RECOMMENDATION:
It is recommended that process changes proposed
in the report dated February 4, 2003, entitled “Streamlining Street Name
Approvals and Ensuring Culturally Diverse Street Names”, be adopted.
And that the Director of Planning and Urban
Design be delegated approval authority for street names, as outlined in the
February 4, 2003, report.
And that Councillors whose wards would be
affected by proposed street names be consulted prior to approval of street
names.
And further that Council members are encouraged
to periodically provide lists of potential culturally diverse street names for
use by staff in approving street names.
PURPOSE:
This report will address two concerns regarding
street names. The first involves a streamlining of the process required to
approve street names. The second addresses the concern of Council members
regarding the need for more culturally diverse street names to be included in
our new communities.
The current practice of approving a proposed
street name requires dedication of staff resources toward writing a report that
must then be submitted for approval by the Development Services Committee and
adoption by Council. Staff previously (report dated June 18, 2002) recommended
that Council delegate approval authority for street names to the Director of
Planning and Urban Design to reduce the time and resources currently expended
on this process.
Council deferred this recommendation in order
to allow staff to review the possibility of more culturally diverse street
names being used (see Appendix ‘A’ attached). Council is encouraged to
periodically provide staff with lists of culturally desirable names that can be
incorporated into an existing street name reserve list for use by staff in
approving new street names.
BACKGROUND:
The current practice of street name approval
relies on the submission of potential street names by developers/builders. In
order to obtain approved street names, applicants are requested to submit a
series of street names for circulation to the Geomatics Group, the Fire
Department and the Region of York for approval. Council approved names are also
made available to applicants through a street name reserve list. As the search
for viable names becomes increasingly more difficult, more applicants are
requesting copies of this reserve list. The current reserve list is attached as
Appendix ‘B’.
A fair number of the names on this list have
been available for some time, and require final review prior to any use. As
names are selected from the reserve list, a re-confirmation of their usability
must be undertaken through a circulation to the Geomatics Group, Fire
Department and Region of York to ensure that no similar names have been
approved, and for ease of recognition and pronunciation. Some of the names in
the street name reserve list include heritage and veteran names.
The planner involved with a subdivision
application will request that an applicant provide more proposed street names
than are needed to compensate for names that may not be accepted by the Town or
Region. Once clearances have been obtained from staff and the Region, the
street names are submitted to the Development Services Committee for approval.
Once
Council adopts the proposed street names for use in a plan of subdivision, the
developer/builder selects the most desirable names. Any unused names may then
be added to the reserve list.
OPTIONS/DISCUSSION:
Streamlining Street Name
Approvals
The current system of approving street names has been viewed as an item
that requires streamlining through the Development Applications Review and
Approval Core Services project for the Development Services Commission. In
order to achieve this objective, Staff is recommending that Council bestow the
Director of Planning and Urban Design the authority to adopt new street names
on behalf of the Town.
Delegation to staff would save considerable time and resources, as staff
would no longer be required to write reports for approval by Development
Services Committee and adoption by Council. In order to maintain oversight
of the revised approval process, Councillors whose wards would be affected by
proposed street names would be consulted prior to approval of street names.
This would ensure that any potentially unacceptable names could be removed from
consideration.
In order to increase the opportunity that new plans of subdivision
possess street names that reflect the varied ethnic communities residing in
Markham, Council members are encouraged to periodically bring forward proposed
culturally diverse street names. An option to identify possible names would be
to seek suggestions from the community.
Upon submission to Planning Department staff the proposed street names
will be circulated to the Fire Department and the Region of York for their
review. The final list will then be included in a report to Development
Services Committee for the approval of additional names to the Town’s reserved
street name list, which is for use in addition to new street name suggestions
by developers builders. Identified street names may be directed for use in
specified communities. This reporting process and update of the “reserve list”
will be undertaken twice-yearly to ensure the reserve list is not depleted.
FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:
There
are no financial implications that would arise out of the matters being dealt
with in this report. There would be some measure of time saved by staff and
applicants attempting to obtain street names to apply to subdivision plans and
engineering drawings.
BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:
Development
Services Commission staff, involved in the development review and approval
process, are dependent on a timely process of street name approvals.
|
|
|
|
|
Valerie Shuttleworth, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.
Director of Planning & Urban Design
|
|
Jim Baird, M.C.I.P., R.P.P.
Commissioner of Development Services
|
Q:\Development\Planning\Teams\GEOMATIC\Admin\documents\PRT0218.doc
