Parks Space for Commercial Use Staff Report

PARKS SPACE FOR COMMERCIAL USE

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the report titled “Parks Space for Commercial Use” be received for information.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this report is to respond to Action Item C-84-23 from Council, that:

Staff prepare a report on the implications of allowing some commercial activity, such as food trucks, markets, outdoor fitness/yoga/meditation classes, and musical performances to occur in a View Royal park identified at staff’s discretion.

TIME CRITICAL:

The contents of this report are not time critical.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Currently, commercial use including food trucks are not a permitted use within the Town (Zoning Bylaw 900). Furthermore, concession use within Town parks are rare (only two recorded approvals have been granted).

Should the Town consider permitting commercial activities within its parks, staff have identified seven (7) locations that could potentially accommodate outdoor fitness/yoga/meditation classes and musical performances. Two (2) parks have been identified that could potentially accommodate food trucks.

It is recommended that engagement with public and private stakeholders be conducted to understand level of interest and what additional amenities may be required. Additional maintenance and lifecycle costs are expected due to the change in level of service and thus leading to additional staffing or resource requirements. Several Bylaws would also require amending to accommodate the additional permitted uses.

1.0 BACKGROUND:

At the June 20, 2023 regular Council meeting, Council directed staff to (1) Explore options and implications of allowing commercial activities, such as food trucks, markets, outdoor fitness classes and musical performances to occur in a View Royal Park; and (2) Follow up with Council at a later date regarding potential park locations that could support these activities.

1.1 Current Administration:

Section 4.1 of the Parks and Public Places Bylaw No. 986, 2018 (the “Parks Bylaw”) restricts parks use for commercial activities, whereby:

4.1 No person shall:

a) Distribute, place or erect any signs or other materials for the purpose of advertising any commercial activity; b) Use any public-address system for advertising any commercial activity; or c) Offer any good or service for gain or in the expectation of payment, fee, or other benefit, including concessions, food trucks, farmers markets, filming activity, and fitness or recreation classes,

In or across any Park Area without a valid Park Permit or other written authorization from the Director.

Approvals for such uses are rare in View Royal: at this time the only permitted cases were specifically for concession use in two (2) cases:

1. View Royal fastball games (summer only). This has been a long-standing agreement as the Town has seen a good standing, symbiotic relationship with the organization in the operations and maintenance of Helmcken Centennial Park;
2. Regional and Island-wide charity events. So far, the only permitted charity event on record is the Cops for Cancer Charity softball event.

Additional permitting can be precedent setting, requiring many more commercial use requests to be permitted that could impact Town maintenance costs.

1.2 Administration of Parks Commercial Permits – Other Municipalities

Staff reviewed relevant parks bylaws and permits of other municipalities relating to commercial activity. The scope of research included the District of Saanich, City of Colwood, City of Victoria, Town of Esquimalt, District of North Saanich, District of Central Saanich, District of Oak Bay, District of Sooke and Town of Sidney. Staff noted several similarities in requirements for commercial use, including but not limited to:

• Parks permitting requirements;
• Fee and deposit payments;
• Business License requirements;
• Liability insurance;
• Adherence to relevant municipal bylaws (i.e., noise bylaws);
• Allowance for the public to have full access of the park;
• Self cleanup.

The following table identifies which municipalities permit commercial use within their parks. Generally, most municipalities permit commercial use to varying degrees. However, some municipalities administer these permits and fees differently:

Table 1 – Commercial Use: Concessions, Events, Filming, Fitness & Recreation

Staff also reviewed relevant bylaws and permits specific to food trucks within parks of other municipalities. Two (2) municipalities permit food trucks in parks that do not require an attachment to a larger event (Saanich, Colwood). Similarities in the permitting between Saanich and Colwood include:

• Location restrictions: Saanich identifies one park that can support food trucks (Gyro Beach). Colwood identifies 3-4 parks that are tied to Colwood events;
• Application process: both Saanich and Colwood administer food truck permissions through an application award process followed by a rotational schedule to ensure fairness;
• Park type: all allowable parks locations in Saanich and Colwood are considered both neighbourhood and community wide public destinations, with playgrounds, open space and trails that invite a wide variety of parks users;
• Parking: all locations have available parking to support vehicle access to the food truck;
• Proximity to residential: most locations are not directly adjacent to residential properties (Colwood does identify three park locations near residential properties for its Music in the Park event where the trucks are located within the parks;
• Noise: all noise associated with the food truck (including portable generators) are to adhere to respective noise bylaws.

Table 2 – Food Trucks Permitted Locations (Current) ¹ “x” denotes no available municipal service and that the operator must provide their own water / sewer / waste servicing

3.0 DISCUSSION

3.1 Potential Parks Sites - Commercial Activities

Staff evaluated potential park sites based on the following metrics:

• Site parking does not impact residential parking in the neighbourhood;
• The park has space for activities that is either separated from other park amenities and would have minimum impact or conflicts on current users;
• The park is safely accessible via alternative modes of travel (pedestrian, cyclist and transit accessibility). Proximity to regional trails an asset.

Based on the above criteria the Town does not currently have an appropriate park location for a farmers' market or larger filming productions. This is predominantly due to a lack of parking and staging space for vendors to set up and take down equipment. Below is a list of potential parks that may be able to accommodate smaller activities such as fitness, recreation classes or smaller commercial business similar in nature.

• Aldersmith Park
• Chancellor Park
• Chilco Park
• Francis View Park
• Glenairlie Park
• Portage Park
• View Royal Park

Commercial use is currently not a permitted use in the “P-3” zone per the Town’s Zoning Bylaw 900. Therefore, an amendment to the Zoning Bylaw would be required.

3.2 Potential Park Sites - Food Trucks

Reflecting on how the District of Saanich and City of Colwood administer food truck permitting within their parks, staff evaluated potential View Royal park sites based on the following metrics:

• The park is a neighbourhood and/or community destination that invite a wide variety of parks users (contains playgrounds, trails, open space, etc.);
• The park has available parking to accommodate vehicle access to the food truck. This metric is recommended due to the likelihood that food trucks will want this to expand their customer base, especially given that a substantial portion of travel in and around View Royal is commuter vehicle based;
• The park is safely accessible via alternative modes of travel (pedestrian, cyclist and transit accessibility). Proximity to regional trails is an asset;
• The food truck location at the park is not directly adjacent to residential properties.

Based on the above noted metrics, no parks in View Royal meet all of the criteria. However, four (4) parks were identified that meet most of the criteria: View Royal Park, Helmcken Centennial Park, Chilco Park and Chancellor Park. These parks are all zoned as “P-3”: a zone that does not permit food carts per the Towns Zoning Bylaw 900.

Taking into consideration the metrics above, the following table is a brief SWOT analysis for each park:

View Royal Park (Zoning P-3)

Helmcken Centennial Park (Zoning P-3)

Chilco Park (Zoning P-3)

Chancellor Park (Zoning P-3)

Table 3: Potential Parks for Food Trucks, SWOT Analysis

3.3 Evaluation:

3.3.1 Food Trucks

Based on the four parks assessed, staff consider the top two parks to be Helmcken Centennial Park and Chancellor Park.

3.3.2 Other Commercial Activities

Based on the seven parks assessed, all seven parks may be able to accommodate commercial activities, dependant on the size of the activity. For example, View Royal Park may be able to manage larger activities than Glenairlie or Chancellor Parks. However, Glenairlie and Chancellor Parks were still considered suitable as they directly abut the E&N Trail and Galloping Goose Regional Trail respectively.

3.4 Next Steps:

Should Council wish to consider permitting commercial activities within Town parks, staff recommend the following:

• Amend the Zoning Bylaw to allow commercial activities within the P-3 Zone, and associated parking within designated parks. Administratively, this is required before any activity can take place as commercial activity is not currently a permitted use;
• Engage with nearby residents, local businesses, the food truck industry and other stakeholders regarding the change in parks use, and to confirm capital parks upgrades, if required. This would be considered an additional initiative to the current five-year budget – staff may require additional engagement resources to manage staff workload;
• Investigate capital costs, annual maintenance costs and lifecycle costs to confirm impacts to Town budgets. It is anticipated that the increased level of service will increase maintenance costs. Depending on the level of interest and amount of permit requests, additional staffing and/or resources for parks maintenance or permit administration may be required in the future;
• Amend the Parks and Public Spaces Bylaw 986 to inform on the requirements, permissions and restrictions of commercial activities within parks;
• Amend the Fees and Charges Bylaw 958 to reflect requisite fees and damage deposits for permitting purposes;
• Amend the Business License and Regulation Bylaw No. 952, 2016 to define food truck and permit business activities on municipal owned lands; and
• Provide capital upgrades, informed by the engagement activity, to maintain accessibility, safety, and to improve the public experience at the food truck location(s).

4.0 SUSTAINABILITY/CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS:

4.1 Food Trucks

Food trucks could have a greater carbon footprint by emitting greenhouse gas emissions, and increasing amount of waste from disposable food containers, cutlery, etc. However, this could be offset by offering direct food sources to parks users, thus potentially reducing commuting distances for services. Should Council wish to move forward with permitting food trucks to operate within Town parks, staff suggest considering the following to support the Town’s efforts in mitigating climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions (A1 of Council Strategic Plan 2019-2022: Enhancing Liveability in View Royal):

• Proximity to active transportation nodes: locating food trucks in close proximity to the Galloping Goose Regional Trail, E&N Trail, major transit stops, etc. could encourage access to food trucks via walking, cycling and transit.
• Proximity to environmentally sensitive areas: locations of food trucks should avoid potential impacts to environmentally sensitive areas. This includes mitigation of noise near bird sanctuaries, and spills that could lead to riparian areas.

5.0 FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:

5.1 Revenue

The introduction of commercial activities within Town Parks could increase the number of new business licensing, consistent with B3 of Council Strategic Plan 2019-2022: Community and Economic Growth.

Section 25 of the Community Charter prohibits Municipalities from providing grants, benefits or other forms of assistance to business. The Town’s Fees and Charges Bylaw 958 does not include a fee amount for Parks Use permitting. If Food Trucks are to conduct business in parks Council will be required to enact fees at a market rate.

5.2 Expenses

5.2.1 Food Trucks

Depending on engagement findings, additional parks capital upgrades may be required that could include but is not limited to:

• Asphalt laydown area to avoid occupying existing parking space(s);
• Picnic tables, benches, etc.;
• Protective fencing.
• Planting of more shade trees.

There will be regular maintenance and lifecycle replacement costs for these additional assets. Parks upgrades, while relatively small in nature, will result in an increase in maintenance costs and level of service for the park. This will include but is not limited to:

• Additional parks staff time to maintain picnic areas, additional lawn mowing and grass maintenance works.
• Additional maintenance of portable toilets including additional disposal costs.
• Additional staffing time to review and approve food truck proposals.

5.2.2 Other Commercial

In considering other commercial activities in Town parks such as fitness, recreation classes or smaller commercial business similar in nature, these activities could incrementally increase administrative, bylaw enforcement and parks staff time. Depending on the nature of the activity:

• Additional maintenance may be required to maintain open space / lawn areas;
• Additional staffing time will be required to administer permitting;
• Potential additional enforcement may be required to administer complaints (Noise Bylaw, etc.).

As previously mentioned, additional staffing or resources would be required if the level of interest and number of permits being issued exceed current staffing thresholds.

6.0 ALTERNATIVES:

Council may consider other parks for consideration, or no parks at this time. Council may also consider restricting commercial use and/or food trucks to “events only” within the Town.

7.0 CONCLUSION:

Staff extensively reviewed the parks bylaws and permitting processes for several neighbouring municipalities related to the allowance of commercial activities and food trucks within parks.

Through evaluation of location, proximity to active transportation networks and parking availability, Helmcken Centennial Park and Chancellor Park were considered to be the most accommodating for food trucks compared to other Town parks. However, these two parks would still not meet all of the evaluation criteria.

In addition, staff identified seven (7) parks that may be suitable for other commercial activities, dependent on activity size.

Should Council wish to move forward with this initiative, several Bylaws will require amending including but not limited to the Zoning, Business License and Regulation, Parks & Public Places, and Fees and Charges Bylaws.

Furthermore, Staff recommend the following to be conducted and included as a project in an upcoming five-year budget plan:

• Engagement of public and private stakeholders;
• Assessment of additional capital, maintenance and lifecycle costs;
• Consideration to staffing and/or additional resources;

To conclude, the above requirements and recommendations are important points of discovery in order to roll out a successful program. Should Council wish to pursue commercial activity in parks further, significant investment in staff time and/or resources would be required from multiple departments.