Ajax Public Library Digital Archive

Ajax: Planning A New Town in Ontario, p. 9

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(widely) spaced units connected by covered passages for the movement of explosive materials. Other large areas, far removed from the main centre, were used for explo-sive storage buildings. The entire project was very open in character, due to the nature of its processes. The sewage disposal system had been designed prim-arily to serve the housing area and the offices and workshops in the "nucleus". Many of the storage buildings in the southern part are not connected to the sewer system. The disposal plant is located on the west side of the area, discharging chlorinated effluent into Duffin Creek. Several of the main sewer lines necessarily run counter to the natural drainage, and the system includes several pumping stations. Water is supplied to practically all the buildings. The water pumping station is located on the lake-shore at the extreme south-east corner of the property, as far as possible from the mouth of Duffin Creek. The entire plan was quite obviously laid out on the drafting board with little or no regard for topographic conditions. This despite the fact that a contour plan had been prepared covering practically the whole area. Roads ran straight as a die, north-south or east-west, cutting diagonally across the ridges and draws which are characteristic of the terrain. Ajax is cut into two unequal parts by the Canadian National Railways main line and the new dual Highway (?). These routes are spanned by Harwood Avenue, which is the central axis of the whole development. The northern section is comparatively small but completely built-up, consisting of the 600 dwellings in the Wartime Housing village. Immediately south of the Highway lies a loosely organized group of buildings which comprised the heart of the explosive plant. Practically all are of temporary frame construction, clothed informally in wood clapboard, roll roofing or corrugated metal siding. The buildings are tied together with overhead wires and steam lines which add little to the beauty of the composition. The few surviving trees serve to emphasize the bareness of the landscape. This part of Ajax presents a decidedly casual appearance. Farther south the existing buildings are so widely spaced that the general impression is still that of open farmland. Our problem, then, was to evolve a plan for the gradual development of an industrial community, salvaging as much as possible of the existing assets. ZONING It was essential to make an early decision regarding the general scheme of land use, in order to adopt an intelligent policy with respect to the disposal of existing buildings. As soon as the Corporation assumed control Ajax, the Advisory Committee had to consider many (off)ers for rental or purchase; in some cases the continued use of buildings for industrial purposes would conflict with planning objectives. The Corporation will consider the rental of land or buildings for any non-objectionable type of industry. If an offer is received for an industrial building located in an area designated for future residential use, the term of the lease is limited to a maximum of five years. At the expiry of this term, it may be practicable to renew the lease, depending upon the progress of development in that area. No building will be sold for industrial or commercial purposes unless located within the appropriate district. The earliest planning studies were accepted in principle as a frame of reference for this policy. Subsequent refinement of the plan has not resulted in any significant change in the general pattern of land use. Considerable study has been given to the preparation of a draft Zoning By-law. The special characteristics of Ajax required a new approach to the problem of drafting suitable regulations. Zoning by-laws, with few-exceptions, are written for existing towns, in which overcrowding and non-conforming uses are already firmly entrenched. They pre-suppose a gridiron system of street layout, and are often primarily concerned with the protection of residential areas against encroachment of commercial and industrial uses. Consequently the Ajax by-law differs from the usual regulations in several respects. In most by-laws the Use Districts are progressively less restrictive. That is, one begins with the Single-family Dwelling District and the regulations governing each subsequent district permit the precedent types of buildings. Finally, in the Heavy Industry District, "anything goes". The Ajax By-law is aimed at a more precise segregation of land uses. Residential buildings are prohibited in commercial and industrial zones, just as commercial uses are prohibited in residential neighbourhoods. This on the theory that a mixture of dwellings and factories is equally undesirable, whether the district be designated as "residential" or "industrial". Outdoor advertising is the disgrace of our towns and cities today. We would not deny that a well-designed signboard may have aesthetic qualities. Certainly the "great white way" has a vitality and charm that is part of urban life. Nevertheless, the indiscriminate use of signs, billboards, and other blatant forms of advertising is incredibly ugly. In the average town it is bearable only because we have in self-defence closed our eyes to it, and habitually pass down a street without actually seeing it. The almost complete lack of signs in Ajax today makes it possible to anticipate the successful application of suitable restrictions. No billboards of any sort will be permitted. Shops will be identified by signs mounted on the facade of the building, with letters of reasonable size. Overhanging signs are prohibited. These regu-

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