Seems to me you have already discovered enough to merit an approval or disapproval “in principle”. Since, by your own admission, you don’t have the skills required to assess the plan in its current form, I don’t see what more useful information engineers reports and architectural drawing s are going to provide.
The committee doesn’t have the power to approve or deny this level of work as the owner will be affecting and maybe intruding into common property. so the owners corp have the whip hand here.
Also, I can’t see how the by-law required would be a standard one. This is a specific project that will require specific by-laws. I would tell the applicant to go away and come back with more information.
But, to get back to your original question, of course a strata committee can give owners an idea of whether or not a project will be approved without committing to a decision either way.