In the permit request, Chestfield Development requested approval from city council to reduce the distance between the parking lot and the front of the building from the required 5.2 metres to 2.1 metres. The city's zoning bylaws require parking areas to be at least 5.2 m from the window of any habitable room in an apartment building.
In a report to city council, acting deputy city manager Ian Wells said the city's administration supported the request to grant the variance.
"The windows in the apartment housing and the parking spaces are separated by landscaping and a concrete walkway (2.1 m). The walkway and landscaping provide both a visual buffer between the apartment housing and the parking space, but also act as a buffer for noise and emissions associated with parking areas," Wells wrote in his report. "The reduced distance between the parking area and the habitable rooms in the apartment housing only apply to approximately 17 parking spaces on the south side of the building, therefore, the cumulative impact will be minor...