Larco has applied to the City of Vancouver to amend the rezoning for the Arbutus Village Shopping Centre site.

The overall rezoning for the 7-acre site was approved back in 2011, with the first two phases along Arbutus now having been fully approved and under construction. 

The new rezoning proposal would increase the overall residential floor area for the remaining phases on the Western portion of the site (Blocks C and D), including an increase in the number of market and social housing units. The application cites the housing crisis which has worsened considerably since 2011, as well as the re-imagining of the Arbutus Greenway and Arbutus Corridor. 20% of the units are required to be social housing.

The specific amendments that affect the remaining project (Blocks C and D) include:

• A 113,519 SF increase in total density;
• A total of 240 units;
• An increase in building height on Block C to 197 ft
• An increase in building height of Block D to 236 ft.
• 2,700 SF expansion of planned Neighbourhood House (approx. 10,000 SF)

Blocks C & D also includes about 10,000 SF of retail space, as well as an adult day care, and strata rec centre.  The rezoning application proposes no change to the amount of commercial space, and includes an expanded Neighbourhood House referenced above.

Larco has submitted their development application to the City of Vancouver for permission to develop the second phase of the redeveloped Arbutus Village Shopping Centre property – a project plan originally conceived almost ten years ago.

The overall rezoning for the site was approved back in July 2011, with the first phase “Block A” having been approved in late 2015 and now under development to include 215 units and a new Safeway store. Each phase requires a separate development permit.

The plan for “Block B” calls for development of the Southeast corner of the 7-acre site, currently surface parking, with a 7-storey apartment building with retail at grade, including the following:

• 170 rental apartment units
• 37 studios, 24 one-bedrooms, 74 two-bedrooms & 35 three-bedrooms
• 29,400 SF of retail space (including relocated BMO and BC Liquor Store)
• two levels of underground parking accessed off of Yew Street

Construction of Block B is scheduled to complete in 2019.

The final phase of the project involves demolition and redevelopment of the existing shopping centre, with completion of the entire project targeted for 2022.

The architect for the project is Dialog.

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.