Conwest Developments has applied to the City of Vancouver for permission to develop on a 6,039 SF site at the Southwest corner of Quebec and East 4th Avenue in the Mount Pleasant area of Vancouver. Plans include a 3-storey mixed use building consisting of:

• Manufacturing uses on the first floor and mezzanine above;
• General Office uses on the second and third floors;
• an underground garage providing 15 parking spaces;
• total density of 2.92 FSR;
• peak height of 61 ft.

The site is zoned I-1, a zoning which was changed in 2014 to allow greater density for office use.

The architect for the project is MGBA Architecture.

A number of rezoning applications head to Burnaby City Council this week. Below is a brief summary of some of the larger projects planned.

4460-4482 Juneau Street

Solterra owns this three-lot assembly of older M1 zoned industrial buildings along Willingdon Avenue at Juneau Street in the Brentwood area. The plan for the site is a 25-storey tower with townhouses under the RM-4s designation. There is a 23-storey tower just across Juneau Street at second reading.

6525-6585 Sussex Avenue

The plan for this 57,116 SF Metrotown site at Sussex and Beresford is for a mixed-use high-rise and low-rise market residential apartment building including retail and office uses. The project will also include a separate non-market housing building developed in conjunction with B.C. Housing. The proposed density is 5.0 FAR per the RM-5s and C2 guidelines. The site was acquired by Thind Properties in May 2016 for $32,680,000.

7422-7470 Buller Avenue

This 132,000 SF site is currently occupied by a multi-tenant warehouse building and is located next to a section of former rail line in the Royal Oak area. The site is designated for medium-density residential development, and the application is for a mix of stacked-townhouses and traditional townhomes with full underground parking to a density of 1.1 FAR.

5180 Lougheed Highway

Another highrise condo tower is being planned for the Brentwood area; this one at the corner of Lougheed Highway and Springer Street. The 51,204 SF site is currently occupied by two older industrial buildings owned by Beedie Living. The plan calls for a 269,000 SF tower with 250 to 300 residential units. The concept includes “breaks” throughout the building to add visual interest to the massing and scale of the tower.

Marcon has filed a development application for permission to develop a 34,552 SF site they own at Davie and Broughton Street in the West End of Downtown Vancouver. The site was rezoned to RM-5D in 2014 as part of the new West End Community Plan, part of which envisions greater density in the Davie Street area in this sub-area ‘B’ of the Lower Davie Corridor.

The site comprises an assembly of two sites currently improved with lowrise rental apartment buildings totaling 68 units.

The proposal for the 1345 Davie Street site includes:

• two 18 and 19-storey residential buildings, over a 3 and 4 storey podium.
• 153 market residential and 68 social housing units;
• a total density of 6.55 FSR
• Building heights of approximately 175 ft and 157 ft.
• Gross floor area of 232,323 SF (23% social housing)
• 4 levels of underground parking  with 257 spaces, accessed from rear lane.

The application package describes the rationale for the project:

“The project supports the goal of densification by redeveloping a large, under-utilized site and adding 221 social & market housing units, replacing 68 rental units.

Under the site’s existing RM-5D zoning, the application is “conditional” so it may be permitted; however, it requires the decision of the Development Permit Board.

Marcon acquired the site in December 2015 for $35,000,000, or $195 per buildable SF (based on the market residential density).

Intracorp’s project “The Jervis”, approved in 2015 sits adjacent to the site and was developed under the same zoning at 6.61 FSR. The Jervis began selling 58 units in late 2015 was quite quickly sold out by mid-2016.

The architect for the project is Henriquez Partners.