·         Revisit the consultants’ recommendation for a membership warehouse retail store in Oakville.

·         New employment development in Oakville should be for office based jobs as opposed to industrial jobs.

·         Continue a strong relationship with Halton Region.

·         Monitor employment lands and measurements annually.

·         Review allocation of office space in Midtown and previously developed priority areas.

·         Evaluate the effect of the Bronte GO station expansion on the revitalization of Speers Road.

In response to further questions, Mr. Wedderburn identified that the majority of the town’s commercial and employment growth and development will occur north of Dundas Street to align with the projected population growth in that area.  It was also identified that there are significantly fewer opportunities for new commercial and employment development south of Dundas Street. 

Responding to questions regarding the consultants’ population and employment projections for Oakville, it was clarified that the figures must be accepted by Town Council prior to being provided to Halton Region.

The committee also asked to review the full body of the consultants’ report for more detail on the 2041 population and employment projections, and the 17 requests for employment land conversion. Staff indicated that they will make the report available.

Replying to questions regarding Mixed Use development, the following comments were made:

·         A list of possible new Mixed Use areas should be provided.

·         The owners of Oakville Place have indicated that they would like to consider adding residential uses to that property.

·         Land owners who wish to apply for Mixed Use development are following the appropriate process.

In regards to Oakville not having a membership-based warehouse retail store, members of the committee said that they don’t see this as a priority as the products offered are available at existing big box stores within Oakville, and there are membership-based retail stores within a reasonable distance.

In response to questions from the committee, Jane Clohecy, Commissioner of Community Development, provided the following information:

·         Transportation including GO Transit will be reviewed in the Urban Structure Review as part of the Official Plan.

·         The Urban Structure Review will determine which areas will be developed further.

·         There will be reviews of each of the town’s growth areas south of Dundas Street, including Downtown Oakville, Palermo Village, Bronte Village, etc.

·         The Employment and Commercial Review is just one study as part of the Official Plan Review, and the recommendations put forward are made by the third party consultant for Oakville’s consideration.

The committee raised the following additional matters for consideration:

·         Evaluate whether combining the Community Commercial and Core Commercial designations would provide better service to the community.

·         Address the importance of transitional areas and the need for there to be a flow from commercial and employment areas to residential areas.

·         Report to Council on the total costs associated with the work completed by the consultants.

·         Remove the town’s logo from the consultants’ report as it looks as though the preliminary directions are recommended by Oakville staff.

·         Provide all information from the report to Council for review before it is shared with Halton Region.

·         Report back to the Committee with what information if any, has been provided to the Region.

·         There needs to be a tighter match between the Zoning By-law and the Official Plan.

·         North and south Oakville should be analyzed separately.

·         Oakville should develop criteria internally for the evaluation of requests for employment land conversion.

·         In regards to the report’s comments on a “thriving” downtown, the committee would like more information on the retail that is thriving.

·         The ratio for the supply of commercial and employment lands is based on universal criteria and the committee would like staff to consider using criteria that is Oakville-specific.

·         There seems to be discrepancy between the vision of the consultants and the Planning Services department.

·         The committee would like more information on retail sites that wish to expand into also offering residential.

In response to questions from the committee, Ms. Clohecy indicated that no information has been provided to Halton Region yet.  She also clarified that the Official Plan is reviewed every 5 years, while a new Official Plan is required every 10 years.  It was suggested that once the committee’s comments have been taken into consideration, an amended report be put forward for public consultation.

Moved by Councillor Elgar

That the Employment and Commercial Review: Preliminary Directions Report, be referred back to staff for further work as a result of the comments provided by the committee.

                                                                                                    CARRIED

There were no information items.

The Official Plan Review work program will be discussed at the next meeting.

The Mayor adjourned the meeting at 2:32 p.m.