[Surrey] Semiahmoo Mall Redevelopment | Six towers, 18 to 36 Floors | proposed

[cc85]

The redevelopment of Semiahmoo Mall located at 152 Street and 16 Avenue. Includes a mix of townhouses,
mid-rise, and high-rise towers, up to 30 stories. Mixed use commercial, office, and residential uses along with
extensive park features, a bus exchange, and public art.


http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/XI000/XI042/XI042-1.jpg

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/XI000/XI042/XI042-2.jpg

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/XI000/XI042/XI042-3.jpg

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/XI000/XI042/XI042-5.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2004/2247055545_49faae08e8_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2305/2247852694_5736c8f9f3_o.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2349/2247852780_69a4623b5f_o.jpg

[officedweller]

Thanks.

I think its the same project as these model shop massing models:

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/XI000/XI042/XI042-1.htm

[canucks23]

Holey! Awesome, thanks so much.

[raggedy13]

Sweet. Can't wait to see more of the details. Combined with the Miramar Village project, Semiahmoo Town Centre will have a pretty decent highrise cluster in the near future.

[mr.x]

this is going to be amazing.

[canucks23]

I wonder what the people of White Rock are going to have to say about this!:D

Since this is technically in surrey, and white rock is across the street, white rock really has no say in voting for or against this development right? I really hope so, I'm getting sick of the NIMBY's here!:yuck:

[CC420]

^ The people in White Rock better get used to it. There is pretty much no more room to develop in south Surrey which is very lucrative for developers. In Surrey if the developers want to build it, well it gets built. Anyways I don't see the problem here. These highrises won't block any views of the ocean while most likely bossting local land values plus it will cut up another antiqued 70's style mall. Sometimes I wonder why these NIMBY people who live in the city don't want to be part of the city. If you don't like it, move to a town.

[canucks23]

^ Exactly, If you want to live in a small town, MOVE to a small town. BC is covered in small towns all across the province for them to move to.

[deasine]

I hope the transit exchange would be integrated into this project - like Metrotown Bus Exchange. Many buses (future RapidBus) will terminate here and many local community shuttles branch out from here too.

Nevertheless, it's a great addition to White Rock.

[dreambrother808]

They think they can bury their heads in the sand and think only of what THEY currently have rather than the needs of the impending future. Classic baby boomer bullshit.

[EastVanMark]

^ Exactly, If you want to live in a small town, MOVE to a small town. BC is covered in small towns all across the province for them to move to.

Could you please forward that to Vancouver (as well as other's) city Council:tup:

[jlousa]

Umm you do realize that a lot of people moved to White Rock when it was a small town and did so to get away from Vancouver which was no longer a small town. I just think it's a little harsh for people to suggest that the people that already live there be told to move instead of fighting for what they believe is right. Wether or not we agree with them they have a right to voice their opinion just like we do.

Anyways hope this goes through.

[jlousa]

Article on this project in todays Province.

http://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=be9e0a71-7920-41f4-a093-eb12f72cbe3b

Brian Lewis, The Province
Published: Sunday, May 11, 2008

If you're curious about how the bustling Semiahmoo town centre in South Surrey is likely to develop over the next few years, here's a hint -- look up.

Yes, the trend here is moving toward higher density in higher buildings.

Next week you'll have a chance to peek into this highrise future when Bosa Development Corp. introduces preliminary plans for a $1-billion mega-project on its 20-acre Semiahmoo Mall site.

The plan's primary components:

Six commercial/residential towers (four between 18 to 22 storeys and two "signature" towers up to 36 storeys) and lowrise buildings to house about 1,160 residential units;

An enclosed 38,000-square-foot, climate-controlled food court and meeting place;

An underground TransLink bus storage area that will assist in improving the region's public transit service;

Public roads, a plaza and walkways throughout the development and a one-acre park that connects to an extension of the Semiahmoo Trail.

Details of these components will be presented at the initial public information meeting Bosa will host May 22 between 5 and 7 p.m. in a separate building at Semiahmoo Mall, 15137-16th Ave.

"This is an enormous undertaking but we think we've come up with a plan that balances all the requirements of key stakeholders," says Richard Weir, vice-president of real-estate development for Bosa, a long-established, privately held, Vancouver-based firm. One requirement was an edict by Surrey city planners that Bosa's development include public streets and this will take up about one-third of the site.

"When a large amount of site area is used for roads, the development has to be built upwards, not outwards," Weir explains. "What the city really wants here is an accessible, walkable town centre."

Weir also says Thursday's meeting is the first in a long series of public consultations for the multi-phase development. The first of up to seven construction phases wouldn't begin until 2011, he adds.

The project is being planned so that existing retailers in Semiahmoo Mall, which Bosa bought in 2002, can continue to operate. New premises will be constructed for stores before old ones are demolished and total retail space will increase from the mall's 275,000 square feet to 325,000 sq. ft.

"The area has changed a great deal over the years," adds Nicholas Lai, the city's planning manager for South Surrey. "The town-centre plan for Semiahmoo was upgraded by Surrey council several years ago to allow for higher density and Bosa has been an active participant in that planning exercise. So now the developer is coming forward with the actual development application."

Once public input from the meeting is compiled, a preliminary proposal will be presented to Surrey city council for approval, probably in late June or early July, Lai tells me.

Surrey councillors will also be keenly interested in how the public responds to the Bosa plan, especially the 36-storey tower.
But Bosa is prepared to address such concerns.

"Any time you're proposing changes like this people are going to have questions," Weir says. "The purpose of the information meeting is not just to give the public our perspectives on the project -- but to hear their perspectives as well."

[canucks23]

I think its hilarious how the white rock council spent years debating miramar village and a large population of the citizens opposed the towers, yet south surrey's projects across the street practically doubles the miramar village in size. :haha: I love it! There is no justice.

[GMasterAres]

I'd say that the Whiterock situation is a bit different. For one, much like Surrey -> Delta, Surrey even in that area, tends to already have the infrastructure in place mainly roads, to support a sharper increase in population. For one you have the mall right under, for two the project will include a transit hub, and for three you have numerous roads, several of which are 2 lanes (4 total) ranging in speeds from 50km-60km/h.

You just cross boundary to Whiterock and you suddenly shrink to basically 0 transit service, and a series of 1 lane roads that have you twisting every which way with a reduced speed of 30km/h. So towers in Whiterock, even if just a block or 3 away from the boundary, is much lease feasible given the infrastructure compared to towers on the Surrey side.

I guess WR's argument would be that the density on teh Surrey side will have a lot more people traversing through WR to get to the beach and access the water front. At which point I say, oh well. :-)

[raggedy13]

^That's a pretty good point. But I'd also add that what White Rock lacks in road capacity it generally makes up for in terms of walkability. As soon as you cross 16th (the northern border street just south of Semiahmoo Mall) from South Surrey into White Rock, the roads are narrower but the built form/street front retail is much more conducive to walking, taking away a lot of potential driving trips (for locals at least) which is pretty evident when one observes all the old folks that walk around the area. Just imagine if White Rock were less walkable... there'd be seniors getting in car crashes all over the place... :no: ;)

[Mike K.]

Anything south of the library is compact and relatively walkable, but once you start going down the hill towards Surrey walkability plummets and cars become a necessity.

[mr.x]

What’s next – SkyTrain?
May 13, 2008

Editor:

Re: 36 storeys planned for Semiahmoo, May 7.

At first I thought this was an April Fool’s joke, then realized it was May.

Six commercial/residential towers of between 18 and 36 storeys, an eight-storey office building and a number of four-storey commercial/residential buildings totalling 1,160 dwelling units?

After the pillage of White Rock for its highrises, I felt unable to speak out because I am not a resident there. I am, however, a resident of South Surrey.

Do developers think this will impact only those residents within 100 metres of the proposed development? As I see it, this will affect all residents of South Surrey and, indeed, White Rock.

Our infrastructure cannot support a development of this magnitude – our hospital, roads, traffic concerns, water system, electric and hydro needs, even our garbage collection system – all crushed under the weight of a developer. Dare I say SkyTrain will be coming next?

For a council that advocated “less development” than the last one, things sure are being developed at a great rate. This will be the ruin of South Surrey as we know it now.

Trish Piket, Surrey




What's next - SkyTrain? You bet!

Just another case of NIMBYism....."Our infrastructure cannot support a development of this magnitude...Dare I say SkyTrain will be coming next?"

And SkyTrain isn't infrastructure?

[cc85]

no Skytrain is coming. rapidbus will.

[mr.x]

no Skytrain is coming. rapidbus will.

Well, in terms of the long-run....like 30 years from now, I could see some sort of light rail or ALRT in the area.

[GMasterAres]

^That's a pretty good point. But I'd also add that what White Rock lacks in road capacity it generally makes up for in terms of walkability. As soon as you cross 16th (the northern border street just south of Semiahmoo Mall) from South Surrey into White Rock, the roads are narrower but the built form/street front retail is much more conducive to walking, taking away a lot of potential driving trips (for locals at least) which is pretty evident when one observes all the old folks that walk around the area. Just imagine if White Rock were less walkable... there'd be seniors getting in car crashes all over the place... :no: ;)

Very true.

[GMasterAres]

Haha:

"This will be the ruin of South Surrey as we know it now."

Such a meaningless statement. Ruin is opinion. And whose to say it would ruin things. There were a lot of people that said the Alex Fraser or even the first Skytrain would ruin the Lower Mainland as we know it now.

Change doesn't mean ruining. Change can be good. Saying it will ruin South Surrey as we know it now implies that South Surrey as we know it now is Utopia.

It's not quite frankly. And it could stand to get a bit more prestige and relevance.

[deasine]

Well, in terms of the long-run....like 30 years from now, I could see some sort of light rail or ALRT in the area.

According to the TransLink 2031 plan - nope. But some sort of rail is expected to replace the King George RapidBus by then.

[mr.x]

According to the TransLink 2031 plan - nope. But some sort of rail is expected to replace the King George RapidBus by then.

Well, plans can always change.

[MolsonExport]

wow, that is a big development for south surrey.

[sacrifice333]

The mall there right now is pretty lame, the redevelopment would be great.

Crazy thing though is that the other Bosa Brother building Miramar Village isn't having quite as much ease selling out the towers as they'd like. First two towers have just reached their height and still have roughly 25% of condos unsold so the next two condos have been put on hold.

The Semiamhoo Mall redevelopment involves a lot of units which I imagine won't be priced too cheap so could also be pretty challenging to sell out... but at least there's a 15 year time horizon to complete it all...

[jlousa]

Pretty sure this hasn't been posted yet, it's a great document outlining the project. Lots of details and an interesting read. It's large so I suggest d/l it before you view it. Maybe someone can take some screenshots of it and post it here. Enjoy.

http://www.bosadev.com/pdf/Semiahmoo_openhouse.pdf

[raggedy13]

^Thanks Jlousa, lots of great info and images there. I'm really quite pleased with the current plan. It would be a huge improvement over the vast stretches of parking lots and the subpar Semiahmoo Mall that are there now. This project in combination with the Miramar Village project a few blocks away will really help turn the area into an urban oasis and proper town centre.

[fever]

That looks really good. I was hoping North Van would try to do something like this near Cap Mall.

[Smooth]

That looks really good. I was hoping North Van would try to do something like this near Cap Mall.

It's unfortunate that we're going to end up with another strip mall next to Cap mall but not surprising. I wish North Van had a more clear vision of what they want that area to look like in 20+ years and not just base decisions on what will encounter the least resistance.

[Distill3d]

It's unfortunate that we're going to end up with another strip mall next to Cap mall but not surprising. I wish North Van had a more clear vision of what they want that area to look like in 20+ years and not just base decisions on what will encounter the least resistance.

i'm with you on this one. i was hoping it was going to be an extension of Cap Mall, with an under road connection to the existing mall. though, i can do without the taller towers in the area.

[NetMapel]

I may have missed it, but what's the timeline for this construction ? I know it's divided into phases but I see no estimated completion time on there ?

[cc85]

They are looking at a possible 20 yr timeframe.

[SpongeG]

does north van have any control over that area though?

I thought it was reserve land

[fever]

does north van have any control over that area though?

I thought it was reserve land

The western boundary of the reserve is Bewicke. All the land along Marine is in the City from its eastern end at Bewicke to the District boundary at MacKay, including Cap Mall, the old Dave Buck Ford site, Harbourside business park, the automall, etc.

[officedweller]

From the Model Shop website: "Semiahmoo 2008" - pretty much the same as the previous model pics, but a bit more detail:

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/X2000/X2022/X2022-1.htm

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/X2000/X2022/X2022-2.jpg

http://www.modelshop.bc.ca/porty2/file/X2000/X2022/X2022-4.jpg

[excel]

nice thanks.

[Stingray2004]

Tower plans scrapped - Bosa Development Corporation’s Richard Weir said Monday that the company decided last week not to go ahead with a redevelopment application it made public last spring.

The plan included 1,160 dwelling units in six towers – ranging from 18 to 36 storeys.

Now, the company plans only to upgrade and renovate the mall [Semiahmoo Shopping Centre] within the existing building envelope and zoning, Weir said.

http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/surreyleader/news/35562339.html

Methinks that Bosa will again eventually resurrect the proposal down the road again when the market dictates.

BTW, Bosa's Miramar Village is just a couple of blocks south of the Semiahmoo Shopping Centre and the grapevine, even last spring, was that sales were not that great. They still have adjacent land for another two towers.

And in these uncertain times, some developers [in this case Bosa concerning Miramar] can sure become somewhat antsy: :D

A defamation suit has been launched against a White Rock man who ran for councillor in the Nov. 15 civic election.

Bosa Properties Inc. is suing Dave Chesney and four unidentified people for “defamation and malicious falsehood.”

The claim against Chesney, according to the writ, arises from a a Nov. 17 e-mail “to at least three individuals stating that there was a ‘rumour the bank had taken over the Miramar project"

http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/peacearchnews/news/35571554.html

[Metro-One]

Wow, a reduction from 6 to 0 towers, the black plague must be back :rolleyes:

[sacrifice333]

It's an all or nothing project... they WILL redevelop it... when the time is right.

I guess in about 7 years.

Hopefully by that time the other two Miramar towers and some of the other misc. 'white rock' proejcts will be complete.

[raggedy13]

This is too bad. I was looking forward to seeing my hometown become more urbanized. Guess I'll just have to wait a little longer. At least the first two Miramar towers made it through.

[Metro-One]

Surrey really must have the highest ratio percentage in the nation for delayed/cancelled projects due to this recession.

[SpongeG]

I don't think its that bad - vancouver probably has more things cancelled

[arashi_1987]

wow i am so jealous a South Surrey mall is getting a transit integrated redevelopment...only the condos will be postponed with this economy stuff...how I wish such plans were drawn for Lougheed or Brentwood mall when the Millennium Line came.

[vansky]

after winter, it will be spring.

[Spork]

FYI, this project does not seem to be as dead as we thought. I saw development application signs up around the property when I was in White Rock for Christmas. In addition, public consultations were held in April of 2009.

More details here (from Feb 2009): http://surrey.ihostez.com/FileStorage/41CF9C5C19A54EA59D63477F1C36669A-R016.pdf

[osirisboy]

Yea i saw a sign on 152nd and it had nothing to do with the towers or anything. I cant exactly remember but I think it was something to do with the foodcourt

edit** I just opened the link you posted, that does sound promising, I would love to see this move forward soon. (I guess the proposal sign was something separate)

[SpongeG]

that zellers in semiahmoo has to be the worst one ever - it used to be Kmart back in the day? wasn't it?

good news to know it might be alive again

[canucks23]

^ Yes, it was Kmart lol.

[Spork]

that zellers in semiahmoo has to be the worst one ever - it used to be Kmart back in the day? wasn't it?

good news to know it might be alive again

Yes. It did used to be K-Mart. Blue Light Special anybody?

The one in Central City is easily the worst one ever.

[CoryHolmes]

The one in Central City is easily the worst one ever.

Any reason in particular you say that?

[Spork]

Any reason in particular you say that?

Poor inventory management, zombie staff (slow, not helpful), messy, less mentally stable clientele... Or is that what all Zellers are like now?

[SpongeG]

yah that one is bad - always a mess and hard to find any staff - i lik ethe layout of teh store though

oakridge is really bad too small and cramped and a real mess

[surrey1]

the exterior at zellers in central city could use a facelift...the other parts of the mall got renovated...the ugly red bricks need to go

[NewfBC]

Yes. It did used to be K-Mart. Blue Light Special anybody?

The one in Central City is easily the worst one ever.

All Zellers are terrible. They cannot compete with Walmart.. long overdue for HBC to sell it to Target.

Ron.

[Stingray2004]

http://media.bclocalnews.com/images/82852whiterocksemiahmoocentre1.jpg


Peace Arch News

Plans Unveiled For Semiahmoo
By Alex Browne - Peace Arch News

Published: February 04, 2010 4:00 PM

A major renovation of Semiahmoo Centre, valued at more than $7 million, plans to revitalize the South Surrey landmark – both inside and out – by the end of 2010.

Richard Weir, vice-president of real estate acquisition for the centre owners, Bosa Development Corporation, said this week that the first stage – a “complete, top-to-bottom renovation of the interior common areas” – should be underway within a month.

The second phase, scheduled to start by the end of April, will include the demolition of four existing one-storey buildings along the property’s 16 Avenue perimeter to create a single 18,500-sq.-ft. free-standing building earmarked as the location for an as-yet-unannounced drugstore chain.

Part of that redevelopment, Weir said, will be a “generous” boulevard landscape along 16 Avenue.

Also in the plan is an expansion of the buildings at the corner of 16 Avenue and 152 Street to create a 7,200-sq.-ft. full-service government liquor store outlet (Semiahmoo Centre currently houses a temporary one).

Weir said Bosa Development Corporation’s decision to renovate the shopping centre follows cancellation of an earlier plan to redevelop the property to include residential highrises – which fell afoul of economic conditions over the last two years.

“We’ve decided to work with, enhance and invest in the existing shopping centre,” he said.

“Everything should be in place by the end of this year.”

http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/peacearchnews/news/83596332.html

[Stingray2004]

Looks like Bosa's contemplated redevelopment of the Semiahmoo Mall is now permanently dead. Bosa has sold the property to a Toronto-based owner/developer of shopping centres.

New Mall Owners Ponder Future

Semiahmoo Shopping Centre Has Recently Been Sold For $84.5 million.

By Alex Browne - Peace Arch News
Published: July 06, 2010 1:00 PM

With the ink still barely dry on an $84.5-million sale agreement for Semiahmoo Shopping Centre, new owner First Capital Realty says it’s too early to tell what the company’s plans for the development will be.

But it most likely will continue as a shopping centre, said First Capital managing director Mike Lowe, noting that while it’s the largest such property owned by the company, it joins other similar holdings, including shopping centres in Richmond and North Vancouver.

A contentious proposal by previous owners Bosa Development Corporation to redevelop the Semiahmoo Shopping Centre property to include six residential towers ranging in height from 18 to 36 storeys foundered with the recession two years ago.

The ongoing $7-million renovation of the property started by – including a new 18,500-sq.-ft. outlying building for Shoppers Drug Mart and a 7,200 sq.-ft. government liquor store – will continue as before, Lowe added.

“We just got it,” he said of the centre, for which the sale closed on June 30. “We’re always looking at how to improve the centres we own and how to serve residents better. It’s going to take a little time to decide what we’re going to do.”

http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/peacearchnews/news/97881139.html

[BCPhil]

That's quite a bit of coin. The area around the mall is quite high density, and still growing, and could really use more retail space.

[officedweller]

http://www.firstcapitalrealty.ca/PropertyListing.aspx

[webster]

http://www.vancommercial.ca/2010/07/06/recent-sale-semiahmoo-shopping-centre-surrey/

[sacrifice333]

Article in the Sun about it today too...

Semiahmoo mall sells for $82.7 million

First Capital Realty takes over shopping centre in South Surrey

BY DERRICK PENNER, VANCOUVER SUN JULY 15, 2010

PNG / The Semiahmoo Shopping Centre in south Surrey is the third major mall to change hands in Metro Vancouver this year.
Photograph by: Jenelle Schneider, Vancouver Sun
Semiahmoo Shopping Centre, on the desirable 152nd Street strip of south Surrey, has sold for $82.7 million, making it the latest major mall to trade hands in 2010 following deals to sell the Brentwood and Lougheed Town Centre properties.

The Semiahmoo transaction has investment firm First Capital Realty Inc. taking over the mall from Nat Bosa's Bosa Development Corp, which purchased the mall and 7.6-hectare site for $50.5 million in 2003, according to a transaction report compiled by the research firm RealNet.


...

Article Link (http://www.vancouversun.com/news/todays-paper/Semiahmoo+mall+sells+million/3280984/story.html)

[hollywoodnorth]

not too bad of a flip by BOSA. a nice $30 M in the pocket never hurts ;)

[sacrifice333]

^with fairly minimal risk!