A request to rezone the property which has been the Ukrainian Orthodox Auditorium from Institutional to allow for a retail business was turned down by Yorkton Council at its regular meeting Monday.
The property at 38 Bradbrooke Drive was constructed in 1976 and has been in use as a community hall since.
“The property has been listed for sale and the application has been submitted by a prospective buyer. The applicant is seeking bylaw amendments that would allow for the retail sale of bedding and related home decor,” detailed a report circulated to Council Monday.
The Official Community Plan (OCP) Future Land Use Concept map designates the land for Community Service Use. The OCP would therefore also have to be amended to allow for any type of commercial zoning.
“Over the three-plus years that the property has been listed for sale, Planning Services has received various ideas for redevelopment. Some of the uses would have been permitted under current zoning and bylaw amendments would not be required in order to obtain necessary permits. More recently, commercial interest in the building has piqued, forcing consideration of possible changes to both the OCP and Zoning Bylaw before permits could be applied for,” related the administrative review circulated.
A number of criteria were considered as part of the process of considering the zoning change said Lonnie Kaal, City Manager.
For example; is there a need for additional properties within the zoning sector?
The report noted, “There are a growing number of vacant commercial properties available within the City, the majority of which are for lease rather than for sale. A rezoning to allow for commercial use would add to the inventory and potentially inhibit redevelopment of other existing commercial properties.”
Also would the rezoning be perceived as a precedent for which other owners of similarly-zoned properties would expect similar treatment?
“There are many other properties owned and operated by community and not-for-profit groups. It would likely be perceived as unfair if the City were to allow one property to be rezoned for commercial use and not another,” detailed the report.
Kaal said Administration did not feel that the application adequately satisfies the criteria and, as a result, is not in favour of zoning changes that would support it.
Council supported the Administrative recommendation to deny the request, with only Councillor Chris Wyatt opposed.
