A decision on a new west-end grocery store has been deferred by council to its Feb. 13 meeting.

Then it will consider a zone change amendment that, if approved, would make way for a 27,000 to 28,000-square-foot No Frills store on the corner of O’Loane Avenue and Huron Street.

The decision to defer the matter was made at Monday evening’s council meeting, after hearing an error resulted in some interested members of the public not being notified the issue was to be discussed until earlier that day.

Before the deferral, council heard two presentations, and a handful of brief comments and questions from neighbours.

Developers are seeking a zone change amendment for the properties at 618, 630, and 640 Huron Street – currently occupied by several businesses, including Strickland’s and Ross Rocher Auto Sales, and other residential buildings – to allow reduced setbacks to accommodate the proposed grocery store.

Along with the main building – which would include a 1,618-square-foot mezzanine – there are also plans for a 5,000-square-foot retail pad, which would house complementary businesses.

The development would front onto O’Loane Avenue. The lands are already designated for commercial uses.

A peer review has been completed on all studies related to the development, and it found the development represents proper planning and would require no amendment to the city’s Official Plan. It did suggest maximum size limits be put in place.

Liz Howson – of the firm Macaulay Shiomi Howson, which undertook the peer review – said she considers the No Frills a neighbourhood serving development, not a large-scale proposal.

“The development as proposed would meet the city’s objectives for developing a commercial node in this west end location,” Howson added.

However, she advised caution be taken during the site plan process to ensure the development is a good fit with existing neighbourhood uses.

“There needs to be a careful look at the whole design,” she said.

The peer review suggested the rear yard setback not be less than three metres, a reduction from the 4.5 metre standard. The western edge of the property abuts an existing residential dwelling.

The rear yard, coupled with concerns about the sideyard setback facing Huron Street, drew the most concern from council.

Mayor Dan Mathieson took issue with the developer’s request for a 2.5 metre setback, which is five metres less than laid out in the city’s bylaw.

“It cuts off the house directly to the west from any sightline to Huron Street,” Mathieson said of the neighbouring residence, which complies with the bylaw and is set back 7.5 metres.

Mathieson asked the developer to consider moving the building back about 10 feet so the neighbour could continue to enjoy sightlines similar to those they have today.

Coun. Paul Nickel expressed concerns with not only the neighbour’s sightlines, but whether placing a development so close to the road was keeping with other buildings in the area.

In response, Howson said at times having less physical space but more landscaping is more desireable, and that the development is designed to be “urban.”

She suggested consideration could be taken to have some areas of the development set back 7.5 metres, with other portions only setback 2.5 metres.

“It really has to be looked at from a site specific perspective,” Howson said.

The developer has requested the lessened setbacks to meet parking requirements, but Howson suggested re-examining the amount of parking the store requires.

Questioned whether the developer’s studies took in account the impact a No Frills may have on existing stores in the area – including Shopper’s Drug Mart and Giant Tiger – James Tate, also of Macaulay Shiomi Howson Ltd., said that was not included as they are not considered direct competition.

Shopper’s Drug Mart is considered a drug store, while Giant Tiger is considered a general merchandise store, he explained.

The impact of a possible Sobey’s store across the street, on the former Ministry of Transportation lands – a proposal for which is in the preliminary stages – also wasn’t included as no current information was available, Tate added.

However, a market study by the Sobey’s developer took in account the impact of the No Frills and the planned WalMart development and found all would be sustainable, he said.

Representing the No Frills developer, Richard Zelinka said his client would do its best to address all of the concerns, but wouldn’t commit to reducing the sideyard setback when pressured by the mayor.

“We’re prepared to look at that ... I can’t say for sure that we can do that,” Zelinka said, adding he was made aware of the issue that evening.

However, Mathieson disagreed, stating the matter was raised at a public meeting held Nov. 14.