Major development project planned for Gilmore Station

Another major redevelopment project is planned for Burnaby’s Brentwood area along the SkyTrain Millennium Line, and its tallest tower could possibly surpass the heights of downtown Vancouver’s current tallest with the intention of creating a “dramatic skyline from the distance.”

Onni Development is seeking community input to develop a large 12.48-acre site immediately adjacent to Gilmore Station, just one station west of Brentwood Town Centre Station, into a transit-oriented mixed-use development with 500,000 square feet of retail space, up to one million square feet of office space for 5,000 jobs, and up to 2,500 residential units.

“The site will be a complete community within the Brentwood Town Centre,” reads the approved master plan report by the City of Burnaby. “The synthesis of land use, architecture, landscape expression, will result in a contemporary and functional transit integrated development that will act as a spectacular western gateway to the Brentwood Town Centre. The focus of which will be the inter-relationship of office, retail, residential, greenspace and community uses to complement the surrounding Brentwood Town Centre.”

Up to 10 towers with varying heights, positioned on top of retail and office podiums, are planned. This includes three 45 to 65 storey residential towers on top of a four storey retail and office podium at the corner of Gilmore Avenue and Lougheed Highway, four 25 to 45 storey towers over a five-storey retail and office podium along the Carleton Avenue perimeter, a 25 to 35-storey residential tower atop at 10-storey retail and office podium within the so-called Carleton Precinct, and two 15 to 30-storey office buildings over a 10-storey retail and office podium to create a Commerce Precinct.

Five precincts are proposed, which will all be linked by new public plazas, open spaces, covered connections, and new pedestrian-only streets lined with outdoor patio seating and trees. The first phase of the project would complete the northwestern corner of the site where the two tallest towers are planned.

Retail and flex office space will surround the SkyTrain station structure, which was built with a more simpler and flexible design than the other Millennium Line stations as planners had anticipated a major redevelopment project around the station. The development will integrate the station at both the ground level and ticketing concourse levels.

The proposed development site is currently partially vacant, with the western side largely undeveloped and the eastern side occupied by mid-rise office buildings, light industrial, and an automobile dealership. The train station runs through the centre of the site.

“It is recognized that redevelopment of this key area requires a concept and vision that delivers not only superior architectural expression, but acts as a model for employment growth, sustainability, urban design, and public amenity for the Brentwood Town Centre,” the report continues.

Brentwood Town Centre is one of four official town centres designated in the City of Burnaby’s Community Plan. The other town centres are Metrotown, Edmonds, and Lougheed, all served by SkyTrain stations.

Metrotown continues to grow with the Station Square redevelopment project, the anticipated redevelopment of some of Metropolis’ shopping centre’s ground parking, and other single-project developments particularly south of SkyTrain’s Metrotown Station.

As well, a major 10-tower redevelopment is already underway at Brentwood Town Centre shopping mall, where towers up to 70 storeys high will be footed by new retail space. Another significant project is also planed for the site of Lougheed Town Centre shopping mall.