Urban Design Brief 210 Heritage Drive Kitchener - Pioneer Tower Homes Inc. Zoning By-law Amendment March 2021 (Revised) - City of Kitchener
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Urban Design Brief
210 Heritage Drive
Kitchener
Pioneer Tower Homes Inc.
Zoning By-law Amendment
March 2021 (Revised)
WITH
Contents 1. Background & Purpose ......................................................................................................................................................... 1 2. Context ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 3. Design Policy and Guideline References ............................................................................................................................ 9 4. Site and Building Design Overview .................................................................................................................................... 12 5. Response to Policy and Guideline Framework ................................................................................................................. 18 6. Summary ............................................................................................................................................................................... 23
1. Background & Purpose
Scope Content
Pioneer Tower Homes Inc. (“the owner”) is proposing a This Urban Design Brief is based on preliminary
stacked townhouse development on its property at 210 drawings and materials available at this stage of the
King Street East (“the site”) in Kitchener. This Urban approval process. As work continues on the detailed
Design Brief is prepared as part of a Zoning Bylaw aspects of design for Site Plan Approval, such as the
Amendment application for the proposed development, completion of detailed site plans, lighting plans,
per the June 2020 Pre-Submission Consultation. The landscape plans, elevation drawings, the detailed
proposed Zoning By-law Amendment will rezone the aspects of the proposed development will be refined
site’s Residential Three (R-3) Zone in the Kitchener and fully demonstrated. Based on the matters identified
Zoning By-law 85-1 to establish site-specific regulations in pre-submission consultation record, this Urban
for building height, floor space ratio, lot width and off- Design Brief:
street parking. • Describes the contextual relationships and fit with
the surrounding area, including existing
The Kitchener Official Plan identifies Urban Design neighbourhood character analysis (Section 2),
Briefs as comprehensive documents “which may
• Outlines the Official Plan design-related policies and
include urban design vision, principles, objectives,
guidelines and strategies” and that “may be required of Urban Design Manual guidelines and standards that
an owner/applicant in support of a development are relevant to the site’s design (Section 3),
application”. • Provides an overview of the proposed site and
building design (Section 4),
• Assesses how the proposed development’s design
responds to the above policy and guideline basis
(Section 5), and
• Makes conclusions regarding the findings of the
Urban Design Brief (Section 6).
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 1
Subject Site
The site has a substantial tree cover and significant
The site is located on the east side of Heritage Drive, grades changes for portions of the site. The site’s
generally west of Lackner Boulevard and south of western portion where the house, garage and driveways
Victoria Street North. It is approximately 0.4 hectares in sit is generally flat. The site’s eastern portion drops 5 to
area and generally square in shape, with up to 63.4 6 metres from the back of the house to the eastern
metres of depth and 63.7 metres of width. The site is property line and there are existing retaining walls in the
situated on the outside curve of Heritage Drive where it rear yard. The existing mature tree cover of deciduous
connects with Halifax Drive and has a narrow frontage trees (principally) and coniferous trees is concentrated
of approximately 10.5 metres onto the street. There is a in the site’s eastern portion and to a lesser degree
single-storey detached dwelling and detached garage along the northern and western property lines.
on the site, situated centrally on the site and accessed
by a driveway diagonally from the public street.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 2
Site’s frontage looking from Heritage Drive.
Site’s northwest corner looking from abutting public trail.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 3
Proposed Development Overview The proposed development is a multiple residential project consisting of two blocks of stacked townhouses. Block A is 8 units horizontally or 16 stacked per block, while Block is 5 units horizontally or 10 stacked per block. The stacked townhouse are 3 storeys in height. In total, there are 26 stacked townhouse units across four levels of interior space (basement and ground floor for lower unit; second and third floors for the upper unit). A surface parking lot with 33 parking spaces is located centrally within the site, mostly bound by the two buildings on western and north sides. Internal site walkways lead from the public sidewalk on Heritage Drive to the internal face of each building block. URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 4
2. Context
Neighbourhood Overview
The site is within the Heritage Park neighbourhood of and Heritage Drive, and the site at Natchez Drive and
Kitchener, generally bound by Ottawa Street to the Halifax Drive.
south, Lackner Boulevard to the east, Victoria Street to
the north, and the Stanley Park Conservation Area to The Victoria Street corridor at the north end of the
the west. The neighbourhood generally exhibits a low- neighbourhood is a mixture of commercial and light
rise residential pattern. Broadly speaking, one-storey industrial uses. It has a characteristically arterial
and two-storey detached dwellings predominate its built commercial corridor development form with a multi-lane
form fabric. The street system is characteristically post- road with buildings set back and front yard surface
war with a curving network of streets and courts and parking. Matthew Street and linked public trails provide
cul-de-sacs being common. There are multiple a direct walking route from the site to the transit routes
community facilities distributed throughout the along the Victoria Street corridor.
neighbourhood: four neighbourhood parks, four
elementary schools, a secondary school, a public Multiple transit routes run through the neighbourhood
library, an arena, a recreation complex, and multiple or along its edges. The iExpress Route 204 provides a
sports fields. high frequency (peak 15-minute headways) running
along Victoria Road as a cross-Kitchener link, with
Although the neighbourhood fabric exhibits a general closest stops to the site around the Natchez/Victoria
lower-rise characteristic, there are several clusters of intersection. The local Route 20 (peak 30-minute
multiple residential development forms throughout the headways) runs along Victoria Road and through the
neighbourhood. This includes cluster townhouse neighbourhood along Natchez Drive and Halifax Drive,
developments as well as low-rise, mid-rise and high-rise with the closest stops to the site around the
apartment buildings. They are present both along the Natchez/Matthew and Natchez/Halifax intersections.
neighbourhood edges as well as internal to the
neighbourhood fabric. Principally, there are four
clusters: the nodes on Ottawa around Lackner and
River Road, the cluster surrounding Lorraine Avenue
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 5
Graphic
Contextual considerations of land use patterns transit
routes and stops, and community amenities.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 6
Immediate Context
North East
Georgian Park, a neighbourhood level park, abuts the The site shares property lines with five residential
north side of the site. This 1.6-hectare, “L-shaped” park properties to the east along Muskoka Court: 7, 11, 15,
extends from Georgian Crescent to Matthews Drive 19 and 25 Muskoka Court, with the latter wrapping
before turning to abut the site’s northern property line. around the site’s northeast corner. All five are two-
This Park is entirety covered with a mature tree canopy storey dwellings with double car garages. These lots sit
and has trails winding through connecting to abutting at the base of the slope dropping down from the site
public street sidewalks. There are no programmed and have mature tree cover in their rear yards.
facilities or functions other than trails in the Park.
Closest to the site, the Park’s topography rise
considerably moving up the slope to the site.
View to 210 Heritage Drive from north in Georgian Park
near Muskoka Court entrance (TOP); View of public trails
in Georgian Park looking from Matthews Street side View of 25 Muskoka Court and 19 Muskoka Court looking
(BOTTOM). south (TOP); View to 210 Heritage Drive through 19
Muskoka Court property (MIDDLE); 19, 15 and 11
Muskoka Court looking south (BOTTOM).
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 7
South West
The site shares two property lines with two properties to A 6-metre wide public trail corridor abuts the entirety of
the south: 3 Muskoka Court to the southeast corner and the site’s western property, extending between Heritage
212 Heritage Drive for the remainder. The former is a 2- Drive and Matthew Street and leading into Georgian
storey detached dwelling with a double garage, as a Park. The corridor contains a concrete trail and is
deep lot as compared to the properties described edged on both sides by chain link fencing on the
above to the north without the same rear yard tree subject site and wood privacy fence and chain link
cover. The latter is a single storey detached dwelling fencing on different portions of the facing side. Two
without a garage. residential properties abut the other side of the trail
facing the site: 90/92 Halifax Drive are two-storey (back-
split) semi-detached dwellings that flank onto the trail
corridor while 26 Matthew Court is a two-storey
detached dwelling that backs onto the trail corridor.
View to 3 Muskoka Court looking south on the street
(TOP); View of 212 Heritage Drive looking directly from
the street (BOTTOM).
View of public trail corridor looking from Heritage Drive
entrance, with the site immediately to the right (TOP);
View of 90/92 Halifax Drive looking from the street
(BOTTOM).
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 83. Design Policy and Guideline
References
3.1 Official Plan
General Urban Design Policies
Urban Structure and Land Use Designation Policies
Section 11 of the Official Plan contains general urban
The site is part of the Community Areas (Map 2)
design policies that are used to evaluate movement
structure element and Low Rise Residential (Map 3) patterns, the relationship between built form and open
designation. The Community Areas policies allow spaces, integration of natural and cultural resources
limited intensification in keeping with the applicable
and development impacts. They include the following:
designation and general urban design policies, provided
such intensification is “sensitive to and compatible with • General urban design policies speak to the city’s
the character, form and planned function of the skyline, CPTED principles, fire prevention, barrier-
surrounding context” (Policy 3.C.2.52). The Low Rise free accessibility, and shade.
Residential designation permits a full range of low
• Site Design policies speak to the building’s street
density housing, including cluster townhouse and low-
relationship landscaping to improve the streetscape;
rise multiples dwellings; specifically, the designation
developments to improve aesthetic quality and be
encourages and supports “the mixing and integrating of
innovative and different forms of housing to achieve and safe, comfortable, functional and provide circulation
maintain a low-rise built form” (Policy 15.D.3.9). The for all transportation modes; and site servicing and
maximum building height is generally 3 storeys or 11 utilities to be screened from view from the public
metres in height, although exceptions are allowed for realm.
sites with unique grading conditions.
• Building Design, Massing and Scale design policies
speak to human-scale proportions to support a
On the latter points, the general residential policies
comfortable and attractive public realm, including
establish policies for ensuring “the successful
attractive building forms, façades and roof designs;
integration of different housing types, specifically
multiple residential developments” through complementary design of new buildings; and
intensification within the Low Rise Residential architectural innovation and expression.
designation (Policy 15.D.3.3). These considerations are: Section 17.E.10.5 identifies that urban design
a) compatibility of building form with respect to briefs/reports together with other design-related are
massing, scale, design; meant to be used to
b) the relationship of housing to adjacent buildings, a) demonstrate that a proposed development or
streets and exterior areas; redevelopment is compatible;
c) adequate and appropriate parking areas are b) address the relationship to and the privacy of
provided on site; adjacent residential development; and,
d) adequate and appropriate amenity areas and c) ensure compatibility with the existing built form
landscaped areas are provided on site. and the physical character of the established
area and/or neighbourhood.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 9URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 10
3.2 Urban Design Manual
PART A – Design Guidelines or new low-rise neighbourhoods”. In terms of design,
the general preamble notes “that whatever their visual
Part A contains design guidelines on various land uses,
style, buildings are to be massed, clad, articulated and
built types, geographic areas, and urban structure
detailed authentically, such that they reflect the needs,
elements. The following topics of design guidelines are
behaviours and tendencies of both occupants and
relevant to the site and the proposed building.
community members” and that architectural elements
a) City-Wide are to be “complementary of neighbourhood character
The City-Wide design guidelines apply to Kitchener as a but not direct replications of existing features”.
whole. The main objective of these guidelines it to
ensure Kitchener is designed as an inclusive, safe, PART C – Design Standards
accessible, comfortable and appealing place to live,
Part C contains design standards with specifications on
work and play. Guidelines are divided into Community
technical details. Several standards are applicable to
Design and Site Design. The Community Design
the proposed development, including those for parking
guidelines are primarily used by the City in designing
structures, access, surface parking, outdoor lighting,
the form and structure of communities through the
barrier-free accessibility, pedestrian and transit-
application of design best practices in a range of topics.
supportive development, rooftop mechanical
The Site Design guidelines address built form, open
equipment, emergency services, landscaping and
space and site functionality.
natural features, storm water management facilities and
landscape design. These technical aspects of the
b) Low-Rise Multiple Residential Buildings
detailed design will be evaluated at a later stage of the
The Low-Rise Multiple Residential Buildings design review process through Site Plan Approval.
guidelines apply to low-rise multiple residential types
throughout Kitchener. Generally, low-rise buildings are
considered as 3 storeys or less: stacked townhouses fall
within this intent. The guidelines note that such forms
are a “valuable alternative to taller forms when seeking
to achieve greater densities in established
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 114. Site and Building Design
Overview
4.1 Building Positioning
The two stacked townhouse blocks are arranged in a site’s eastern portion. The western setback together
“L” shape in the site’s northeast corner facing the site’s with the public trail corridor width provides for a
interior. The blocks are positioned closer to the physical separation of 10.5 metres to the 90/92 Halifax
northern property line (closest at approximately 4 metre Drive property line (or approximately 13.5 metres to the
setback) to maximize separation to abutting residential building).
properties to the east and south, sitting closer to the
treed area to the north and public trail corridor to the
west. Across the site, the building arrangement is offset
from the site’s centre (approximately 17.5 metres
setback to eastern property line and 4 metres setback
to the western property line) to provide for retention of
the slope area and associated mature tree cover on the
4.06 m
6.0 m 4.05 m
17.57 m
49.9 metres
4.0 m
17.65 metres
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 124.2 Building Scale and Massing
The two stacked townhouse buildings are “standard”
stacked townhouses with four levels: a lower unit with
ground levels and basement levels and the upper unit
with two uppermost levels. Both units are accessed
from ground floor covered entrances facing the surface
parking area. The buildings are massed as blocks of 8
or 5 linear units each (16 or 10 units stacked). Units are
approximately 5.2 metres wide each, the total building
mass at 41.5 metres (Block A) or 26 metres (Block B) in
length and 9.5 metres wide. The buildings are three
storeys in height. The building heights are 11.4 metres
from highest grade to the rooftop. Covered porchs and
upper balconies project approximately 2 metres from
the front building wall facing the parking area.
Site Cross-Sections
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 134.4 Loading and Service
4.3 Access and Circulation
Two deep well garbage enclosures are on the north
The proposed development continues to be accessed side of the site driveway’s entrance, easily accessed
from a single driveway access to Heritage Drive per the and traversed by the driveway.
existing access for the detached dwelling. The driveway
leads through the small parking areas south of the 4.5 Car Parking
Block A and into the central parking area. The driveway
The proposed design includes a total of 33 surface
is 6.7 to 7.3 metres in width depending on the abutting
parking spaces. The bulk (29 spaces) is contained
parking configuration. The design is configured to
between the two building blocks, away from the
provide turnaround facilities for emergency vehicles
residential properties to the west and east. A small
and waster collection vehicles.
pocket of three spaces, including the required two
barrier-free parking spaces (one Class A, one Class B),
The pedestrian entrance to the site is situated on the
is located near the driveway entrance and connected
north side of the entrance driveway. This connection
directly to the internal site walkways.
extends through the site as 1.8 metre concrete
walkways on the front faces of each stacked townhouse
4.6 Bicycle Parking
block facing the central parking areas. All stacked
townhouse units directly access these lining concrete The concrete pads of the driveway radii to the south of
site walkways. the blocks provide opportunities for bicycle racks for
Cyclists will access the site by the driveway and/or visitors. Secure bicycle parking for residents would be
concrete walkways. accommodated within individual units.
Majority of parking
with centralized
surface area
Appropriate prominent
location for bicycle rack for
Barrier-free spaces visitors
directly connected to
internal walkways
Deep well garbage
locations in easily
accessed location
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 144.8 Building Materials and Articulation
The preliminary building elevations draw on material
palettes and forms from the neighbourhood context,
while providing a complementary, contemporary
aesthetic adding to the neighbourhood. The ground
floor elevation are clad with grey brick continuously
around the front, rear and sides. The upper storeys are
clad with a combination of dark vinyl siding interjected
with wood textured siding materials on the projecting
window bays. Peaked roof pitches atop the latter
distinguish the roofline.
Asphalt shingled roof
Metal rails and
glass insets for
lower balconies
Wood textured siding on
projecting elevations
Metal Juliet
balcony railings Dark vinyl siding on
the uppers
Clear glass
Grey brick for ground
windows
floor and walkout levels
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 15BLOCK A Representative Elevations
Internal Elevations Facing Parking Area
`
Elevation Facing Central Parking Area
Elevation Facing Western Property Line
Elevation Facing Southern Property Line Elevation Facing Northern Property Line
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 164.9 Streetscape and Landscape Design
Denser planted areas
The proposed development necessitates some tree for buffering to parking
removals throughout the property. Numerous existing and building walls
trees will be retained on the eastern sloped area to
screen to abutting properties to the east, while other will
have to be removed grading and construction purposes.
The Tree Enhancement Plan prepared by GSP Group Planting beds at
compensates for these removals with a comprehensive unit entrances
plan of new plantings focused on perimeter interface,
parking area edges, and unit entrances.
Retained tree cover on
Regular row of deciduous
sloped portion of site
trees for screening to trail
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 175. Response to Policy and
Guideline Framework
5.1 Response to Official Plan Policy
Responding to the noted Community Area design intent The proposed stacked townhouse development is
in Section 3.1, the form is sensitive to and compatible designed in keeping with the design policy direction of
with the surrounding context, both the immediate Official Plan Section 11, as further explored in detail as
context and broader Heritage Park context. The building part of the Urban Design Manual analysis in Section 5.2
heights are in keeping with Low Rise Residential below.
designation’s intent, recognizing the grade changes on
the eastern property line expose the basement level of This Urban Design Brief, per Official Plan Section
the Block B side. The building positioning frames the 17.E.10.5, demonstrates that the proposed
central surface parking area and service areas internally development is a compatible addition to the Heritage
on the site, away from most public and private views to Park, as outlined above. Further to the above, potential
abutting properties. The landscape plan provides for privacy impacts to the properties to the east are
dense configurations of plantings along the eastern and mitigated by the significant separation distance (17+
western property lines (the former complementing the metre setback to the closest property line), significant
retained tree cover) to assist with screening and privacy retention of existing tree cover on the slope, and
matters. Architecturally, the proposed design enhancement tree plantings.
complements the surrounding context in terms of
material treatments and general roofline profiles. 5.2 Response to Urban Design Manual Guidelines
Inclusive Design
Responding to the Low Rise Designation’s design intent
CITY-WIDE
noted in Section 3.1, the proposed stacked townhouses LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL
support a mix and integration of innovative and different
• Pedestrian-scale lighting to be defined at the
housing forms achieving a low-rise built form pattern.
detailed design stage, focusing on internal site
This integration satisfies intensification considerations
walkways and surface parking areas
for the Low Rise Residential designation, namely
providing: • Uninterrupted sight lines from the building faces to
site walkways along the building faces, featuring a
a) A compatible building form as outlined above.
highly transparent building elevations at the ground
b) A buffered relationship to the abutting public trail floor and above for natural surveillance purposes.
(west) and detached dwellings (east) through a
combination of distance and tree/landscape • Prominent entrance doors under covered porch for
plantings. both lower and upper units.
c) A centralized surface parking area framed (and • Accessible walkways and barrier-free parking
screened) by the proposed buildings. spaces that will be universally designed at the time
of detailed design.
d) A combination of patio and balcony spaces for
lower and upper units, respectively, together with • Attainable two-bedroom units catering to urban
landscaped areas in focal points for a suitable lifestyle options in an accessible location.
integration into the context.
• Public art installations not contemplated for the site.
• Upper units with uncovered balcony option facing
internal surface parking area.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 18Smart City Design Design for Sustainability
CITY-WIDE CITY-WIDE
LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL
• Details of building interiors and building/site
infrastructure not known at this time. • Compact intensification of an under-developed site
within an established area that is served by existing
transit and community uses.
Site Function
CITY-WIDE • Site is a short walk (5 minute walk) to multiple local
LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL bus transit stops and short walk (10 minute walk) to
• Central parking area with most of the surface express routes on Victoria and Lackner.
parking internalized on the site behind the building • Multiple active transportation connections in the
edge as viewed from the public trail and Halifax vicinity with sidewalks and bicycle facilities serving
Drive. the site.
• Single curb cut along Heritage Drive at existing • Outdoor bicycle racks providing secure locations
location. and supporting active transportation opportunities.
• Separate 1.8-metre wide walkways lining both • Stormwater on the site will be controlled through on-
building faces along the parking area edge site measures to reduce peak flows to existing
connecting to the public sidewalk on Heritage Drive. conditions levels, limiting pressures on the existing
• Street-edge landscaped areas flanking the building facilities.
entrance provide measure of streetscape accent and • Building envelope considerations to be explored
screening into the site’s parking areas (landscape through detailed design (increased insulation, high-
plan at detailed design to provide specific performance glazing and lower window-to-wall ratio,
treatment). for instance).
• Fully enclosed deep well garbage enclosures • Deep well waste and recycling collection areas to
located in accessible location for building residents encourage the collecting and recycling of waste
and collection vehicles, connected to site walkways produced by residents.
without obstructing travel and without the need to
• Landscape design to be consider options for
cross loading space.
infiltration and sustainable planting programs at time
• Utility infrastructure to be located at time of detailed of detailed design.
design.
• Outdoor bicycle parking racks to be located Design of Outdoor Comfort
(minimum 32 spaces) at time of detailed design; CITY-WIDE
open visibility to interior parking area and walkways LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL
provides for multiple suitable locations. • Building design with covered building entrances and
• Entrances and landing spaces in front of entrance to landscaping space for lower and upper units
be designed to universal accessibility standards. addresses pedestrian weather protection.
• Lighting and landscape plans at the time of detailed
design will address pedestrian comfort guidelines.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 19Shared Spaces along the townhouse block created by projecting
CITY-WIDE vertical window elements on the upper storeys
LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL
accentuated by different cladding materials and
• Shared outdoor amenity areas not provided for the colour. Colour of materials to be explored as part of
proposed development. detailed design of Site Plan Approval.
• Lower units have individual at-grade patios on the • Contemporary cladding materials and colours
rear wall. complement the residential form and roofline.
• Upper units have balconies on the front wall facing • Small development footprint (two blocks) where
the surface parking area rather than to abutting repetition and wayfinding is not a concern.
residential properties. • Paired unit entrances easily identified on the front
elevation facing the surface parking areas and site
Street Design
walkways, and covered for weather protection.
CITY-WIDE
• Unique site with little public frontage compared to
• Development connects to the existing driveway on site area, which does not allow for street-oriented
Heritage Drive, accommodating separate driveway building form. Unit entrances face and are directly
and pedestrian connections. accessed internal site walkways connecting to the
• Flanking landscape areas accentuates street edge. Heritage Drive sidewalk.
• Full balcony (2nd storey) and Juliet balconies (3rd • 8-unit stacked townhouse blocks are acceptable per
storey) are proposed for the upper units. Part C standards, particularly for the site given the
development is only two facing blocks.
Parks and Open Spaces
• Elevations facing the abutting trail corridor to the
CITY-WIDE
site’s west have the same style, similar window
• Direction connections to Georgian Park not possible patterns, same material treatment, and doors to the
(nor desired) given the existing tree cover and rear patio, following that of the front elevation facing
function of this wooded greenspace. the surface parking area.
• Northern property edge landscaping at time of • Side of townhouse blocks face south towards
detailed design to provide suitable buffering and/or Heritage Drive, not rear walls.
screening, including fencing considerations. • Consistency with the Heritage Drive/Halifax Drive
front yard setback pattern not possible given the
Compatibility
unique site configuration.
CITY-WIDE
LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL • Building layout provides the desired “front-to-front”
relationship between the two buildings.
• Buildings are positioned parallel to the western and
northern property lines, respectively, framing the • Non-driveway portion of the street frontage consists
internal surface parking area and establishing a of flanking landscaped areas.
typical “rear yard” relationship to those property
• Site layout includes landscape space along the
lines.
“back yards” of units on both the western and
• Ground floor elevations unified through a similar northern property line; former includes sufficient
brick material (grey). Variety between adjacent units space for row of screening deciduous trees while the
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 20latter includes sufficient setback space and area for • Ground floor elevations facing surface parking are
infilling and additions of retained tree cover on slope highly transparent with glass and window treatment,
area. carried upward as well on the upper storeys.
• Human-scaled architecture achieved with distinct
ground floor materials, vertical divisions, generous Building Components
fenestration patterns throughout, and the prominent LOW-RISE MULTIPLE RESIDENTIAL
building entrances defined by canopying porches.
• Pitched roofs respect surrounding contextual fabric
• Step-backs not feasible on shallow stacked with a proportional roof mass to the building a whole;
townhouses units (9 metres deep); intervening trail subtle visual accent above the projecting window
corridor to the west and substantial separation bays on upper storeys distinguish the roof profile.
distance to the east mitigates.
• Living rooms for lower unit and upper unit occupying
• Brick base material, alternating vertical rhythm of most of the unit width on ground floor and second
window bay projections with material changes, and floor, respectively, providing significant views over
pitched roofline reflective of general patterns in the shared surface parking area and site walkways.
surrounding context.
• Brick base material, alternating vertical rhythm of
• Architectural style is not replication of historical window bay projections with material changes, and
building styles or elements. pitched roofline articulates and break up the length
of individual blocks.
Cultural & Natural Heritage
• Utility/HVAC locations are not known at this time.
CITY-WIDE
• Elevations use high quality brick and siding materials
• No immediate or relevant heritage resources
through the building cladding, demonstrating
affecting the site’s design.
variation in colours, materiality and textures.
• Many existing trees will have to be removed for
• On the front walls, units share a covered porch for
construction; Tree Enhancement Plan, though,
entrance purposes and balconies provided for each
provides compensation plantings with focus of
upper unit. On the rear walls, at-grade patios are
perimeter, entrance, and street edge plantings.
provided for each lower unit
Built Form • Tree plantings assist in screening views from lower
CITY-WIDE and upper units to abutting residential properties.
• Paired unit entrances are clearly visible from the
• Proposed design embraces respectful contemporary
surface parking area and connect directly to
touches to a more traditional residential building
walkways (1.8 metres wide) leading to the public
form.
sidewalk on Heritage Drive.
• Site’s narrow public street frontage prevents
• Entrances are cleared defined through distinct
meaningful building massing to the street edge.
entrance doors (showing side lights and transom
• Step-backs not feasible on shallow stacked windows) and covered porches.
townhouses units (9 metres deep).
• Stairs to the ground floor are shown as 3 step rises.
• Architectural rhythm, materiality, and style provided
• Retaining walls are limited to the private realm, along
as outlined in the Compatibility section above.
the eastern slope of the site.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 215.3 Response to Urban Design Manual Standards
The Part C standards are fully addressed at the time of
Site Plan Approval will full site, building and landscape
plans are advanced. Sections 10 of the Part C
standards are most relevant for the spatial planning
exercise of a Zoning By-law Amendment regarding
multiple residential developments. The following notes
those standards that are satisfied by the development
concept.
Section 10 Multiple Residential
Rear yard depth of 17.57 metres to eastern
property line.
13 square metre at-grade individual patios for
lower units (5.5 square balcony space for upper
units).
Front yard depth of 2.13 metres to walkway edge
or 4.13 to roadway edge.
Internal site walkways at 1.8 metres on the
north/west side of the parking area and connecting
to public sidewalk on Heritage Drive.
No driveways leading to garages.
No end-to-rear relationships.
No end-to-end relationships.
Separation between building walls with windows to
habitable rooms of 6 metres
Roadway width of 6.7 metres at entrance and 7.3
metres through central parking area.
Centre-line radius of 12 metres for driveway
access and turnaround.
Balconies on upper units greater than 4 metres
from rear property lines.
1.42 metre or 2.5 metre distance to building end
and walkway edge.
Two blocks of 8 units (16 stacked).
Increased rear yard setback of 10+ metres for units
backing on properties to rear (Muskoka Court).
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 226. Summary
The proposed development at 210 Heritage Drive is a • Provides a respectful site layout to surrounding
multiple residential project consisting of two blocks of properties to the west and east with building framing
stacked townhouses (8x2 or 5x2). The blocks are 3 and blocking views to a central surface parking area.
storeys in height with the eastern block having walk-out
• Incorporates perimeter plantings of trees provide
conditions on the basement level. In total, there are 26
screening to abutting properties to the west and
stacked townhouse units across four levels of interior
east, the latter enhancing the retained tree cover in
space (basement and ground floor for lower unit;
that area.
second and third floors for the upper unit). A surface
parking lot with 33 parking spaces is located centrally • Enhances natural surveillance opportunities between
within the site, mostly bound by the two buildings on the new stacked townhouse units and the public trail
either side. Internal site walkways lead from the public corridor abutting the site’s western edge.
sidewalk on Heritage Drive to the internal face of each
building block. • Employs contemporary architectural touches and
materiality to a traditionally-reflective residential
Based on the assessment in this Urban Design Brief, the form.
proposed stacked townhouse is appropriate and
reflects good urban design. It respects the design policy
and guideline direction of the Kitchener Official Plan
regarding the Low Rise Residential designation and
general intensification policies in such residential areas
plus the Low-Rise Multiple Residential guidelines in the
Kitchener Urban Design Manual. Specifically, the
proposed design:
• Embraces the site’s context as part of a mixed-
residential neighbourhood with quality transit
proximity and existing community uses, including
schools and parks.
• Establishes a low-rise form that fits with the broader
surrounding context, which includes a range of
detached, semi-detached, townhouse and apartment
forms.
• Adds compact, attainable housing diversity within
the surrounding neighbourhood.
• Provides a suitably scaled building mass compatibly
fitting with the surrounding built fabric, recognizing
its taller form than immediately surrounding
properties.
• Integrates a continuous internal site walkway system
leading from building entrances through the site to
the public sidewalks.
URBAN Design Brief | 210 Heritage Drive, Kitchener 23You can also read
