Four new towers proposed for TELUS "The Boot" office site on Boundary Road
A proposal to add four towers to the site of the landmark TELUS office tower on the western border of Burnaby is in the preliminary stages.
PC Urban Properties formally indicated to the City of Burnaby this week it will submit a detailed rezoning and development application for “The Boot,” also known as the Brian Canfield Centre for Excellence in Telecommunications, at 3777 Kingsway.
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The expansive property is located at the northeast corner of the intersection of Boundary Road and Kingsway — just east of the municipal border with Vancouver, and north of Swangard Stadium and Central Park.
This is a large site, spanning 6.6 acres, with a significant portion along the eastern and northern edges — next to the SkyTrain guideway and BC Parkway — used as surface parking for office workers. There are also landscaped public spaces along the site’s frontages with Boundary Road and Kingsway.
The developer has indicated it is creating a concept to add a high-density, mixed-use infill development, complete with residential, retail, and additional office space. The four towers will be on mixed-use podiums with activated frontages along both major streets, and there will be improved site circulation, underground parking, and new open space amenities.
The existing 21-storey, L-shaped office tower — constructed in 1976, originally as the BC-Tel headquarters — will be largely retained and integrated into the new development. This building has 687,000 sq. ft. of office space, making it one of the region’s largest office buildings.
According to the municipal government, the site falls within the Central Park North neighbourhood of the city’s 2017-approved Metrotown Downtown Plan. It is designated for high-density, mixed-use development.
Just across the street on the Vancouver side of Boundary Road is the recently built Wall Centre Central Park, which has three high-rise towers and a number of mid-rise buildings with a combined total of over 1,000 homes.
Nearly four decades ago when the Expo Line was being planned, this area was seen as a potential high density area, with possible further developments catalyzed by the then-new The Boot. The SkyTrain guideway east of Boundary Road, immediately north of the office tower, was designed in a way that allows for a future SkyTrain station to serve the area.