Ontario Land Tribunal
Tribunal ontarien de l’aménagement du territoire
ISSUE DATE: November 26, 2021
CASE NO(S).: PL210121
PROCEEDING COMMENCED UNDER subsection 34(11) of the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.13, as amended
Applicant and Appellant: Kristine Woodruff
Subject: Application to amend Zoning By-law No. 8626-10 - Refusal of Application by The Corporation of the City of Woodstock
Existing Zoning: Residential Zone 1 (R1)
Proposed Zoning: Residential Zone 2 (R2)
Purpose: To facilitate the conversion of an existing single detached dwelling to a converted dwelling, containing two residential units
Property Address/Description: 919 Sloane Street
Municipality: City of Woodstock
Municipality File No.: ZN-8-20-22
OLT Case No.: PL210121
OLT File No.: PL210121
OLT Case Name: Woodruff v. Woodstock (City)
Heard: November 15, 2021 by video hearing
APPEARANCES:
Parties
Kristine Woodruff Sarah Gage
Counsel
Alex Ciccone
City of Woodstock
Derek Truelove
DECISION DELIVERED BY T. PREVEDEL AND ORDER OF THE TRIBUNAL
Background
1Kristine Woodruff and Sarah Gage jointly own an existing single detached dwelling at 919 Sloane Street (“the subject property”) in the City of Woodstock (“City”). The legal description of the subject property is Lot 50, Plan 616.
2On September 11, 2020, Ms. Woodruff (the “Applicant/Appellant”) applied to rezone the subject property from Residential Zone (R1) to Residential Zone (R2) to facilitate the conversion of their property to a converted dwelling house with two units.
3The City refused an application for a zoning by-law amendment (“ZBLA”) filed by the Appellants at a Council meeting dated January 14, 2021, resulting in the matter before the Tribunal as an appeal under s. 34(11) of the Planning Act.
THE PROPOSAL AND AREA CONTEXT
4The purpose of the application for zone change is to rezone the subject property from ‘Residential Zone 1 (R1)’ to ‘Residential Zone 2 (R2)’ to facilitate the conversion of an existing single detached dwelling to a converted dwelling, containing two residential units. The Applicant is proposing to accommodate the second unit in the basement of the existing dwelling and no exterior renovations are being proposed. The subject property comprises approximately 620.8 square metres and is currently occupied by a single detached dwelling house and a detached garage. Surrounding land uses in the immediate vicinity are primarily single-detached dwellings. There are several semi-detached dwellings to the east and a townhouse development further north, on Clarke Street. A parkette is situated to the immediate west.
5The subject property is designated under the County of Oxford (“County”) Official Plan as “Residential and Low Density Residential”.
6Prior to the Hearing, Mr. Ciccone, on behalf of the Appellants, provided the Tribunal with a revised, site specific ZBLA on consent of Mr. Truelove, counsel for the City. This site-specific amendment is intended to restrict the zoning and limit the use of the subject property to a converted dwelling house.
The Hearing
7The Hearing of the Appeal was originally scheduled for two days but was completed in one day. The conduct of the Hearing was governed by a Procedural Order issued on July 9, 2021 confirming the Parties.
8The Tribunal qualified two expert witnesses in the field of land use planning: Andrea Hächler (summonsed) on behalf of the Appellant and Mark L. Dorfman on behalf of the City. Ms. Hächler is a Senior Planner with the County and was the author of the staff report which recommended approval of the application. Both witnesses are professional planners with extensive experience in the municipal field.
9Ms. Gage, a co-owner of the subject property and a Party to the proceeding, also provided evidence on behalf of the Appellant.
County of Oxford Staff Report
10The County has a single Official Plan (“OP”) which encompasses all the local municipalities. Each municipality has its own chapter in the County’s OP and each municipality has its own Zoning By-law.
11The County staff report