Surrey council is considering a city staff report tonight about designating so-called Transit-Oriented Areas and related density and height regulations.
The city’s planing and development department and engineering department is also putting revised residential off-street requirements within the TOAs before council to vote on.
The provincial government requires that these regulations come into force on June 30. “The TOAs are areas within 800 metres of a SkyTrain station or 400 metres of a bus exchange within which higher, transit-supportive densities are mandated,” the corporate report explains.
They are categorized into five tiers. Tier One is the area within 200 metres of a SkyTrain station with a minimum allowable height of 20 storeys; Tier Two, from 200 to 400 metres from a SkyTrain station allows for a minimum height of 12 storeys; Tier Three, from 400 to 800 metres from a SkyTrain station comes with a minimum height of eight storeys; Tier Four – up to 200 metres from a bus exchange – has a minimum allowable height of 12 storeys; and Tier Five, from 200 to 400 metres from a bus exchange has a minimum allowable height of eight storeys.
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Transit-Oriented Areas are designated for 12 SkyTrain Stations: Scott Road Station, Gateway Station, Surrey Central Station, King George Station, Green Timbers Station, 152 Street Station, Fleetwood Station, Bakerview-166 Street Station, Hillcrest-184 Street Station, Clayton Station, Willowbrook Station and Columbia Station.
TOA’s are also designated for three bus exchanges: Guildford Mall Exchange, Newton Exchange and Scottsdale Exchange.
City staff are also bringing before council proposed bylaw amendments aimed at revising residential off-street parking requirements within the TOAs. Provincial legislation now restricts a city’s ability to require residential off-street parking in these areas with the aim of making housing less expensive by reducing the cost of construction. “It is also meant to remove disincentives to using sustainable modes of transportation,” the city report reads. “Municipalities may still require offstreet parking for use by people with disabilities as well as for non-residential uses. With these changes, developers will be relied on to provide sufficient parking based on market demand.”
