103 rental homes proposed for Kingsway in Vancouver

Apr 29 2020, 12:10 am

The southeast corner of the intersection of Prince Albert Street and Kingsway in Vancouver’s Kensington-Cedar Cottage neighbourhood could be redeveloped into a mixed-use development.

Rize Alliance Properties has submitted a rezoning application for 810 Kingsway Street, which is currently occupied by a one-storey commercial building with a designer flooring business, formerly a Canadian Tire store.

The application calls for a new 72-ft-tall, six-storey building with 103 secured market rental homes under the city’s Rental 100 Secured Market Rental Housing Policy. The unit mix is 31 studios, 36 one-bedroom units, 29 two-bedroom units, and seven three-bedroom units. Five of these units are two-storey, three-bedroom townhomes located in the laneway.

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Site of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Yamamoto Architecture / Rize Alliance Properties)

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Site of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

There will also be 11,200 sq. ft. of ground-level commercial space, not including a 2,700-sq-ft publicly accessible lobby space that is integrated with the adjacent retail and restaurant spaces and the residential lobby, which creates an additional gathering space for residents and supports the businesses.

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Artistic rendering of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Yamamoto Architecture / Rize Alliance Properties)

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Layout of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Yamamoto Architecture / Rize Alliance Properties)

“While mixed-use buildings are common in the City of Vancouver, there tends to be defined separation between the at-grade retail and upper floor residential. Our objective with this proposal is to redefine the relationship between the building’s residential and commercial uses,” reads the design rationale by Yamamoto Architecture.

“To achieve this, we are proposing to create a public lobby amenity on the ground floor with a direct connection to the adjacent retail space, envisioned as a café. A permeable connection between the retail and residential uses will create opportunities for connection between commercial tenants, their customers and residents. The combination of programmed and unprogrammed space within the public lobby amenity will become a place to hang out, work, and meet people for both residents and the broader community.”

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Artistic rendering of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Yamamoto Architecture / Rize Alliance Properties)

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Artistic rendering of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Yamamoto Architecture / Rize Alliance Properties)

Furthermore, high-ceiling public lobby will have a skylight that allows outdoor light to flow into the public lobby amenity from the residential amenity space on the second level, where there is an indoor amenity space and a large outdoor amenity deck.

A small plaza at the site’s corner with the intersection includes outdoor seating options for the corner restaurant unit.

810 Kingsway Street Vancouver

Artistic rendering of 810 Kingsway Street, Vancouver. (Yamamoto Architecture / Rize Alliance Properties)

Two underground levels will accommodate 92 vehicle parking stalls and 193 bike parking spaces.

The project offers a total floor area of 94,000 sq. ft., giving the building a floor space ratio density of 3.62 times the size of the 24,800-sq-ft lot.

Kenneth ChanKenneth Chan

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