2022 was an active year for land sales activity in Metro Vancouver; largely a carryover from a return to acquisitions in 2021 after a two-year period of general stagnation in the market.

Continuing a trend since 2019, the bulk of land sales activity is happening in suburban markets, and now predominantly for commercial and industrial properties. The Downtown luxury tower sites that dominated the market between 2015-2018 remain largely absent.

Here’s a look at each of the 10 largest land deals of 2022:

1. The Grove Brentwood, Burnaby

• Price:                  $215 Million
• Site Area:            8.3 acres
• Vendor:               Aoyuan Canada
• Purchaser:          Anthem & Kingsett

The goods:        For the second year in a row, the largest land deal of the year took place in the Brentwood Town Centre area of Burnaby, one of the fastest growing, densest municipal centres in all of Metro Vancouver.

“The Grove” project, originally designed and rezoned by Aoyuan, is an 8-acre multi-tower, 2,400 unit high density residential project. Aoyuan was forced to sell in 2021 amid financial pressures.

Anthem Properties, with partner Kingsett Capital, will now move the project forward, with rezoning for individual parcels to occur in the near term.

2. Coronation Park, Port Moody

• Price:                  $158 Million
• Site Area:           15 Acres
• Vendor:              Land assembly
• Purchaser:          Wesgroup

The goods:          This sale represents the completion of an epic land assembly by Wesgroup; worthy of its own write up. The assembly involved 54 single family lots located in the Coronation Park area at the Eastern edge of Port Moody. The lots had been marketed in multiple assemblies and secured by Wesgroup over three years. The deal faced several twists and turns amid market uncertainty and evolving guidance and support from the City of Port Moody as to the OCP designation for the overall master plan for the site. Wesgroup submitted their formal rezoning application in July 2022.

The sale of the majority of the lots complete in September 2022 and now Wesgroup can turn their attention to execution of the high density master plan project, expected to include over 2,600 units built in several phases.

The land assembly was completed by Grant Gardner & Thomas Trowbridge of London Pacific.

3. 86-168 S.E. Marine Drive, Vancouver

• Price:                   $150 Million
• Site Area:            12.5 acres
• Vendor:               Hungerford Properties
• Purchaser:           Amazon Canada

The goods:        This site was previously owned by Walmart Canada until Hungerford acquired the property in 2018 for $90 Million. Hungerford undertook preliminary design and planning for the development of a mixed commercial/industrial project until an off-market deal came along from Amazon. Preliminary plans call for a new Amazon fulfillment centre on the strategically located South Vancouver site.

4. Coquitlam College Site, Coquitlam

• Price:                   $148 Million
• Site Area:            7.5 acres
• Vendor:               Coquitlam College
• Purchaser:           Onni

The goods:        The Coquitlam College site and 11 adjacent single-family parcels were acquired by Onni in a deal negotiated in 2021. The assembled site presents an opportunity for future rezoning for high density residential under the Burquitlam Lougheed Plan. Preliminary rezoning plans have yet to be filed with the City of Coquitlam.

The sale was facilitated by Alon Shapiro of CBRE.

5. Kingsway & Willingdon, Burnaby

• Price:                   $145 Million
• Site Area:            1.8 acres
• Vendor:               Bosa Properties
• Purchaser:           Keltic Development

The goods:        For the second year in a row, Keltic Development has made a splash with one of the largest land transactions in Metro Vancouver. An off-market sale of the Esso Gas Station site at 4444-4488 Kingsway was negotiated in July 2022 and completed November 30, 2022. Bosa’s preliminary plans included two towers, up to 70-storeys in height with potentially condos, rental, retail and hotel.

The sale was negotiated by Goran Bucan of Sutton Group West Coast Realty.

6. Tricity Central, Coquitlam

• Price:                  $130 Million
• Site Area:           5 acres
• Vendor:              Private Investor
• Purchaser:          Marcon & Quadreal

The goods:          In the works for well over two years, this deal closed representing one of the largest master plan communities in Coquitlam. Marcon and Quadreal have passed through the initial rezoning phase for the site at the southeastern corner of Lougheed and Barnet highways for “TriCity Central”.  The multi-tower development will see approximately 2,000 residential units in addition to office, hotel and retail space.

7. 7590-7688 80^th Street, Delta

• Price:                  $117 Million
• Site Area:           23 acres
• Vendor:              Private Investor
• Purchaser:          Beedie

The goods:         Beedie outbid 13 other buyers for this site, the largest industrial land deal of the year. The former Delco Container site is vacant pending redevelopment plans by Beedie.

This sale was brokered by Steve Brooke and Joel Barnett of CBRE.

8. 19469-19511 92^nd Avenue, Surrey

• Price:                 $111 Million
• Site Area:          14 acres
• Vendor:             Private Investor
• Purchaser:         Conwest

The goods:         Conwest closed on this 14 acre industrial sale in October 2022. The total sale price represents $7.8 Million per acre.

9. 900-990 West 12^th Avenue, Vancouver

• Price:                  $100 Million
• Site Area:           1.5 acres
• Vendor:              Private Investor
• Purchaser:          VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation

The goods:        The VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation closed on this full city block property across from Vancouver General in March 2022 with a long term vision for potential redevelopment. For now, the existing Windermere Lodge long term care facility and adjacent apartment building will be retained pending future redevelopment of the sites.

10. 5910-5998 Cambie Street, Vancouver

• Price:                 $76 Million
• Site Area:           0.74 acres
• Vendor:              Wall Financial
• Purchaser:         Coromandel Properties & Peterson Group

The goods:       This full city block at Cambie & 43^rd was sold by myself, Simon Lim, James Lang and Jessica Hathaway in an off market transaction negotiated in late 2021 and closed in February 2022. The site has rezoning approval for a two-tower development including condo and hotel.

Some notes from the above list:

• 3 of the 10 largest land deals in Metro Vancouver took place in the City of Vancouver (down from 5 of 10 last year, and 9 out of 10 at the “peak” of the market in 2017)
• 6 of 10 are residential land deals, down from 8 of 10 in 2021
• 3 of 10 were sold by open market bid process (the other 7 were ‘off-market’ or not openly offered)
• All 10 were bought by well-established ‘local’ development groups, a shift from 2016-2018 when many “new” buyers were making a splash

Please contact me for further information on any of the above transactions, or if any questions, comments, or corrections to the article.

Happy Holidays!

2021 was a bounce back year for land transactions in Metro Vancouver. Following two years of declining transaction value, a renewed interest in development across all asset classes fueled a significant number of sales throughout the region.

One of the emerging differences between the current activity and the previous hot market of 2016-2018 is the shift in focus toward suburban markets, and to asset classes including rental residential and arguably Metro Vancouver’s hottest asset class: industrial.

The days of speculative trades for Downtown luxury condo sites are largely gone for now; the pre-sales market for luxury has only recently started to thaw. Otherwise, the focus for many of the large local residential developers has been suburban markets and purpose built rental.

It is clear that both private and institutional investors continue to be bullish on the long-term fundamentals in Vancouver, and the expectation is that 2022 will be another active year in the market.

Here’s a look at each of the 10 largest land deals of 2021:

1. 5900 No. 2 Road & 6191, 6311 & 6751 Westminster Highway, Richmond

• Price:                  $300+ Million
• Site Area:           27 acres
• Vendor:             Quadreal
• Purchaser:         Keltic Development

The goods:        For the second year in a row, the largest land deal in Metro Vancouver is in Richmond, though the transaction is much larger than in 2020. A press release from Keltic describes this deal: “Currently, the property is occupied by light industrial / commercial tenants. The company plans to create a vibrant multi-use destination including residential, commercial and industrial spaces that will add richness and vitality to the city. Twenty-three per cent of the land, or 6.4 acres, will be developed into green space and contributed back to the city for community use.”

The off-market sale was brokered by Goran Bucan.

2. 7000 Lougheed Highway, Burnaby

• Price:                  $151 Million
• Site Area:           14 acres
• Vendor:              Pension Fund
• Purchaser:         Create Properties

The goods:       I was honoured to have brokered this landmark sale with Simon Lim in the Bainbridge area of Burnaby. Create Properties is currently working with the City of Burnaby on a large-scale multi-phase development as part of the Bainbridge Urban Village Plan.

3. 1155 East 6^th Avenue, Vancouver

• Price:                   $118 Million
• Site Area:            2.1 Acres
• Vendor:              Shaw
• Purchaser:          Low Tide Properties

The goods:        This transit oriented development site is currently occupied by Shaw, but allows for potential rezoning and redevelopment under the False Creek Flats Plan, which could potentially allow up to 5.0 FSR of commercial and industrial space.

4. 13301 104^th Avenue, Surrey

• Price:                  $99 Million
• Site Area:           6.4 acres
• Vendor:             Private Investor
• Purchaser:         Private Investor

The goods:          This sale involved a 6.38-acre future multi-high-rise development site in Surrey City Centre Improved with 11 rental apartment buildings totaling 156 units. It was brokered by Dean Thomas of HQ Commercial. The asking price was $98 Million.

5. 2300 Madison Avenue, Burnaby

• Price:                  $88 Million
• Site Area:           6.5 acres
• Vendor:              BC Hydro
• Purchaser:         Polygon Homes

The goods:          Polygon acquired this BC Hydro site in November 2021. The site comprises two lots, 2300 Madison Avenue, which is currently occupied with an older industrial warehouse building; and a BC Hydro Right-of-Way. The site is located within the Brentwood Town Centre Development Plan, and is designated for medium to high-density multiple family residential development. A preliminary application calls for three towers and 975 units including condos and rentals.

6. 622-688 SW Marine Drive, Vancouver

• Price:                  $68 Million
• Site Area:           1.5 Acres
• Vendor:              Private Investor
• Purchaser:         Chard Development

The goods:         This 66,474 SF development site (the “Denny’s site”) was brokered by Simon Lim, James Lang and Jessica Hathaway. It is located one block from Marine Drive Skytrain Station and a current rezoning application by Chard contemplates two towers with 573 rental units.

7. 2111 Main Street, Vancouver

• Price:                 $60 Million
• Site Area:          35,000 SF
• Vendor:             Private Investor
• Purchaser:        Nicola Wealth Real Estate

The goods:         This site on the West side of Main Street known as the City Centre Motel, has long been a targe of many local buyers and was sold to Nicola in November. There is no word yet on redevelopment plans of the motor hotel, but the plan in the short-term is to rent the units to artists.

8. 5 West 4^th Avenue & 4-16 West 3^rd Avenue, Vancouver

• Price:                  $57 Million
• Site Area:           36,234 SF
• Vendor:              Alsco Canada
• Purchaser:        PCI Developments & HOOPP

The goods:        This sale involved an I-1 zoned site comprising two older industrial buildings in the burgeoning Mount Pleasant Light industrial/office district. No word yet on redevelopment plans. The deal was brokered by Blair Quinn of CBRE.

9. 2450 United Boulevard, Coquitlam

• Price:                 $45 Million
• Site Area:          9.5 acres
• Vendor:             Coca Cola Canada
• Purchaser:         Beedie

The goods:        This acquisition by Beedie was one of the larger industrial land transactions in 2021. The site is currently improved with a vending machine distribution centre. There is no word yet on future redevelopment plans.

10. 1290 Hornby Street, Vancouver

• Price:                 $45 Million
• Site Area:           15,000 SF
• Vendor:              Private Local Investor
• Purchaser:         Wall Financial

The goods:       Another sale brokered by Simon Lim, James Lang and Jessica Hathaway, 1290 Hornby Street is a high-density residential tower site located on the corner of Hornby and Drake Streets between Vancouver’s Beach District, Yaletown and the West End. The site has already started the rezoning process and has received support from the City of Vancouver. The proposed development is a 35-storey residential high-rise building to comprise of condominiums and cultural amenity space – no social housing required.

Some notes from the above list:

• 5 of the 10 largest land deals in Metro Vancouver took place in the City of Vancouver
• 4 of 10 were sold by market bid process (the other 6 were ‘off-market’)
• All 10 were bought by well-established ‘local’ development groups, with previously active offshore buyers absent from these large deals.

Have a question or a comment on any of the transactions above? Please feel free to contact me.

Beedie & Abcellera have formally submitted their rezoning application for the Vancouver-based biotechnology company’s new campus at 110 West 4th Avenue. The project is a joint venture between Beedie and Abcellera.

The proposal is to build a 9-storey office and laboratory building on the 30,205 sq ft site, changing the zoning from I-1 to a new CD zone. The proposal includes:

• 221,343 sq. ft. of office & labratory space;
• a total density of 7.0 FSR;
• A building height of 151 ft.;
• 268 underground parking spaces and 88 bicycle spaces.

The application is being considered under the Metro Core Jobs & Economy Land Use Plan andPolicy on Consideration of Rezoning Applications during the Broadway Planning Process.

The rezoning and development permit application review process will take place concurrently.

Abcellera will also occupy the neighbouring 4-storey office building currently under construction.

The architect for the project is Francl Architecture.