508 Helmcken Street Going Back to Public Hearing
The controversial project at Helmcken and Richards whose permits were cancelled by a BC Supreme Court judge in January, is now heading back to public hearing.
The City of Vancouver is now reconsidering the application by Brenhill Development that was submitted on April 26, 2013, to rezone the site for a 36-storey mixed-use building including:
- 448 residential units, of which 110 would be market rental and 338 strata-titled,
- a private pre-school and kindergarten, and
- commercial space on the ground floor.
As a public benefit associated with this rezoning application, Brenhill negotiated a deal with the City to provide social housing in a new building on a site it owned at 1099 Richards Street as part of a land swap to replace housing for the residents of Jubilee House presently located at 508 Helmcken Street. The site at 1099 Richards was already above ground with construction at the time of the judge’s ruling in January.
The decision (Community Association of New Yaletown v. Vancouver (City), 2015 BCSC 117) resulted in By-law 10870, which rezoned 508 Helmcken Street, being quashed and directed that a new Public Hearing be held.
Stay tuned for additional documents that will be considered by Council…
Just an FYI. This has not yet gone to a Public Hearing. City Council will decide tomorrow (on March 24) if it will go to a Public Hearing. Interestingly, they are deciding right after the Public Hearing for proposed amendments to the Downtown Plan, the same amendments that were considered illegal. It seems that this public hearing is just another sham and they have already decided that the amendments will pass, which is why they are voting on the 508 Helmcken project on the same day. The arrogance is appalling.