Proposal for 2,700 homes in Port Moody facing cancellation due to city delays

Previous 2020 concept for Coronation Park in Port Moody. This rendering does not show the most recent revisions. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

One of Metro Vancouver’s largest transit-oriented, mixed-use residential developments is facing outright cancellation, with the proponents saying it does not see a path forward if more hurdles are in the way.

And it asserts the problem is squarely with Port Moody City Council, which “continues to move goalposts and force delays.”

Local developer Wesgroup Properties is proposing Coronation Park — a 14.8-acre redevelopment formed from a complex land assembly of 59 single-family houses immediately northeast of SkyTrain’s Inlet Centre Station.

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The application for an official community plan (OCP) amendment was submitted in 2020, and the aim was to progress to a submission of the rezoning application this year. However, city council is still in the process of considering the OCP amendment, and the developer is now urging that this process be achieved in the first half of 2022 — before city council goes on summer break.

The second half of 2022 will be dominated by the civic election cycle, and the transition to a different city council term with potentially a different makeup of elected officials, which could send the review process back to square one.

Site of Coronation Park in Port Moody. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

coronation park port moody wesgroup 2022

Land assembly of 59 single-family homes required for Wesgroup’s Coronation Park project in Port Moody. (City of Port Moody)

If the OCP review process drags on beyond early Summer 2022, the earliest city council review would likely be sometime in 2023. But Wesgroup is suggesting it will not prolong the state of limbo for homeowners if the current city council is unable to reach a decision over the coming months.

This is rare kind of land assembly involving dozens of small individual detached property owners, with the properties currently either under the developer’s ownership, under offer, or under negotiation.

“We have been committed to working with city council to meet the needs of the community, but time is limited,” says Brad Jones, senior vice-president of development for Wesgroup, in a statement.

“Residents need clarity and so do we. If this can’t be achieved in the first part of 2022, it is not certain that we will be able to move forward.”

There have been multiple redevelopment concepts for the entire neighbourhood over the past decade. As property owners have been expecting to be bought out, they have also been practicing deferred maintenance.

According to longtime resident and homeowner Kirsten Ueland, many properties in the land assembly are crumbling from deferred maintenance. Repairs and maintenance work that would have been performed years ago were not made, as there is no point in doing so if the homes will be sold and demolished.

“We have outgrown our home and are bursting at the seams, but we can’t move. We need out for quality of life,” said Ueland.

Elaine McDonald, another resident and homeowner, also faces the same dilemma: “I’m frustrated with the city and worried the whole thing will be dropped. You can’t really get on with your life. I’m on a fixed income and already had to put money into a new furnace and water heater because I couldn’t wait any longer.”

Furthermore, over the past two years, the developer has made significant concessions based on input from city council and the community, which changes the pro forma.

Pervious 2020 concept for Coronation Park in Port Moody. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

Previous 2020 design (left) and 2022 revised design (right) for the Coronation Park redevelopment in Port Moody. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

A previous design called for five towers between 37 and 40 storeys, plus several low-to-mid-rise buildings, containing 2,875 condominium homes and 175 below-market rental homes, as well as 10,350 sq ft of retail space, an 8,000 sq ft childcare facility for up to 100 kids, a 21,000 sq ft residential daycare amenity space, and a 1.5-acre public park.

Several revised versions of the proposal have been made, with the latest revision to be considered by city council next week proposing reduced density with 224,000 sq ft of residential floor area removed, including non-market rental housing and some of the market residential density that would otherwise be used to support the cost of community amenities, affordable housing, and other public benefits. The total floor area of the redevelopment is now about 2.2 million sq ft, with a floor area ratio density of 3.48.

The revised proposal removes through-roads for vehicles accomplished by local street extensions, instead creating a pedestrian-oriented development with access to underground parking located on the perimeters of the property. A unique long elevated walkway has also been added to the northeast quadrant of the site, next to the public park, to establish a more gentle transition for the redevelopment’s main pedestrian path, given the site’s steep slope. More usable open spaces have now been included, such as a larger public park, now 2.53 acres, but this is achieved by both eliminating road space and reducing the number of low-to-mid-rise buildings that use up more horizontal footprint, and transferring that density vertically through an additional sixth tower.

2022 revised design for the Coronation Park redevelopment in Port Moody. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

2022 revised design for the Coronation Park redevelopment in Port Moody, depicting the elevated pedestrian walkway next to the public park. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

As a result, the buildings are now shorter, including the towers, which are between 26 and 31 storeys.

There are now fewer homes, with the housing tenure mix now standing at 2,560 condominium homes and 105 market rental homes, with at least 10% of the rentals dedicated to seniors.

There are no longer any below-market rental homes.

According to the developer, during an earlier review of the proposal, city council expressed a stronger desire for compliance with the OCP than to have more affordable housing: “The current application does not include affordable housing, which is a result of council’s explicit direction.”

If below-market rental housing were to be reintroduced to the project, the developer would need to seek “permission for additional market housing housing (condominium) density to financially support the provision of non-market units. The overall FSR (floor area size/density) and some building heights would need to increase to accommodate this.”

“Wesgroup’s financial formula for providing non-market units requires approximately two market units (condominium) for every non-market unit delivered, depending on size and other factors.”

Another option would be to remove some of the other community benefits in exchange for non-market rental housing.

Previous 2020 design (left) and 2022 revised design (right) for the Coronation Park redevelopment in Port Moody. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

Some of the previous density has also been transferred to achieve a 10-fold increase in commercial floor area, following city council’s desire for added on-site employment space, and neighbourhood-serving retail to help create a more complete community.

There is now 115,500 sq ft of commercial of floor area, including a significant 35,000 sq ft grocery store, 18,000 sq ft drug store, 29,000 sq ft of office space, and 23,700 sq ft of retail and restaurant space in smaller commercial units. The childcare facility is now slightly larger at 9,500 sq ft for up to 120 kids, but the residential daycare amenity space has been downsized to 16,000 sq ft. These various commercial spaces combined are projected to support about 500 on-site jobs.

Upon full buildout, based on the latest revised design, Coronation Park would be home to between 4,800 and 5,860 residents.

Other potential public benefits that will be determined in the future rezoning application, should the proposal advance to that stage, include a civic amenity space between 2,000 sq ft and 4,000 sq ft, and an east-west pedestrian overpass across Ioco Road to enable improved connections to the SkyTrain station’s west entrance building.

If approved, the project would also provide $12 million in cash community amenity contributions and $25 million in development cost levies to the City of Port Moody, and generate about $6.5 million in additional property taxes annually from the new homes and businesses.

The public hearing for Coronation Park’s OCP review is scheduled to begin on April 26, 2022.

2022 revised design for the Coronation Park redevelopment in Port Moody. (Ciccozzi Architecture/Wesgroup Properties)

But there are also other major mixed-use redevelopment plans in the area, with the City of Coquitlam expressing a desire for greater density and heights near Inlet Centre Station, which is located in the City of Port Moody’s jurisdiction. The area immediately east of Wesgroup’s Coronation Park site is within Coquitlam’s recently approved City Centre Area Plan.

The eastern perimeter of Coronation Park’s land assembly is also the municipal border between Port Moody and Coquitlam. Immediately on the other side of that border in Coquitlam is Polygon Homes’ proposed 10-acre redevelopment of the former Coronation Park Elementary School site, and a handful of single-family houses.

In October 2021, Polygon Homes submitted an application to the City of Coquitlam for its Coronation Heights development, calling for 2.3 million sq ft of total floor area and a floor are ratio density of 5.22. There would be a total of 2,558 homes, including 1,968 condominium homes, 492 market rental homes, and 98 below-market rental homes. Altogether, these units combined would provide homes for an estimated 5,100 people.

Additionally, Coronation Heights includes a 6,000 sq ft childcare facility for 37 kids, a minor retail/restaurant component of 3,600 sq ft, and various open spaces including a one-acre public park.

The City of Coquitlam is in the early stages of considering Polygon Homes’ proposal.

coronation park elementary school polygon 135 balmoral drive 2518-2548 palmer avenue 2545 palmer avenue

Site plan and phasing of the Coronation Heights redevelopment at 135 Balmoral Drive and 2518-2548 Palmer Avenue, Coquitlam. (Polygon Homes)

Artistic rendering of the Coronation Heights redevelopment at 135 Balmoral Drive and 2518-2548 Palmer Avenue, Coquitlam. (Polygon Homes)

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