Tall office tower amongst options for new Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown

Three potential location and building configuration options have been identified for the proposed new replacement Burnaby City Hall campus in the Metrotown district.

On Wednesday, the City of Burnaby revealed three potential options for preliminary public consultation, with all options currently under consideration located on City-owned land.

The municipal government announced the launch of the planning process for a new replacement City Hall campus in early May 2023. The new campus will replace the existing 1955-built campus located at 4949 Canada Way in a highly uncentralized area north of Deer Lake.

Furthermore, the existing City Hall buildings are now nearing the end of their lifespan and in need of replacement. But instead of upgrading the existing facilities, the City has decided to redirect the estimated upgrade cost of about $70 million towards relocating City Hall to a central location with brand new modern facilities.

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Each option of a new City Hall in Metrotown carries unique tradeoffs, such as the potential reduction of open or public park space in an area that is expected to see immense densification over the coming decades. Tens of thousands of new residents and jobs will solidify Metrotown as the downtown area of Burnaby.

One option on the footprint of a public park would necessitate a public referendum for full approval.

Other tradeoffs include varying extra costs for the other municipal facilities that may need to be replaced to accommodate a new City Hall campus, in addition to the actual cost of the City Hall space.

All three options would produce a City Hall campus with an office building floor area of about 355,000 sq ft.

The three site options for the new Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown: Option 1 – Library and Civic Square site (left); Option 2 – Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House site (centre); Option 3 – Bonsor Recreation Complex and Park site (right). (City of Burnaby)

Here are the three potential location and building configuration options that are currently up for public debate, with all options located within a short walking distance from SkyTrain Metrotown Station and the bus loop:

Option 1: Library and Civic Square site

This is the westernmost and most central location within Metrotown, and the option with the largest land footprint to work with for a redevelopment. It is also closest to the transit hub.

The 4.4-acre site of 6100 Willingdon Avenue is the entire city block at the northeast corner of the intersection of Willingdon Avenue and Central Boulevard. This property’s current uses include the Bob Prittie Metrotown Public Library and the Civic Square public plaza.

Existing condition:

Existing condition of the Library and Civic Square site. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

New Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown – Option 1: Library and Civic Square site. (City of Burnaby)

As a theoretical redevelopment concept, this option could potentially include a new replacement library with the base podium of the complex.

An office tower containing the bulk of the City Hall campus space would rise from a large base podium.

In addition, a new replacement public plaza — larger than the existing Civic Square — would be provided on the south side of the block fronting Central Boulevard. The new plaza could also be integrated with the adjacent BC Parkway as part of the municipal government’s separate plan to upgrade the segment of pathway and green space running through the Metrotown area.

Existing condition:

Existing condition of the Library and Civic Square site. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

New Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown – Option 1: Library and Civic Square site. (City of Burnaby)

Option 2: Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House site

This option is a redevelopment of the Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House at 6515 Bonsor Avenue, located on the west side of the intersection of Bonsor Avenue and Brief Street — immediately southwest of the Hudson’s Bay store of Metropolis at Metrotown mall.

With a lot size of just 0.3 acres (12,900 sq ft), the site is the smallest of the three options by a wide margin.

Existing condition:

Existing condition of the Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House site. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

New Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown – Option 2: Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House. (City of Burnaby)

City staff note this small site “requires a creative design approach,” and they have conceived a theoretical redevelopment concept of having the City Hall office tower built on both the footprint of the firefighter’s public house lot and over the roadway of the intersection. The tower footings would span both the west and east sides of the street, with the public street retained and running through a hole in the tower’s lower floors. There would be a road intersection directly beneath the tower floors.

To achieve 355,000 sq ft of office space on a very small footprint, the office tower would have to be very tall — much taller than the other options.

As a result, the office floor plates would also be small, which may not be an optimal office configuration for large organizations like the City of Burnaby, based on optimal office design concept principles.

Existing condition:

Existing condition of the Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House site. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

New Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown – Option 2: Burnaby Firefighter’s Public House. (City of Burnaby)

There would be a base podium for the tower on the firefighters’ public house lot, and a civic plaza could potentially be built across the street when the existing Bonsor Recreation Complex is redeveloped.

Due to the small site size, this option has more limited opportunities to accommodate other civic uses or amenities and limited on-site parking. But for the same reasons, it also likely has the lowest additional non-City Hall costs in terms of the lack of the need to replace existing major facilities on the development site, unlike the other options.

Option 3: Bonsor Recreation Complex and Park site

The redevelopment of the Bonsor Recreation Complex and public park is the option with the second largest land area, with a total available land size of 3.7 acres. This site is immediately to the east of the firefighter’s public house, and it is the easternmost site of the three options.

However, this option is uniquely challenged by the need to hold a public referendum to seek the required public approval to remove the site’s parkland designation.

City staff note this option could include a new replacement 180,000 sq ft Bonsor Recreation Complex and South Central Youth Centre, which would better meet growing recreational demand in Metrotown. There could also be other civic uses and amenities. But the tradeoff of adding more non-City Hall uses is higher construction costs.

Existing condition:

Existing condition of the Bonsor Recreation Complex and public park. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

New Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown – Option 3: Bonsor Recreation Complex and Park site. (City of Burnaby)

The recreation and community uses and a portion of the City Hall space would be located within a large base podium. An office tower to provide most of the required City Hall offices would rise from the podium.

As for the layout of the complex on the city block, the buildings could be set in the centre, bordered by reconfigured sports field that are the same size as the existing fields. Jubilee Avenue on the east side of the block could be closed to create more space.

A civic plaza could also be created in the southwest area of the block, near an existing treed area. The existing skate park and South Burnaby Cenotaph would be retained.

Existing condition:

Existing condition of the Bonsor Recreation Complex and public park. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

New Burnaby City Hall in Metrotown – Option 3: Bonsor Recreation Complex and Park site. (City of Burnaby)

To provide feedback on the three potential City Hall redevelopment options, an online survey is open through July 7, 2023.

The municipal government’s 2023-2027 capital plan sets aside $74 million for the City Hall replacement project, including $3 million in 2024, $11 million in 2025, $20 million in 2026, and $40 million in 2027. This will be funded by City revenues collected from developers for the purpose of generating community benefits in exchange for approving their developments.

According to the City, a relocation of City Hall to Metrotown aligns with the municipality’s 2017 Metrotown Downtown Plan, which calls for intensifying civic and community facilities in the Metrotown area as part of the strategy to catalyze a more vibrant city centre. The Metrotown Downtown Plan also envisions the long-term demolition and redevelopment of Metropolis at Metrotown mall for a new grid of public streets and city blocks, generating 15,000 new homes and ample new office, retail, and entertainment spaces.

The area is already home to the headquarters office of Metro Vancouver Regional District, which acquired the 2014-built, 29-storey Metrotower III office tower — part of the Metropolis at Metrotown mall complex — for $205 million in 2017. The regional district occupies about half of the tower and leases the remaining space for revenue.

The City’s Metrotown Downtown Plan also envisions a major events and convention centre next to Metrotown Station, where the bus loop is currently situated. In 2021, a preliminary analysis by the City conceived the concept of a 200,000 sq ft, five-storey events and convention centre and art gallery at a cost of $460 million.

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• Construction underway on first redevelopment phase of Metropolis at Metrotown mall
• Metropolis at Metrotown mall redevelopment envisions 15,000 new homes