WESTMOUNT | 128 STREET REZONING

Redline Building Corporation is starting the process to rezone and redevelop the corner lot at 10504 128 Street into a new building of up to six storeys. This webpage has been created to post updates about the project, receive community input, and answer commonly asked questions.

LOCATION

Fronting onto Stony Plain Road, on the future LRT line.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

What's Happening?

An application was submitted to the City of Edmonton in May of 2021 to rezone the site to the RA8 medium rise apartment zone.

Where?

The site is made up of one large corner lot: 10504 128 Street NW, Edmonton, AB.

Why?

The RA8 rezoning will allow for a new multi-unit residential building of up to six storeys, providing a new housing option for new and existing residents of the neighbourhood.

PROJECT STAGE

Rezoning is the first step in the land redevelopment process, followed by design, permits, and construction.

The rezoning was approved at the the February 8, 2022 public hearing. The next stage in the process is to finalize the building design and apply for a development permit.

SURVEY

We have created a brief survey to learn more from local residents. You can complete the survey online, or read through the questions below and send an email or give us a call to share your perspectives.

WHAT IS REZONING?

Zoning tells us the type of development that is allowed on a property, and rezoning is the process of changing a property’s zoning to allow for new or different development. Rezoning decisions are made by City Council at a public hearing. Find out more, below.

Zoning Basics

The City of Edmonton's What is Zoning booklet provides an overview of how zoning shapes the city and your neighbourhood.

Rezoning Process

The City of Edmonton's Rezoning and Plan Amendment webpage explains how the rezoning process works.

Westmount Rezoning Applications

The City's planning application webpage displays land development applications in Westmount.

CITY PLAN

The City’s Municipal Development Plan, City Plan, was approved by City Council on December 7, 2020, and has the objective that 50% of the City's population growth will be accommodated in infill areas. One of the major ways City Plan achieves this objective is to direct new development to nodes and corridors throughout the city.

This site is located along one of City Plan's primary corridors, Stony Plain Road. Along primary corridors, the Plan encourages mid-rise and high-rise building forms with a minimum density of 150 people or jobs per hectare. Rezoning to RA8 aligns with this policy direction.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

HOW WILL THIS IMPACT ME?

The subject site is surrounded on three sides by streets and lanes. The lanes and the street, including a treed boulevard on 128 St., will provide a sizable buffer between the new building and its surroundings. The shared property line with the house to the north is buffered by the neighbour's mature trees.

In addition, the RA8 zone requires significant setbacks from each property line; a front yard, rear yard, and side yards are all required. The front yard setback along 128 St. would be at least 4.5 m, the rear yard would be at least 7.5 m, and the side setbacks would be at least 3 m.

WILL THIS REZONING SET A PRECEDENT FOR THE AREA?

Policies approved by City Council guide what type of development is encouraged in different areas of the city. City Plan policies direct that new developments along Stony Plain road consist of mid-rise buildings at a minimum, with some high-rise buidings.

If approved, the proposed building will be one of the first new construction projects to align with the new City Plan policy direction. However it is expected that the Stony Plain Road corridor will experience continued change over time, with more mid-rise and high-rise developments.

WILL THERE BE PARKING? WHERE?

“Open Option Parking” was passed by Council on June 23, 2020; this change removed mandatory minimum parking requirements from the Zoning Bylaw. Bicycle parking and barrier-free parking stalls are still required.

Despite the fact that the zoning bylaw no longer requires regular parking stalls to be provided, Redline is planning to provide one level of underground parking as well as surface parking along the rear lane. Our estimates suggest we can fit about 46 parking spots in those spaces.

More information about the rationale behind Open Option Parking can be found here, and the technical study that informed the decision to remove minimum parking requirements can be found here.

WILL THE TREES BE PROTECTED?

There are city-owned boulevard trees in front of the property along 128 Street. Boulevard trees will be fully protected during construction, in accordance with the City’s tree protection guidelines.

HOW WILL THE SITE BE LANDSCAPED?

New landscaping for the site will be provided in accordance with Edmonton Zoning Bylaw Section 55 requirements. On a site of this size, approximately 20 trees and 47 shrubs will be required.

HOW TALL WILL THE BUILDING BE?

The RA8 Zone allows for buildings of up to 23 metres on this site. By comparison, according to the City's yegTreeMap, the trees on 128 St. are American elm, which have an average height of 18 to 24 metres (60 to 80 ft) according to the Arbor Day Foundation. The current RF1 zone has a maximum height of 8.9 metres.

WILL THE BUILDING CAST SHADE ON MY PROPERTY?

The sun/shadow study for the site based on the maximum building size under the RA8 zone can be viewed here.

The City’s report on this application concludes that “Many residential properties in this area have east and west facing dwellings that only get morning or evening sunlight and not both. It is anticipated that shadow impacts on the lots in the west are most notable during the morning hours and shadows casting to the north occurs mid-day to mid-afternoon. For lots east of 128 Street, shadow casting is expected to occur in the mid-afternoon.”

WHAT WILL THE BUILDING LOOK LIKE?

The preliminary concept for the building is the header image on this webpage.

Development regulations in the RA8 zone require that all units located at ground level have front entrances oriented towards the street, in order to create a people-friendly street and sidewalk. The RA8 zone allows for some limited commercial uses at ground level, though at this time a decision has not been made whether to include commercial uses. If you have thoughts on whether or not there should be commercial, please let us know by filling in the survey on this webpage.

WILL THE UNITS BE RENTED OR OWNED?

This has not been determined yet. However, whether the building is rented or owned is not a factor that the City considers in their review of rezoning applications.

HOW MANY UNITS WILL THERE BE AND WHAT SIZE WILL THEY BE?

The exact number and size of units has not yet been finalized. However, we've estimated that the number of units will likely be between 50 and 55, based on the size of the building that could be built on the site under the RA8 zone. The majority of the units will be one or two bedrooms, and we're considering making 10% of the units have three bedrooms.

QUESTIONS?

We're committed to being a good neighbour; please feel welcome to contact us with any questions, concerns or considerations.

PROJECT TEAM

Jeff Booth | Planning consultant | Situate | jeff@situateinc.ca

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