Concord Pacific has submitted their formal rezoning application to the City of Burnaby for Phase 2 of their Concord Metrotown project, on the Western portion of the overall site.

The overall master plan for the Concord Metrotown project originally proposed four phases of development. Concord has now proposed to coalesce the last three phases into one rezoning as a larger second phase. The total site area of Phase 2 is 5.30 acres and will likely be built out over a period of several years.

The proposal includes:

• a 40-storey condo & non-market rental building;
• a 49-storey condo & non-market rental building;
• a 58-storey condo & non-market rental building;
• a 47-storey, 375,000 SF office tower at 614 ft. height;
• a 60-storey market rental building;
• a gross floor area of 2.3 Million SF;
• a total density of 9.99 FAR;
• 1,145 condo units;
• 188 non-market rental units;
• 791 market rental units;
• 616,000 SF of commercial space;
• 3,054 parking stalls.

The rezoning application for Phase 2 of Concord Pacific’s Concord Brentwood project is moving to first reading. The overall project master plan was approved by the City of Burnaby in 2016, with individual phases requiring detailed rezoning applications.

The first phases of the project (1a and 1b) are currently under construction and summarized as follows:

• Hillside West – two towers (44 & 49-storeys), 892 units. Sold out in early 2018.
• Hillside East – two towers (55 & 45-storeys), 900 units. Over 90% sold out.

Phase 2 of the site is located within the “Flatlands” subarea of the overall site, and fronts the future Dawson Street extension and Yukon Crescent. Phase 2 totals 204,000 SF and consists of two high-rise residential buildings, one mid-rise residential building, a low-rise residential podium, common amenities (super club), and street oriented retail uses atop, and fronting, underground and structured parking.

Details include:

• A 45-storey tower, a 50-storey tower, and an 18-storey tower
• 825 total condo units;
  • 247 one-bedrooms, 438 two-bedrooms & 218 three-bedrooms;
• 50,000 SF of retail space (0.25 FAR);
• A 31,000 SF “Super Club” serving all phases of the project that includes fitness space with gym, pool, bowling alley & spa.
• A total density of 4.97 FAR;
• 1,001 underground parking spaces;
• New roadways including:
  • Extension of Dawson Street
  • Construction of Douglas Road/Delta Avenue and Lougheed Hwy intersection
  • New pedestrian and cycling routes

Here’s a quick look at the largest commercial real estate transactions that took place in Metro Vancouver for 2015.

1. Westin Bayshore ($270 MM)

The sale of the Westin Bayshore hotel in the Coal Harbour area of Downtown Vancouver was the largest deal in Vancouver in 2015. The 511-room hotel sits on a prime 2.4 hectare site, some of which can likely be redeveloped to include residential. The fact that the buyer was Concord Pacific came as little surprise in the marketplace; they are one of Vancouver’s largest and most well-capitalized development companies, and have an obvious history of transforming urban waterfront properties. It is only the 6th property in Vancouver to trade for over $200 Million, a benchmark will likely be surpassed by other deals in 2016 (see below).

2. Fairmont Hotel Vancouver ($180 MM)

Another hotel deal is near the top of the list. Larco’s acquisition of the historic Hotel Vancouver was one of the more talked about deals in 2015. The 556-room, 20-storey hotel was built in 1939 and occupies one corner of Vancouver’s (unofficial) centre-ice at West Georgia and Burrard Street. The building occupies 1.6 acres and generates a significant amount of its income from the prime retail on the Burrard and Georgia frontages.

3. Lougheed Village ($165 MM)

One of Vancouver’s largest deals in 2012 (at $80MM) turns out to also be one of the largest deals upon resale in 2015. As reported in BIV just a couple of weeks ago, Starlight Properties bought the large-scale apartment property for $165,000,000. “Lougheed Village has 528-suites in two 24-storey and two eight-storey concrete towers. The 7.3-acre parcel, close to the Burnaby-Coquitlam border and a SkyTrain station, also contains 50,000 square feet of retail space.“

4. Ackroyd Plaza ($102 MM)

In one of Vancouver’s largest retail deals of the year, Ackroyd Plaza, a 6.8 acre strip retail centre at Ackroyd Road and No. 3 Road in Richmond, has sold to a local investor. Major tenants include PriceSmart Foods, White Spot, Boston Pizza and a BC Liquor Store. The development potential was summarized back when the sale was first reported in September 2015.

5. 4750 Kingsway ($100 MM)

Concord Pacific’s makes the list again with their deal with Sears Canada, which was for multiple properties, but the Metrotown Sears property is the key strategic acquisition. Sears will lease back the property, but future development potential includes multiple commercial and residential towers.

Recent speculation surrounding possible sales of the Molson Brewery,  Royal Centre and the Bentall Centre indicate that 2016 could be a massive year for transaction volume in Vancouver. Stay tuned.