A rezoning application has been submitted for the Lakewood Multicultural United Church site a the Northeast corner of East 12th Avenue and Semlin Drive in the Grandview Woodland area of East Vancouver.
The Church is located just South of the Skytrain line on a 31,381 SF irregularly shaped site. The property was redesignated for medium density development under the Grandview Woodland Community Plan.
The plan for the site is a mixed-use building with a new church and a 6-storey residential building. The project will be 100% rental housing project is developed in partnership with BC Housing to be owned and operated by BCUCC. A minimum of 30% of these homes will be permanently secured as affordable housing, to be occupied by households with incomes below the Housing Income Limits (HILS) at a rent tied to household income. Details include:
- 104 rental apartment units (30% as Affordable Housing, 70% as market);
- 7,415 SF of church space at grade;
- a total density of 2.47 FSR;
- a building height of 65 ft.; and
- 43 underground parking stalls and 224 bike spaces.
The application describes the rezoning rationale: ” Our design proposal is a carefully considered response to the neighbouring context with a mind to Passive House principles. The following are key factors in determining the design of the building:
- Situating the Church along E 12th Avenue to allow for a greater Church presence and visibility along the building’s most public face;
- Allowing the landscaped courtyard to act as a buffer between our new development and the Lakewood Terrace Co-op;
- Stepping down the building form along the north edge of Semlin Drive as transitional massing to lower density buildings towards the north;
- Providing a highly articulated facade in the form of articulated balconies and sunshading devices aligned with Passive House Design Principles;
- Increasing occupant access to green space via outdoor amenity space.”
The application is being considered under the Grandview-Woodland Community Plan.
The architect for the project is Shape Architecture.