The City of Vancouver will consider a recommendation to makes changes to the West End Rezoning Policy regarding social housing requirements.

The report indicates the following recommended changes in Areas 1 & 2 of the West End Plan (depicted below):

• Reducing the inclusionary social housing requirements 25% of the residential floor area to 20% or one-for-one replacement of the existing rental housing, whichever is greater
• Introducing a cash-in-lieu option that reflects the costs for the City to deliver such social housing offsite, including land and construction, which will be determined on a case-by case basis through the rezoning process.

The reduction to the inclusionary social housing requirement is recommended as an interim measure for two years until December 31, 2026, or until adoption of a new Inclusionary Zoning By-law that would supersede this rezoning policy.

Three projects have been approved for rezoning with the 25% social housing but have not yet started construction. These projects would require a new application to be granted the reduction.

The full report can be viewed here: https://council.vancouver.ca/20240924/documents/r1.pdf

The City of New Westminster has released a report outlining their proposed vision for the 22nd Street Station area.

The 22nd Street Skytrain Station area is one of the lowest density Skytrain station areas in Metro Vancouver, and primarily a single family neighbourhood. The area was identified in the 2017 OCP for future planning consideration, which was originally commenced in February 2020 but put on pause until mid-2023. The Provincial TOA legislation has since informed the draft vision for the neighbourhood.

The overall concept for the area is a “Transit Village” that could house up to 30,000 new residents at full build out.

The indicated land use patterns align with the Provincial TOA legislation, allowing up to 5.0 FSR highrise development nearest the station, with 3.0 FSR lowrise development further out.

New Westminster intends on further public consultation this Fall, with a final draft to Council by December 2024, and OCP amendments to facilitate new rezoning applications in 2025.

The Safeway property on West 4th Avenue and Vine Street in Kitsilano has been sold by Sobeys to a partnership between PCI Group and Low Tide Properties for $90,000,000.

The 2.2 acre property is zoned C-2B, which allows mixed use residential above ground floor commercial; up to 3.70 FSR and 6-storeys if the residential is rental. The Broadway Plan does not contemplate towers for the site.

No redevelopment plans have been announced but a likely development scenario under the existing zoning would include a 6-storey rental project with a new Safeway and additional retail on the ground floor.

The purchase price equates to $254 per buildable SF based on the existing zoning at a mixed-use rental density of 3.7 FSR.

The former Gardenworks site at 705 West 3rd Street in North Vancouver has sold to Western Canadian Properties Group for $14,400,000.

The 24,346 SF site has an approved rezoning application for a 6-storey, 70-unit rental building with a child care facility on the ground floor. The plans had been developed by a joint venture between Omicron and Lotus Pacific, who had originally acquired the site in 2017. The site is essentially ‘shovel ready’.

The sale price equates to $237 per buildable SF based on the approved density of 2.50 FSR.

City of Coquitlam council has released a report outlining the timing, process and scope of their OCP update.

As with other municipalities, work was already underway on an OCP review as of 2023 before the Provincial legislation changes. Now, the in-progress OCP review has been tweaked to accommodate the new legislation.

Coquitlam’s last full OCP was completed in 2002 and has been updated incrementally through various neighbourhood plans.

The staff presentation identifies potential land use designations:

Planning staff is now proposing an overhaul of the OCP, streamlining it by consolidating all neighbourhood plans into a single consolidated OCP, with all maps in dedicated schedules.

The report outlines the OCP update project as follows:

The OCP Review project is scheduled for completion in fall 2025, well ahead of the December 31, 2025 deadline for the provincial housing legislation OCP updates. The three high-level phases of the project are:

1. Prepare (completed): review and analyze existing content to inform and
   support the overall project;
2. Update (Summer 2024-Spring 2025): draft the necessary changes and
   prepare new draft document; and
3. Adopt (Summer-Fall 2025): bring a draft of the updated OCP forward for
   consideration and adoption.

The report outlining the OCP review can be viewed here: https://coquitlam.ca.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?view_id=2&event_id=1788&meta_id=75600