Suburban Updates - All Other Metro Vancouver Municipalities

[jlousa]

Burnaby will be building a new clear span bridge to Burnaby Village.

The Consultant shall develop a design and contract documents, as well as providing contract administration services for a clear span pedestrian bridge at Burnaby Village Museum. The review shall determine the most suitable location for the bridge to meet environmental and programming objectives. The location will determine the length of the structure which is anticipated to have a clear span in the range of 80 ft. to 100 ft. The design, including the choice
of building materials and restoration of the affected areas, need to reflect work in an environmentally-sensitive area

[officedweller]

The Abbotsford BMO building looks good. It'll need some other building butting up to its sides to create a streetwall - hopefully there aren't surface parking lots to the back and sides of it.

[Kodii]

Originally Posted by officedweller

The Abbotsford BMO building looks good. It'll need some other building butting up to its sides to create a streetwall - hopefully there aren't surface parking lots to the back and sides of it.

There are. I'll be ecstatic when they can create a streetwall, but the way Abbotsford is, it isn't going to happen anytime soon. The other side of the street is the mall (and therefore giant parking lots), but they are building a Best Buy over the parking lot directly across from this building.

[DKaz]

Nice find!

There is the Scotiabank building at South Fraser Way and Gladwin that's a few storeys high and butts up to the street, as well as the smaller two storey TD Canada Trust across the street. There is a bit of surface parking but most of it is underground. Hey, they had to start somewhere.

La Galleria on Trethewey will be nice as well if anyone's seen renderings for that.

[SpongeG]

abby is growing up ish

[Kodii]

Hardly. You can say that when they break ground for La Galleria.

EDIT: DKaz, have you seen Yale Crossing in "downtown"? That's another building that I sincerely hope encourages further development because as beautiful as it would be surrounded by similar sized developments, it kinda looks like it's falling off a cliff right now. Also an eyesore when coming down the hill from George Ferguson Way.

[NetMapel]

Look at the size of that sun dial. No way I'm driving or walking under that man-made sun dial. Jesus created the sun for me to enjoy everyday when the sun is naturally up.

[djmk]

Originally Posted by jlousa

Burnaby will be building a new clear span bridge to Burnaby Village.

going over what? canada way?

[DKaz]

True... yea come to think of it, it's pretty dead La Galleria. lol.

I worked a bit on Yale Crossing. It was a challenge, mostly because of the tight construction space and a few little surprises underneath like an underground diverted creek.

The area around Clearbrook Road is coming along, at least one side of it. We're still quite a ways towards building a good vibrant urban corridor, but hey Burnaby certainly did not happen overnight. I saw old photos from the early 80s where much of Kingsway Ave around Metrotown was littered with strip malls. 25+ years later, they're getting there.

Heck Middlegate was a slummy place until recently.

[SpongeG]

Originally Posted by djmk

going over what? canada way?

yah i was wondering the location too...

[jlousa]

Not sure it's hard to tell but it cross a stream and most of the document is concerning the environmental impacts of the crossing. I'll see what I can figure out.

Nevermind this should help place it.

The proposed development comprises four selected areas at the Burnaby Village
Museum property located at 6501 Deer Lake Avenue in Burnaby, BC. It is
understood that the proposed site development will include a pedestrian bridge
crossing of a stream channel (Deer Lake Brook) and three replica exhibit buildings.
It is understood that the exact location and configuration of the proposed bridge has
not yet been determined, but would be within the area designated “proposed bridge
area” as indicated in the RFP documents. Based on discussions with City of
Burnaby staff, it will likely be situated near the south side of Hill Street. The bridge
will be in the range of 24 to 30m (80 to 100 ft) in length. It is also understood that
the proposed bridge foundations may be required to be set back from the creek for
environmental considerations as determined by others.

[Kodii]

I think all my negative comments on the Abbotsford News website led them to publish a bunch of appeasement articles

Mahogany, Riva and Brio make a tower trio

Towers of up to 80 metres in Abbotsford have been allowed since 2005, but the foundations have not yet been built for a single structure of that height.

The 28-storey Mahogany at Mill Lake tower, proposed for 32828 Bevan Ave., was turned down by council last week following a backlash against the plan by local residents.

It was the third tower of that scale to have come to council. The other two were approved.

At 25-storeys, the Riva tower on Marshall Road came to council in September 2006 and was approved in October 2008.

The Brio tower on Mayfair Avenue (28-storeys) also went to council in September 2006, and received final approval in June 2007.

Those projects have since stalled, and no permits have yet been issued by the city.

According to Grant Acheson, development services manager with the City of Abbotsford, the towers could still materialize should market conditions improve.

Source: The Abbotsford News -- http://www.bclocalnews.com/fraser_valley/abbynews/news/45160147.html

Density a must, says mayor

By Joe Millican - Abbotsford News

Pressure will start to mount on city council to approve higher density developments as demand for more housing increases, according to Abbotsford Mayor George Peary.

The mayor, who voted in favour of the Mahogany at Mill Lake tower , said council will need to start backing high-rise proposals or risk facing a housing shortage in years to come.

Council voted 5-4 to deny the Mahogany tower.

“Nobody likes living beside a tower, but the objections raised [by residents beside the Mahogany site] are the same objections raised by the opponents of every tower proposal,” said Peary.

“The arguments are always the same; ‘yes we like higher density, but we don’t like it here.’ “

Despite the Mahogany project being turned down, however, Peary believes council does support densification and is likely to back future tower applications.

“At the end of the day, you have to do what is the greatest good for the greatest number of people,” he said. [I LOVE THIS MAN!!!]

“I think the pressure is going to mount. At the end of the day, people know we need to increase densities.”

Source: The Abbotsford News -- http://www.bclocalnews.com/fraser_valley/abbynews/news/45162682.html

High density potential planned in city core

By Joe Millican - Abbotsford News

At 80 metres and 28 storeys, a bid to build a tower that would have become Abbotsford’s tallest building fell flat last week as city council voted it down.

The Mahogany at Mill Lake proposal would have changed the face of Abbotsford’s Bevan and Gladwin roads forever, but a public backlash prompted civic politicians to narrowly vote no.

It leaves a key question, though. If not there, then where?

Since rewriting its Official Community Plan in 2005, the City of Abbotsford has allowed buildings of between 50 metres and (164 feet) and 80 metres (262 feet) in a push to build upwards instead of outwards.

Nothing higher than 50 metres was allowed before that, which means that Abbotsford’s tallest existing buildings peak at 16 storeys.

With Sumas Mountain to the east and Agricultural Land Reserve farmland to the west, vacant development plots in Abbotsford are at a premium. And with a population that is predicted to grow from approximately 135,000 in 2009 to 200,000 by 2021, the need for more housing is obvious.

A 2005 report highlighting population predictions for the Fraser Valley Regional District – of which Abbotsford is a part – said the area from Abbotsford to Hope is expected to jump from 254,000 to 462,000 residents by 2031.

As a result, the report stated that the demand for new apartments “will be rapid.”

In 2005 [And you're reporting it now? ], the city pinpointed large chunks of Abbotsford – primarily in its centre – that it said could be suitable for high-rises due to their close proximity to shops, transit, employment opportunities and roads that could handle increased traffic. Those areas are highlighted on a map on the front page..

It means that a tower proposal in any of those areas would at least be considered by city staff and council.

In a bid to create a more built-up city centre, the city has specifically identified South Fraser Way, Marshall Road and McCallum Road as being some of the possibilities for higher density.

Areas in and around Essendene Avenue, McDougall Avenue, Bourquin Crescent, Ware Street, George Ferguson Way, Trethewey Street are other possibilities.

However, much will depend on what tower proposals are brought to council by developers.

Abbotsford’s growth upwards is inevitable, according to City of Abbotsford development services general manager Grant Acheson.

“I think it’s essential to the growth of the city,” he said. “In terms of development . . . we don’t have a lot of vacant land for that. We are quickly coming to the point where we have to go up instead of out.”

Acheson said it is expensive to service residential lots on mountainsides with roads, water and sewer. It therefore makes more sense to densify the city centre where these services already exist, he said.

The push towards higher density is already happening in Abbotsford.

In the past two or three years, he said there has been a desire to build more apartments and townhouses rather than single family homes.

When it comes to towers, however, there is more scope for public opposition due to increased traffic concerns and the prospect of shadows being cast on neighbours’ properties.

The shadowing effect is inevitable, according to Quantum Properties president and CEO Diane Delves.

Quantum Properties was the Abbotsford company which proposed the Mahogany at Mill Lake project.

“There’s a shadowing impact, there’s no doubt about that,” Delves said in a previous interview with the Abbotsford News.

“We do not go into a project looking to disrupt our neighbours but unfortunately that’s going to happen. If you are going to live in the centre of a city, your environment is going to change at some point.”

Source: The Abbotsford News -- http://www.bclocalnews.com/fraser_valley/abbynews/news/45162982.html

[metroXpress]

Abbotsford wants to be a dense city? Wait until Surrey gets dense first...2075 ??

[Kodii]

The weather was nice, so I went out to snap some photos only to realize I miss Vancouver that much more. Abbotsford is so much less photogenic.

All photos are mine.

The Reach (Abbotsford's New Art Gallery/Museum):



Location of La Galleria:



Development at Bourquin and South Fraser (New BMO):







Best Buy (Under Construction):

[DKaz]

Originally Posted by Kodii

The weather was nice, so I went out to snap some photos only to realize I miss Vancouver that much more. Abbotsford is so much less photogenic.

All photos are mine.

Location of La Galleria:

La Galleria looks an awful like Best Buy. EDIT: Seems you've fixed it. lol. La Galleria looks more like La Deedahdia.

Hey when the new BMO building is done, we'll have something nice to take photos of!

[Kodii]

When looking up the Mt. Lehman interchange, I stumbled upon this, which I was completely unaware of: http://www.shapeproperties.com/public/brochures_pdf/abby_west_broch.pdf

This, along with what is already across the street from it, will make Mt Lehman feel a bit more 200th-like.

EDIT: Okay, maybe not quite across the street. There is still a lot between this development and the one that already exists

[LeftCoaster]

Hmm not a bad development considering the area.. I was expecting a smart centre or something along those lines.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by Kodii

When looking up the Mt. Lehman interchange, I stumbled upon this, which I was completely unaware of: http://www.shapeproperties.com/public/brochures_pdf/abby_west_broch.pdf

Looks good - much better in terms of exterior appearance than other "lifestyle centres" with acres of surface parking - at least this one has 2 levels underground.

I wonder who would lease the Anchor 2 location on P1 (95,000 sq ft with a garden centre - Canadian Tire?) Seems too small for a Home Depot. The Anchor 1 location seems geared for Wal-Mart - unless it's a SuperCentre and Wal-Mart takes both levels? But that seems like too much space to me.

[Kodii]

Wal-Mart could make sense. The other one is all the way across Abbotsford in Sumas, as is the Home Depot (which is right beside Wal-Mart). I wouldn't be a Canadian Tire because Abbotsford's current one is very central and just had an expansion.

[SpongeG]

Lowes!!! that would be good they are finally opening in alberta after opening a lot of stores in Ontario