July’s planning meeting of city council will have three big items on the agenda including a heritage designation, a report on new planning policy to get feedback, and a decision on what might be the most controversial planning application to come before council in some time. Will it be another swift night around the virtual horseshoe, or are things going to get complicated?

NOTE #1: Delegates will be able to appear at this meeting via telephone, but you do have to register with the clerks office before 1o am on Friday July 10. You can also submit written delegations and correspondences for agenda items.

NOTE #2: The meeting will be closed to the public, though it will be live-streamed on the City of Guelph’s website here.

120 Huron Street Notice of Intention to Designate under the Ontario Heritage Act – You will recall that council has approved a plan to turn the old Uniroyal plant at the corner of Huron and Alice Streets into 87 condo units. Part of the plan for that site is to preserve the heritage elements of the building, and the legal owner of the property has applied to have the building protected under the Ontario Heritage Act, which staff is now endorsing after consultation with Heritage Guelph. The heritage designation will go into effect at the end of 30 days assuming that there are no objections received.

Statutory Public Meeting Report Additional Residential Unit Review: Planning Act Update Proposed Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw Amendment File: OZS20-02 – One of the planning projects that the City has been working on is a review of the policy and guidelines for accessory apartments, and other secondary units on residential properties. Some of the proposed changes are simple, like changing some definitions and allowing additional units to the added to lots zoned medium density. In one of the bigger of the proposed changes, garden suites will be recognized as portable and temporary, and two additional units will be allowed on each property, one within the primary dwelling, and one separate. The new rules will also allow a maximum or three bedrooms instead of two, and existing lots will be exempt from the rule requiring one parking space for each unit. The final Official Plan Amendment and Zoning Bylaw Amendment will be brought to council for approval sometime in the fourth quarter of this year.

Decision Report 70 Fountain Street East Proposed Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendments (File OZS19-015) Ward 1 – Back in February, council heard an application for a 25-storey high-rise on Fountain Street that would feature 3,900 square feet of ground floor retail space, 67,000 square feet of office space, and 180 apartment units. After a couple of months of deliberation, the request has been denied by City staff who say that the proposal “undermines the fundamental vision and strategy” of the Downtown Secondary Plan. It also “does not constitute good planning,” and is “incompatible with the character.” The quick five-month turnaround was to avoid an appeal at the Local Planning Appeals Tribunal (LPAT) on the grounds of a non-decision within the 120-day timeline for a complete application.