Here is a quick look at Vancouver’s largest residential and mixed-use/residential projects that are either under construction or at the latter stages of planning and approvals. What is notable is that a large majority of the projects are transit-oreinted; if not built directly near a Skytrain station, then within a short walking distance of one. Planning efforts to densify around transit have been formalized in the Official Community Plans of cities such as Burnaby, Surrey and Richmond.

Now on to the list. Limited to developments of 400 units or greater, the list represents 34 projects totaling 39,647 units. Almost all of the projects are multi-phase buildouts of 2 to 10+ years. Telus Garden, Marine Gateway and 1400 Howe are the only projects being built in one go.

There are 10-15 other major projects in the works that aren’t yet at the stage of approvals or construction.

PCI Group has sold two office buildings located at 3033 Beta Avenue and 4606 Canada Way in Burnaby, two properties that they acquired only last year. The combined sale price was $27,470,000, representing $250 per SF, and a cap rate of approximately 6.0%.

3033 Beta Avenue

A 46-storey tower has been proposed for the Southeast corner of Halifax Street and Gilmore Avenue in the Brentwood Town Centre area of Burnaby. The rezoning proposal for the site at 1846-1904 Gilmore Ave includes 340 units, 374 underground parking spaces, and a total density of 5.0 FAR under the City’s RM-5s designation.

Source: City of Burnaby

In Metrotown, demand for new condo product appears to have quieted down somewhat over the past several months. But that’s not stopping developers and investors, who are betting on the success of this town centre area over the long-term.

The latest example came in December with sale of 5895 Barker Avenue, a potential tower redevelopment site.

There are now six 35+ storey tower projects under construction in the area, primarily in the RM-5 zone which allows a higher density. These include:

• Metroplace, 343 units by Intracorp.
• The Met, 295 units by Concord Pacific.
• Station Square (Phase 1), 269 units by Anthem/Beedie.
• Silver, 284 units by Intracorp.
• Moda, 249 units by Polygon.
• Sovereign, 202 units, by Bosa.

There are also an additional 2,000+ units in various stages of planning, including an additional 930 units at Station Square (phase 2, consisting of 35 and 57 storey towers) is planned to be released in the near future), as well as other projects planned by Polygon, BlueSky Properties, Boffo, Concord and Intracorp.

A number of apartment buildings that are currently zoned RM-3 have been selling to investors that see upside and future redevelopment potential. See below a list of recent sales. Apartments without immediate redevelopment potential generally trade at $170,000 to $180,000 per unit in this area. RM-5 zoned apartment properties that can be redeveloped as towers often trade for higher values (based on land value).

In addition, Ivanhoe Cambridge is nearing halfway completion of its Metrotower 3, the first new office project built in the area in several years, which speaks to the ongoing potential of the area not solely as a bedroom community.

Metrotown has long been viewed as Burnaby’s true town centre, and despite activity in the other designated ‘town centres’ such as Brentwood and Edmonds. Metrotown is continuing to show strong valuations for both development sites and existing income producing properties.

Colliers has acted on behalf of the Vendor in the sale of 5895 Barker Avenue, a 48-unit apartment building in Metrotown, that represents a 31,520 SF development site. The purchase price was $12,500,000, representing about $117 per buildable SF based upon anticipated rezoning to allow a high-density residential project. The RM-3 zoned site is located about l 100 metres from Patterson Skytrain Station.