Kamloops Construction

[VantageHD]

It's about time that eyesore is destroyed! It's needed to go ever since the strip joint closed. Good move by the city to sell just the land too. Definitely will make it more appealing to developers.

[MIPS]

I always liked the idea of a seedy hotel above a sleazy strip club but that was more a thing when it was still The Village. It's been run-down now for half a decade.

[VantageHD]

Other than the Loop, the Northbridge Hotel is probably the worst building along the Tranquille corridor. Will be interesting to see what kind of difference it will make from just tearing it down.

501 Tranquille, just down the road is starting to go quick. Another banger from BlueGreen Architecture.

[VantageHD]

Looks like there's a development permit for a 14 storey apartment building on Seymour Street between 1st & 2nd according to the cities website. Currently a parking a lot.

[dmuzika]

Originally Posted by RHINO

Northbridge Hotel set for demolition

The longstanding Northbridge Hotel along Tranquille Road is slated for demolition following a city council decision late last year.

In a news release issued Monday afternoon (Jan. 9), the City of Kamloops stated the hotel, which it purchased for redevelopment for $7.15 million — $4 million above assessed value — will be torn down in a bid to make the property more attractive to prospective buyers.

Council voted unanimously during a closed council meeting on Dec. 13, 2022 to tear down the hotel at 377 Tranquille Rd. in North Kamloops which has been a prominent fixture of the Tranquille Corridor since the 1950s.

In addition to attempt to appeal to a broader development market, the city opted to demolish the building to decrease liability associated with the vacant building, and improve the safety and general aesthetic of the area, the release said. The demolition is expected to take place in early 2023.

City staff are now in the process of drafting a request for proposal for the property's redevelopment, the municipal press release stated.

According to the city, all 54 tenants living in 51 rooms of the hotel have now been moved out and rehoused. ASK Wellness, which at one point was managing the building, and BC Housing worked to help find alternative housing for the tenants, with many tenants rehoused with local non-profit housing providers or in market accommodations, according to the release.

“The demolition of this building is positive change for this area,” deputy mayor Dale Bass said. “We look forward to realizing the development potential of this key site to bring more market housing to this neighborhood.

Was that place ever known as the Villager Inn?

[VantageHD]

Not sure. I've only ever known it as the Village.

[RHINO]

It was known at one point as the village in yes, but that was a million years ago. I recall it being OUT BACKS strip joint back in the early 2000's and late 90's.

You love the old BLUE GREEN eh? LOL Carbon copy every time they build something.

[RHINO]

Thompson Landing on Royal, Kamloops’ newest waterfront development — set on the shore of the Thompson River, has opened the doors to its show suite, welcoming the community to learn about the 64-unit condo development, now under construction.

The development, at 209 Royal Ave., just off Tranquille Road in North Kamloops, will feature two condo buildings with a total of 64 residential units, ranging from studio units to two-bedroom suites, as well as private rooftop terraces. It is expected to be completed in the spring of 2024.

Prices vary, with one-bedroom units selling online for $370,000. Studios are 434 square feet in size, while one-bedrooms are 670 square feet, one bedrooms plus den are 741 square feet, two bedrooms are 857 square feet and two bedrooms plus den are 1,145 square feet.

Building amenities include 86 covered parking stalls, electric vehicle charging stations, bike parking and scooter storage and an open-air courtyard overlooking the river.

Following community engagement and unanimous city council support for rezoning, and with a development permit and disclosure statements in hand, units in the development are for sale.

“We started pre-sales in early November and have already sold 17 units, which represents 27 per cent of the units of our project,” said Joshua Knaak, partner with ARPA Investments, the company behind Thompson Landing. “We know it was a calculated risk to launch our sales when interest rates were starting to increase, but the confidence from purchasers has certainly been strong.”

Knaak said his company — which developed The Station on Tranquille (home to Bright Eye Brewing and condo units above) and The Colours at Spirit Square condos — is focused on building communities.

“To take this piece of property and develop it to complement the vibrant McDonald Park neighbourhood along Royal Avenue is how we are living out our company’s mission and creating great places for people to live,” he said.

Realtor for the project is Brendan Shaw of Brendan Shaw Real Estate.

Shaw said Thompson Landing is the fourth ARPA project his office has signed on to sell.

The show suite is at the the corner of Oak Street and Tranquille Road in North Kamloops, just a few blocks north of the condo development site.

Shaw said the show suite provides people with a better sense of what their new home will look like, the views of the Thompson River and the opportunity to go over suite plans and floor plans with a licensed realtor.

The show suite is open by appointment only. Call 778-471-1498 to book one. Details of the development are also available online at thompsonlanding.ca.

[VantageHD]

8 Storey, 171 unit apartment called Canary Lofts proposed for the top of 1st & Columbia Street. https://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/local-news/major-makeover-of-columbia-and-first-proposed-6455423





It's currently a huge eyesore that seems to have been getting worked on consistently for the past 5 years. Looks like it used to be an old Motel from the days of when Columbia Street was the Trans Canada Hwy. I hope this ends up getting built. Would be a huge improvement and I like the design.

[Repthe250]

That building sure doesn’t look 8 storeys

[MIPS]

IIRC it was the Uplands Apartments for many years. Three floors of small suites, but they were cheap. They started taking on long-term residents for the recovery center across the street and as the residents got sketchier the place started to look run down so they tried to remodel and stalled.

Edited: actually it looks like the place went up for sale as recently as 2015. Had a SOLD sign a month later.
https://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/local-n...kamloops-concerned-about-tenants-4376930

[VantageHD]

Originally Posted by Repthe250

That building sure doesn’t look 8 storeys

It's deceiving. 1st Ave is probably the steepest street in town. The green apartment building on the left side of the street view photo is 4 storeys and this building will go back as far as it. That render is from the highest corner and probably the 5th floor of the building at the corner street level.

[RHINO]

Ahhh you beat me to it.

I am wondering what this potential 14 floor project down town is... Anyone know?

[Repthe250]

Originally Posted by VantageHD

It's deceiving. 1st Ave is probably the steepest street in town. The green apartment building on the left side of the street view photo is 4 storeys and this building will go back as far as it. That render is from the highest corner and probably the 5th floor of the building at the corner street level.

I grew up in Kamloops so I know the street very well. You’re right, it is deceiving. But even deceivingly, it doesn’t look 8 storeys Glad they’re finally tearing down that eyesore on such a prominent piece of land going down Columbia.

[RHINO]

This might clear things up.

[RHINO]

Development permit issued for Campbell Creek gas station & convenience store

A new Co-op gas station, convenience store, and touchless car wash in the Campbell Creek Industrial Park is one step closer to becoming reality.

Kamloops City councillors unanimously voted in favour of issuing a development permit for the site at 7750 Dallas Drive, just off Highway 1, near the Kokanee Way exit.

“The property is located at the entrance to the Campbell Creek Industrial Park, a highly visible tract of land that is appropriate for the development of service commercial and light to general industrial uses,” a report to city council said.

An earlier proposal at that same site that also included a commercial cardlock was turned down by the previous city council owing to concerns from residents about truck traffic at all hours of the day.

The City’s Development, Engineering, and Sustainability Director Marvin Kwiatkowski says the 0.88 hectare property is already zoned to allow the development being proposed to move ahead.

“This application came before council in December 2020 [and] at that point in time, there was an amendment to [a nearly two decade old] restrictive covenant to allow a fuel bar as well as the convenience store,” he said.

“This is coming before you now because they are moving forward with the development.”

Kwiatkowski also noted that while the restrictive covenant was modified to allow businesses like a gas station and a restaurant to be set up, other businesses like autobody shops, machine shops, welding shops, and commercial cardlocks are not permitted to “reduce land use conflicts with the nearby residential neighbourhood.”

“When this first came to us, I thought here was some sort of restaurant, coffee shop type of thing involved with it and I don’t see that there now, so has that changed? Or am I just misremembering?” Councillor Dale Bass asked.

“Yeah, its more of a convenience store at this point in time. The covenant did allow for a restaurant but they didn’t choose to go that route,” Kwiatkowski responded.

City staff will issue the development permit once the city receives a $212,617 landscape security payment from the developers.

[VantageHD]

Originally Posted by RHINO

Ahhh you beat me to it.

I am wondering what this potential 14 floor project down town is... Anyone know?

I did some digging at the city and called in. Apparently the developer wants to put the parking for the building a block away and that it has a ways to go before any shovels in ground. Can't believe they would propose that. Maybe if units were cheaper but I bet they wouldn't be. I like the look of it though.

[BC Tom]

The McGill Ridge project across from TRU is getting pretty huge. Likely the second biggest current project after City Gardens and way less publicity. 6 buildings in total, 4 done already.

dalhousie-drive-development-kamloops1 by Thomas Johansen, on Flickr

dalhousie-drive-development-kamloops-6 by Thomas Johansen, on Flickr

[VantageHD]

They're both big projects that show the difference when a developer cares about what they build, as opposed to one that doesn't.

Cross Developments out of Vancouver has taken the same 4 storey building and copied it 8 times over 2 properties and basically just changed the colour scheme between them. It's pathetic. Shows how bad they are as a company and how lazy the Cities planning department is to allow this. I bet they already have another lot bought somewhere and are going to hit the paste button as soon as the Dalhousie project is complete. The Dalhousie development hasn't got any publicity because even the developers aren't proud of what they're building.

City gardens on the other hand will be a legacy and a benefit to the neighbourhood.

[Repthe250]

Agreed. Looks exactly like Orchard Walk. And exactly like the Dallas development by the Petro Canada. Actually come to think of it, every single new 4 storey development in Kamloops looks the. Exact. Same.