Metro Vancouver's future tallest tower boasts public observation deck | Daily Hive

Proposal for Metro Vancouver's tallest tower in Metrotown features a public observation deck attraction

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

A bold new vision for Burnaby’s Metrotown district is emerging with the proposal of Metro Vancouver’s tallest building, featuring a striking high-calibre design, diverse mixed-use spaces, and a rooftop public observation deck as a major attraction.

With a structural height of 853 feet, this first McCarthy Plaza tower would surpass all existing buildings as well as proposed, planned, or under-construction towers in Metro Vancouver, making it the new tallest building in Western Canada.

Currently, Metro Vancouver’s tallest building is the newly constructed Two Gilmore Place tower, located near SkyTrain’s Gilmore Station in the Brentwood district, surpassing the previous record held by the 659-ft-tall Living Shangri-La tower in downtown Vancouver.

But the 708-ft-tall Two Gilmore Place will soon be eclipsed by the 755-ft-tall Sky Park tower of the first phase of Concord Metrotown, which is under construction at the northeast corner of Metropolis at Metrotown mall and set to reach completion by 2028.

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At some point in the future, Sky Park and Western Canada’s current tallest building, the 823-ft-tall Stantec Tower in Edmonton, will be overtaken by the 850-ft-tall tower of Pinnacle Lougheed next to SkyTrain’s Lougheed Town Centre Station. This first phase of Pinnacle International’s project received Burnaby City Council’s approval in Fall 2024.

Site of McCarthy Plaza at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Google Maps)

Existing condition of McCarthy Plaza at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby, with the site of the future McCarthy Plaza tower (centre) and the construction of Concord Metrotown’s Sky Park tower (left). (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

Surpassing all other projects, Metro Vancouver’s future tallest tower of 853 ft would replace a portion of the existing McCarthy Plaza (5000 Kingsway Plaza) complex at 5000 Kingsway, situated at the southeast corner of the intersection of Kingsway and Nelson Street — immediately east of the future Sky Park and the Hudson’s Bay wing of Metropolis at Metrotown.

This McCarthy Plaza tower would be situated on the prominent corner of the intersection, featuring an attached 13-storey, L-shaped base podium with cascading terraces that face southward toward Bennett Street. It would replace existing surface vehicle parking spaces and low-rise commercial buildings, including the one-storey building with London Drugs and a three-storey building.

An observation deck above Burnaby Mountain’s elevation

When the high elevation of the site atop the Metrotown ridge is factored in, this tower would not only be a defining feature for Metrotown but also a highly visible landmark across the Metro Vancouver region.

With the 853-ft-tall structure perched on top of the site elevation of 426.5 ft above sea level, the tower would boast a geodetic height of 1,279 ft — exceeding the height of the 1,214-ft-tall Burnaby Mountain in the distance.

This means the McCarthy Plaza tower’s rooftop would be practically at eye level with Simon Fraser University’s buildings atop Burnaby Mountain. It should also be noted that Concord Pacific’s adjacent Sky Park also visually benefits from a similar site elevation.

mccarthy plaza tower metrotown 5000 kingsway burnaby

Observation deck on the 71st level; preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

The McCarthy Plaza tower’s new urban peak for Metro Vancouver, situated in a central location of the region undergoing immense densification to fulfill its role as the Metrotown Regional City Centre, creates an ideal opportunity for a public observation deck.

Proposed for the tower’s rooftop of the 71st level — just above the highest residential penthouse level — the McCarthy Plaza Observation Deck promises to be an alluring attraction.

The observation deck would offer a panoramic view of the Lower Mainland, extending as far as Vancouver Island and Washington. The outdoor deck on the tower’s rooftop would have a floor area of about 4,700 sq ft.

30 rockefeller plaza new york city top of the rock observatory

Top of the Rock Observatory at 30 Rockefeller Plaza tower in New York City. (Kenneth Chan)

The Edge observation deck at Hudsons Yard in New York City. (Kenneth Chan)

the view from the shard observation deck london

The partially covered upper outdoor deck of The View from The Shard observation deck in London. (Kenneth Chan)

In an interview with Daily Hive Urbanized, John McCarthy, the vice president of local development firm WPJ McCarthy and Company, says his family was inspired by the New York City attractions of the Empire State Building Observatory and the Top of the Rock observation deck at 30 Rockefeller Plaza.

He notes that they are still in the early stages of planning the observation deck, but it would likely be an open-air space with a semi-indoor space.

Inspired by 30 Rock

When it comes to the tower’s overall architectural concept, the design — created by local architectural firm Dialog — is also deeply inspired by 30 Rockefeller Plaza and other iconic Art Deco buildings in Manhattan from the early 20th century.

“30 Rock is a big inspiration for the project,” McCarthy told Daily Hive Urbanized. “We quite like Art Deco architecture, and I think it took a long time working with our architects, but the idea was to take some of those old classic buildings that we really like, some of them in the Art Deco style in New York, and figure out how to make that aesthetic look both current and modern.”

30 Rockefeller Plaza tower in New York City. (Kenneth Chan)

30 Rockefeller Plaza tower in New York City. (Kenneth Chan)

While 30 Rockefeller Plaza features a limestone facade, the McCarthy Plaza tower would use contemporary materials and techniques to create a “West Coast Deco” for its facade, with the different materiality approach following the same Art Deco-defining design principles. The potential high-quality facade materials include zinc, titanium, porcelain, and/or terra cotta.

“We really wanted to come up with something that is a bit unique to the region… something that, through the materiality, conveys a sense of permanence and strength,” McCarthy told Daily Hive Urbanized.

The form of the tower is also inspired by 30 Rockefeller Plaza’s series of stepped vertical volumes. For the McCarthy Plaza tower, it would have three stepped vertical volumes rising above the base podium.

But this is no ordinary boxy design. Unlike its Manhattan predecessor, the stack of stepped vertical volumes is slightly warped, resulting in an irregular diamond-shaped tower form and floor plates.

“The shape of the building responds to the shape of the site. We think that diamond shape is pretty stunning and unique, and that really just responds to the kind of angle that we’re on on Kingsway,” he said.

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

From condos to rental housing to office space

The thoughtful design approach is complemented by the project’s well-considered, mixed-use strategy, incorporating a wide range of significant residential, commercial, entertainment, and community uses and public benefits.

The tower’s 16-level upper volume would contain strata market ownership condominium housing, the 19-level central volume would contain secured purpose-built market rental housing, and the 18-level lower volume (above the base podium) would contain inclusionary secured purpose-built rental housing, following the City of Burnaby’s inclusionary affordable housing requirements.

The bottom floor of each of these three volumes, where the floor plate steps, would be entirely dedicated to private residential amenity spaces tailored to the housing tenure of each respective volume. Each of these three amenity floors would also have an outdoor deck.

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

Approximately 500 homes would be built, with the housing tenure mix projected to entail 98 condominium units, 190 market rental units, and 214 below-market housing units. The unit size mix for the condominiums is 16 one-bedroom units, 30 one-bedroom units with a den, 29 two-bedroom units, 15 two-bedroom units with a den, and eight three-bedroom penthouse “Sky Suites” within the uppermost three levels below the observation deck. For the unit size mix of the overall rental housing component, it entails 55 studio units, 167 one-bedroom units, 71 one-bedroom units with a den, 74 two-bedroom units, and 37 two-bedroom units with a den.

Within the 13-storey base podium, there would be about 189,000 sq ft of office space across multiple levels. The office uses are primarily contained within the section of the base podium directly beneath the tower.

McCarthy shared that the office space component could see flexible uses, such as institutional space. He did not dismiss the possibility of potential hotel uses when asked.

First Nations art gallery, restaurants, bowling alley, indoor basketball court, and ample retail

The 11th floor would house the new McCarthy First Nations Art Gallery — a 15,000 sq ft indoor space dedicated to providing a permanent, publicly accessible home for the family’s extensive private collection of First Nations artwork.

Over decades, this collection has been personally curated by William McCarthy, the company’s namesake founder and president and the father of John McCarthy. The gallery, which also includes an outdoor exhibition space, will host regular educational sessions and artist-in-residence programs.

According to the family, they have the largest private First Nations art collection in Canada.

Additionally, the intent is to commission significant new Indigenous public art pieces for the building’s public spaces, with the project exceeding the municipal government’s minimum public art requirements.

As for the terraced section of the base podium, the upper levels include a 4,000 sq ft fitness gym strategically situated next to a full-sized, high-school regulation indoor basketball court spanning over 10,000 sq ft, with the mezzanine level in this two-storey court volume used as a looping running track. These fitness spaces and the basketball court are intended for the building’s residents, workers, and the community, with McCarthy envisioning hosting community events such as local high-school basketball tournaments.

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

Some of the building’s most diverse and active uses are found within the third level. In addition to the basketball court and a part of the fitness gym, the third level features a 5,000 sq ft restaurant (potentially a pizzeria) attached to a 9,000 sq ft bowling alley with seven lanes and a 2,500 sq ft childcare facility.

The first two levels across the entire complex would be dedicated for roughly 52,000 sq ft retail and restaurant uses, which serves to activate the building’s frontages with Kingsway, Nelson Avenue, Bennett Street, and the new north-south internal street of McCarthy Way and plaza spaces. This includes a 3,000 sq ft craft brewery/restaurant on the second level, various smaller retail spaces, and the two-storey anchor retail tenants of a 22,000 sq ft grocery store and a 26,000 sq ft “drug store.”

McCarthy told Daily Hive Urbanized that the intent is to bring London Drugs back to the site in the new building, although this has yet to be finalized.

They also hope to create a special “Sky Bar and Restaurant” experience within a yet-to-be-determined space, which would be on a high floor and include an outdoor patio.

Another key indoor space within the base podium would be a four-storey public atrium situated at the southwest corner of the new intersection of Kingsway and McCarthy Way. Elevators from the atrium would not only reach the building’s various commercial floors but also the 11th floor to access McCarthy First Nations Art Gallery.

A major public plaza

Regarding the building’s landscaped outdoor spaces on the lower rooftops, the six rooftops of the base podium’s terraced wing would be dedicated as private outdoor amenity spaces for office tenants and the childcare facility’s outdoor play space.

But there would also be substantial outdoor public spaces, including a south-facing main public plaza on an elevated deck above the underground parkade entrance — accessible by a pair of grand staircases from Nelson Street to the west and Bennett Street to the south.

This event-friendly plaza features landscaping — including an inviting garden-like space — and is activated by the frontages of the craft/brewery and cafe units on the second level. The plaza also serves as one of the main entrances into the building, directly leading to the second level of the atrium.

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

To serve the building’s significant transportation demand, there could be over 900 underground vehicle parking stalls.

McCarthy noted that they are designing the building’s parking supply based on actual demand projections, with the project not required to abide by the City of Burnaby’s minimum vehicle parking requirements as it falls within the provincial government’s legislated 800-metre transit-oriented area around SkyTrain’s Metrotown Station.

McCarthy Plaza is about a 15-minute walk from Metrotown Station to the southwest or Royal Oak Station to the southeast.

Altogether, this tower would contain about 855,000 sq ft of total building floor area.

Embracing the long game

Over two years ago, WPJ McCarthy and Company submitted an overall master plan concept to the municipal government for redeveloping the entirety of the 3.8-acre McCarthy Plaza city block — not just most of the western half of the block for this tower. The creation of a master plan was a request made by the City.

Over the very long term, perhaps even several decades from now, based on the preliminary master plan concept for the entire site, there could be two additional mixed-use towers for the full redevelopment buildout of McCarthy Plaza — a phase two tower immediately to the south of the first tower, replacing an existing seven-storey building where the company’s offices are located, and a phase three tower immediately to the east, replacing the remaining balance of low-rise retail and office buildings.

But both potential future towers in phase two and phase three would be smaller than the first phase tower now being proposed, with this initial tower project being the company’s overwhelming focus for not only this property but also their overall portfolio.

This long-term phased approach is due in part to accommodate existing commercial tenants on the site, including many tenants that have been around for over 40 years, with several operating at the site for the entire history of their business. They are trying as much as possible to incorporate existing businesses into the development and phasing plans.

Preliminary concept of McCarthy Plaza tower at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Dialog/WPJ McCarthy and Company)

Existing condition of McCarthy Plaza at 5000 Kingsway, Burnaby. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

Additionally, they are also pacing out the phases to account for market demand.

This long-term phasing aligns with Ivanhoe Cambridge’s long-term plan to redevelop the entirety of its Metropolis at Metrotown mall property. Currently, much of the critical mass of activity within the Metrotown district — officially designated by the municipal government as Burnaby’s downtown — is contained within Ivanhoe Cambridge’s 1.7 million sq ft indoor mall. Under the proposed master plan for redevelopment, the existing indoor mall would be largely left intact until 2054; the remaining phases of redeveloping the remaining mall parcels would occur after 2054, coinciding with the expiration of the leases of major anchor tenants.

Over the coming decades, the mall site could be transformed into a high-density mixed-use district for the core of the downtown area, with dozens of towers containing up to 12,000 homes and significant office and hotel uses. A new grid-based network of pedestrian-friendly public streets would be activated by significant retail and restaurant uses within the lower levels of the new buildings.

The first McCarthy Plaza tower would effectively serve as a seamless extension of the new porous urban fabric created by the future redevelopment of the 44-acre suburban-style mall, which currently begins with Concord Pacific’s redevelopment of the mall parcel previously owned by Sears.

This McCarthy Plaza tower would act as a visual gateway for Metrotown district from the east.

“I think that our whole business model has been [that] we believe in Burnaby, and we believe in Metrotown. And I think that served us pretty well,” McCarthy told Daily Hive Urbanized.

“Burnaby is going to continue to grow, and a lot of that growth is always going to be concentrated in Metrotown. We’re always going to be confident in Metrotown. We also think that the project we’re proposing is a unique offering, so we think and we hope that the market will respond to that as well.”

Proposals of the calibre, scope, and size of the McCarthy Plaza tower are typically found in places like the downtowns of Toronto, Chicago, Melbourne, Sydney, and Singapore, as well as Manhattan and Central London; there is nothing quite like it in this region, let alone in downtown Vancouver, to date.

mccarthy plaza 5000 kingsway burnaby metrotown concord construction 2

January 2025 construction progress of Sky Park tower of Concord Metrotown at Metropolis at Metrotown mall. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

concord metrotown burnaby phase one construction december 27 2024 f

January 2025 construction progress of Sky Park tower of Concord Metrotown at Metropolis at Metrotown mall. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

Embracing the long game is deeply ingrained in the mantra of this family-owned company.

Several generations of the family gradually formed the land assembly on the city block over decades. The oldest buildings date back to the 1950s — situated at the northwest corner of the block, within the footprint of the phase one tower. The other buildings on the block were built in the 1960s and 1970s.

Within the immediate area, WPJ McCarthy and Company owns the surface parking and Chevron gas station north of McCarthy Plaza, and the three-storey commercial building to the west that houses the last Uncle Willy’s Buffet restaurant location, which is on the fringes of the mall.

There is no set timeline for completing the first-phase tower, pending approval by the municipal government, as the review process is still in its early stages.

“I would start by saying that the architecture of the building is important to us. I think a word that we use quite often is that this is hopefully a ‘legacy’ project for us, and we’re not building it just to make money,” McCarthy told Daily Hive Urbanized during the interview.

“We want it to be a building that really serves the community well, a building that the public and the community is interacting with.”

The family is also deeply involved with BC Cancer Foundation, with McCarthy being a recent past chair of the board of directors, leading the organization’s fundraising campaign. Over the decades, they have also donated tens of millions of dollars directly toward the foundation, including a $5 million donation in 2024 toward BC Cancer’s new Burnaby McCarthy Centre at the Burnaby Hospital redevelopment.

Artistic rendering of the three towers of the first phase of Concord Metrotown, including the project’s tallest tower of Sky Park, located immediately adjacent to the McCarthy Plaza tower site. (Arcadis/Concord Pacific)

metropolis at metrotown mall redevelopment april 2024

April 2024 master plan concept for the Metropolis at Metrotown redevelopment: Full buildout of the entire mall redevelopment. (Ivanhoe Cambridge)

April 2024 master plan concept for the Metropolis at Metrotown redevelopment: Full completion of all phases after 2054. (Ivanhoe Cambridge)

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