R1780 : Proposed Zoning By-law Amendments Caretaker Suites in Industrial Zones Corporate NO: R1780 Report COUNCIL DATE: Mar. 1, 1999 REGULAR COUNCIL TO: Mayor & Council DATE: February 18, 1999 FROM: General Manager, Planning & Development FILE: 5591-001 SUBJECT: Proposed Zoning By-law Amendments Caretaker Suites in Industrial Zones RECOMMENDATION The Planning and Development Department recommends that Council: 1. Approve amendments to the Permitted Uses section of the Business Park Zone (IB), Light Impact Industrial Zone (IL), High Impact Industrial Zone (IH) and Agro-Industrial Zone (IA) of Surrey Zoning Bylaw, 1993, No. 12000 in order to permit one or more caretaker suites, as described in Appendices I, II, III, and IV of this report; 2. Instruct the City Clerk to introduce the necessary amendment by-law; and 3. Authorize staff to forward a letter to the owners of the 27 industrial lots zoned CD, following Final Adoption of the proposed by-law informing them of the new caretaker suite regulations. BACKGROUND In July of 1997, the Industrial/Commercial Task Force Forum was held to receive input concerning the key issues impacting industrial and commercial growth in the City. The Task Force participants represented a wide range of stakeholders including business owners, realtors, land developers, industrial and commercial land/building owners, building contractors, engineers and architects. A report which summarizes the final recommendations of the Task Force was received by Council on July 28, 1998 (Corporate Report R1609). With regard to security within industrial areas, one recommendation of the Task Force is to, "Permit more caretaker suites for industrial developments based on a formula." Subsequently, the Planning & Development Department has received a number of inquiries from industrial development representatives requesting a relaxation of zoning regulations to permit more than one caretaker dwelling unit within industrial
developments. Surrey Zoning By-law No. 12000 currently permits one dwelling unit per lot for all industrial zones (IB, IL, IH, IS, and IA) provided that the dwelling unit is: Contained within the principal building; Occupied by the owner or the owner's employee, for the protection of the businesses permitted on the lot; and A maximum area of the lesser of: a. 140 square metres (1,500 sq. ft.); or b. 33% of the total area of the principal building within which the dwelling unit is contained. DISCUSSION The intent of permitting one dwelling unit per industrial lot is to improve security within industrial developments. The provision of one caretaker apartment per lot enables on-site security 24 hours a day. Table I highlights regulations controlling residential caretaker suites adopted by six Lower Mainland municipalities (Burnaby, Coquitlam, Delta, Langley City, Langley Township and Richmond). All six municipalities permit residential caretaker suites as an accessory use within industrial zones. These six municipalities permit only one residential unit per industrial lot on condition that the residential unit be occupied by an owner or caretaker. In comparison to the City of Surrey, the six surveyed municipalities have generally included more stringent restrictions for caretaker suites in relationship to the maximum permitted unit size, the minimum permitted lot size, and the maximum number of people (limited to adults) permitted to live in the caretaker units. A number of industrial developers in the City of Surrey have recently requested relaxations of current zoning regulations to permit more than one dwelling unit within an industrial development. Anecdotal accounts of criminal incidents at industrial properties indicate that thieves are becoming more aggressive and brazen. Representatives of the industrial development industry believe that, by allowing more than one caretaker suite on an industrial property, security at industrial premises will be improved by increasing the number of security personnel on site. In addition, the provision of back-up caretaker staff will improve safety for individual caretakers. TABLE 1: OTHER MUNICIPALITIES - "CARETAKER" SUITES IN INDUSTRIAL ZONES Municipality Industrial Zones Where Caretaker Suites are Permitted # of Suites Permitted Per Lot Maximum Suite Size Additional Restrictions Burnaby M1, M2, M3, M5, M6, M7, M8 1 56 sq.m. (600 sq. ft.) Min. lot size of 0.8 hectare (2 ac.). Max. of two adults Coquitlam M-1, M-3, M-8, M-9 1 60 sq.m. (650 sq. ft.) Max. of two adults
Delta I1, I2, I2A, I2S, l3, I5, I7, I8 1 Size limited through design review. Langley City I1, I2, I3* 1 No limitations *I3 is a live/work zone which permits 1 suite/strata unit. Langley Township All Industrial Zones Except M-4 1 No Limitations *M-11 limits unit size to 140 sq.m. (1,500 sq. ft.) Richmond I1, I2, I3, I4 1 75 sq.m. (810 sq. ft.) The restriction of one caretaker suite permitted per industrial lot was intended to limit the amount of industrial space devoted to non-business activities and, in effect, to maximize the employment-generating capacity of industrial development. However, significant costs resulting from increased criminal activities are apparently posing a serious threat to the viability of some established industrial enterprises. In response to this concern, the Planning & Development Department has re-evaluated caretaker suite restrictions as a means to improve security within industrial developments. Proposed Amendments to IB, IL, IH and IA Zone The Planning & Development Department has considered the recommendation of the Industrial/Commercial Task Force and feedback from members of the industrial development community and proposes amendments to Surrey Zoning By-law No. 12000 to permit more than one caretaker unit per industrially-zoned lot. The proposed amendments will permit one caretaker suite for each industrial building with less than 2,800 square metres [30,000 sq. ft.] in floor area and a maximum of two caretaker dwelling units for each industrial building equal to or greater in size than 2,800 square metres [30,000 sq. ft.]. With these proposed amendments, a "hypothetical" development with three, 2,000-square metre [21,500 sq. ft.] buildings on one lot could contain a maximum of 3 caretaker suites. In comparison, an industrial development with three, 4,000-square metre [43,000 sq. ft.] buildings on one lot would be able to contain a maximum of 6 caretaker suites. The proposed amendments set a maximum floor area for caretaker suites at 140 square metres [1,500 sq. ft.] for one (the first) dwelling unit on an industrial property and 90 square metres [970 sq. ft.] for each additional dwelling unit. The 140-square metre [1,500-sq. ft.] size limit for the first dwelling unit will ensure that existing caretaker units (those units developed previous to the proposed zoning by-law amendment) retain legal conformity, as this is the present maximum unit size. The 90-square metre [970-sq. ft.] size limit for each additional caretaker dwelling unit is intended to control the amount of additional space devoted to caretaker units within industrial developments and ensure that industrial space is devoted to employment-generating business activities. Furthermore, as a means to ensure that accessory residential areas do not exceed the areas devoted to industrial uses, the maximum floor area of a caretaker suite shall not exceed 33% of the total floor area of the principal building within which the dwelling unit is contained (Appendices I, II, III, and IV). Approximately 27 industrial properties located throughout the City currently have site specific Comprehensive Development (CD) zoning. The proposed amendments to Zoning By-law No. 12000 will not affect these properties. In order to apply the new regulation equally to these CD properties, there are two options: (1) to amend the CD zones through Council initiated rezoning; or
(2) to amend the CD zones at the requests of the property owners, if and when such requests are received. Since a CD zone is unique to each lot and the requirement for caretaker units may be significantly different among these projects, a Council initiated amendment to all 27 CD zones is not practical and is therefore not recommended. However, depending upon the site specific characteristics and needs of each of these properties, it is appropriate to consider amending individual CD zones to allow more than one caretaker suite. It is recommended that owners of the 27 CD-zoned industrial properties be notified about the proposed changes to Zoning By-law No. 12000 regarding caretaker suites, if Council chooses to approve such changes. Should any of the owners wish to pursue a similar amendment to their CD zoning to suit their particular needs, individual applications may be submitted along with appropriate fees. The Co-Chairs of the Industrial/Commercial Task Force have reviewed and indicated support for the proposed by-law amendments to the IB, IL, IH and IA zones (Appendix V). The Co-Chairs of the Task Force indicate that industrial developers will probably not maximize the number of permitted caretaker units per site. Rather, developers will assess the economics of a particular project and build the number of caretaker suites which they believe is sufficient to provide maximum security on the site. In addition, developers will likely build caretaker units on the second storey of industrial buildings because they will not want to reduce the net amount of "leaseable" ground-level industrial space. CONCLUSION The amendments proposed to the industrial regulations in Zoning By-law No. 12000 are intended to permit, under some circumstances, more than one caretaker suite on properties zoned IB, IL, IH and IA as a means to improve the level of security provided within industrial developments and to improve safety for individual security personnel. In order to ensure that industrial floor areas are not unduly occupied by non-industrial uses, maximum size restrictions for caretaker suites are incorporated into the proposed by-law amendments. The proposed amendments will implement a key recommendation of the Industrial/Commercial Task Force. The proposed amendments are supported by the Co-Chairs of the Industrial/Commercial Task Force. Furthermore, the proposed amendments have been reviewed by the City Solicitor and are found satisfactory. The Planning & Development Department, therefore, recommends that Council approve the proposed amendments and instruct the City Clerk to introduce the necessary amendment by-law. CTS/kms Murray D. Dinwoodie General Manager, Planning & Development Department Appendices Appendix I - Proposed Amendment to IB Zone Appendix II - Proposed Amendment to IL Zone Appendix III - Proposed Amendment to IH Zone Appendix IV - Proposed Amendment to IA Zone
Appendix V - Letter from the Co-Chairs of the Industrial/Commercial Task Force v:\wp-docs\planning\99data\jan-mar\02080934.cts KMS 02/18/99 09:08 AM