21 huge developments near SkyTrain shaping Metro Vancouver's future (RENDERINGS)

May 28 2019, 6:11 am

Much of Metro Vancouver’s future — where residents live, work, and play — will revolve around areas served by SkyTrain stations, where the region is already experiencing its greatest urban transformation projects.

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Buoyed by municipal and regional policies that encourage dense developments around SkyTrain stations, also known as transit-oriented developments, tens of thousands of new homes and millions of sq. ft. of new commercial spaces will be oriented around the region’s rail rapid transit system.

A recent report by commercial real estate firm Avison Young calls these developments, many the size of neighbourhoods and on shopping centre sites, the region’s new urban enclaves.

“With land at a premium, traditional regional shopping centres — most having been built in the car-centric 1960s with expansive parking lots and later connected to regional public transit systems — were identified as unrealized sources of developable land,” reads the report.

“While traditional metrics of valuing shopping centres were based on traffic and sales per square foot, the value of the land — and its potential for redevelopment — rose to prominence in developers’ estimation of its value, particularly in land-constrained markets such as Metro Vancouver.”

Oakridge-41st Avenue Station Vancouver Oakridge Centre

Artistic rendering of the late-2018 design of the Canada Line’s new Oakridge-41st Avenue Station entrance plaza. (Oakridge Centre project team)

The economics of these large-scale types of developments, planned over decades and built over many years, have only become better understood by the local development industry since 2013.

Moreover, public opposition to high-density projects along transit corridors has been relatively limited, compared to the “ferocious” outcry received by infill proposals within low-density residential neighbourhoods.

In accordance to the Metro Vancouver: 2040 Shaping Our Future plan, approved in 2011 and a revision of a similar 1996-approved plan, many of these shopping centres within areas near SkyTrain stations are already designated as regional centres or town centres — commercial nodes and high-growth zones — by Metro Vancouver Regional District and municipal governments.

Over the coming 20 years, the region’s population is expected to climb from 2.57 million today to 3.4 million people by 2041, with the number of jobs growing from 1.34 million to 1.75 million over the same period. A more recent longer term projection forecasts a regional population of up to 4.6 million — larger than the Montreal region’s current population — and 2.1 million jobs by 2050, based on a higher growth scenario.

Metro Vancouver Land Use

The most updated Regional Land Use Designations in Metro Vancouver. (Metro Vancouver Regional District)

By focusing a large share of the region’s population and employment growth and new major urban public spaces, community facilities, and cultural amenities around areas well-served by public transit, a far greater proportion of the population will be significantly more likely to get around by walking and riding public transit, effectively reducing the use of private automobiles by way of positive reinforcement.

To date, much of this pattern of growth has been centred within the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby, but increasingly developers and investors are turning to SkyTrain areas across the region.

And the largest of these neighbourhood-scale redevelopments — specifically Brentwood Town Centre, Lougheed Town Centre, Metrotown, and Oakridge Centre — will act as a catalyst for development activity in the surrounding areas and greatly increase the population density around these new urban enclaves.

Dense transit-oriented developments are also expected to sprout around future SkyTrain extensions along Vancouver’s Broadway Corridor and Surrey and Langley’s Fraser Highway Corridor.

Here is a non-exhaustive list of 21 of the largest transit-oriented developments within close proximity to SkyTrain stations:

Oakridge Town Centre (Vancouver)

The redevelopment of the Oakridge Centre mall will serve as the pinnacle of the new density being introduced into Vancouver’s Cambie Corridor.

A 2018-approved master plan for the area framed by 16th Avenue to the north, Ontario Street to the east, Oak Street to the west, and the Fraser River to the south will create 32,000 new homes for approximately 50,000 residents over the coming decades, with the greatest densities located around the four Canada Line stations serving the area.

Major neighbourhood-size redevelopments entail not only Oakridge Centre, but also Pearson Dogwood, Langara Gardens, the old Vancouver Transit Centre, and the old RCMP headquarters on the Heather Street Lands.

Just beyond the station nodes, the Cambie Corridor Plan calls for an outward transition of mid-rise buildings, low-rise buildings, and townhouses.

Heather Street Lands Vancouver

The future Cambie Street Corridor skyline from West 33rd Avenue to Marine Drive. (Canada Lands Company)

Oakridge: The Living City

  • Site: 29-acre redevelopment of Oakridge Centre
  • SkyTrain access: Oakridge-41st Avenue Station
  • Developer: Westbank
  • Lead architect: Henriquez Partners Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 9
  • Number of new homes: 2,600 units
  • Office space: 430,000 sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 1 million sq. ft.
Oakridge Centre Vancouver Westbank

Artistic rendering of the Oakridge Centre redevelopment, February 2019. (Oakridge Centre project team)

Langara Gardens

  • Site: 21-acre infill development of Langara Gardens, located on the northwest corner of the intersection of Cambie Street and West 57th Avenue
  • SkyTrain access: Langara-49th Avenue Station (and a possible future 57th Avenue Station)
  • Developer: Concert Properties
  • Lead architect: James Cheng Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 7
  • Number of new homes: 2,100 units
Langara Gardens Vancouver

Preliminary conceptual artistic rendering of Langara Gardens. (James Cheng Architects / Peterson Group / Concert Properties)

Pearson Dogwood

  • Site: 25-acre redevelopment of Vancouver Coastal Health’s former Pearson Dogwood property
  • SkyTrain access: Langara-49th Avenue Station and Marine Drive Station (and a possible future 57th Avenue Station)
  • Developer: ONNI Group
  • Lead architect: IBI Group
  • Number of new homes: 2,800 units

Conceptual rendering of the Pearson Dogwood redevelopment just south of Marine Gardens. (ONNI Group)

Langara Gardens Pearson Dogwood

Future neighbourhood map showing the Langara Gardens redevelopment (top) and Pearson Dogwood redevelopment (bottom). (City of Vancouver)

Metrotown District (Burnaby)

The recent renovations and capacity upgrades to Metrotown Station provide an indication of the scale of the massive changes Burnaby’s Metrotown Station is expected to see.

Over the long-term, the municipal government’s 2017-approved Metrotown Downtown Plan even envisions the complete demolition and redevelopment of the existing Metropolis at Metrotown indoor mall into a new mixed-use neighbourhood with the street network extended onto the site.

Lower-density areas around the mall have also seen significant new residential tower developments.

Approved master plan for the Metrotown area in Burnaby. (City of Burnaby)

Station Square

  • Site: Redevelopment of the 12-acre Station Square site immediately west of Metropolis at Metrotown
  • SkyTrain access: Metrotown Station
  • Developer: Anthem Properties and Beedie Living
  • Lead architect: Chris Dikeakos Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 5
  • Number of new homes: 1,800 units
  • Office and retail space: 450,000 sq. ft.
Station Square

Artistic rendering of the Station Square redevelopment, next to Metropolis at Metrotown, in Burnaby. (Anthem Properties / Beedie Living)

Concord Metrotown

  • Site: Northeast corner of the Metropolis at Metrotown shopping mall property, on a nine-acre parcel fronting Kingsway that is currently mainly used as parking
  • SkyTrain access: Metrotown Station
  • Developer: Concord
  • Lead architect: IBI Group
  • Number of residential towers: 7
  • Number of new homes: 1,310 units (Phase 1)

Artistic rendering of the proposed Sears Metrotown redevelopment. (IBI Group / Concord Pacific)

Brentwood Town Centre (Burnaby)

The redevelopment of Brentwood Town Centre shopping mall into The Amazing Brentwood, complete with residential towers and a significant new and refreshed infusion of retail, will “set the tone for Burnaby development in the coming years.”

The first phase of the shopping centre is scheduled for an opening in the fall of 2019, while the second phase is slated to be completed in 2021.

Artistic rendering of the potential developments within the wider Brentwood Town Centre area beyond The Amazing Brentwood. (SHAPE Properties)

Burnaby’s Brentwood area will also be the location of Metro Vancouver’s new tallest building: a 700-ft-tall residential tower within the Gilmore Place redevelopment will take the title from the region’s current tallest — the 660-ft-tall Shangri-La Hotel in downtown Vancouver.

A proposed 37-storey office tower at Gilmore Place with nearly 700,000 sq. ft. of commercial floor area will also be one of the region’s largest upcoming office developments.

The Amazing Brentwood

  • Site: 26-acre redevelopment of Brentwood Town Centre shopping mall
  • SkyTrain access: Brentwood Town Centre Station
  • Developer: Shape Properties
  • Lead architect: James KM Cheng Architects and Stantec Architecture
  • Number of residential towers: 11
  • Number of new homes: 6,000 units
  • Office space: 1 million sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 1.1 million sq. ft.

Artistic rendering of The Amazing Brentwood. (SHAPE Properties)

SOLO District

  • Site: 6-acre site located immediately southwest from The Amazing Brentwood
  • SkyTrain access: Brentwood Town Centre Station
  • Developer: Appia Developments
  • Lead architect: Chris Dikeakos Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 3
  • Number of new homes: 920 units
  • Office space: 230,000 sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 80,000 sq. ft.
SOLO District Burnaby

Artistic rendering of SOLO District in Burnaby. (Appia Developments)

Concord Brentwood

  • Site: 26-acre redevelopment located southeast of The Amazing Brentwood
  • SkyTrain access: Brentwood Town Centre Station and Holdom Station
  • Developer: Concord
  • Lead architect: James KM Cheng Architects and Francl Architecture
  • Number of residential towers: 11
  • Number of new homes: 2,610 units
Concord Brentwood Burnaby

Artistic rendering of Concord Brentwood in Burnaby. (Concord)

Gilmore Place

  • Site: 12-acre redevelopment surrounding Gilmore Station
  • SkyTrain access: Gilmore Station
  • Developer: Onni Group
  • Lead architect: IBI Group
  • Number of residential towers: 7
  • Number of new homes: 3,500 units
  • Office space: 1 million sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 450,000 sq. ft.
Gilmore Place Onni Group

Artistic rendering of the first phase of Gilmore Place. (Onni Group)

Gilmore Place Onni Group

Artistic rendering of the first phase of Gilmore Place. (Onni Group)

Lougheed Town Centre and Burquitlam (Burnaby)

The redevelopment of Lougheed Town Centre shopping mall into the City of Lougheed, with new residences and an expansion of retail and office, will be an immense catalyst for new development in the area and along the North Road corridor between Lougheed Town Centre Station and Burquitlam Station.

The City of Lougheed’s first phase alone will entail 119,000 sq. ft. of new retail space by 2022 and 1,570 new homes by 2023.

Lougheed Town Centre Core Area Master Plan

Lougheed Town Centre Core Area Master Plan. (City of Burnaby)

Just west of the mall site, there is a proposal to add two towers with over 1,000 rental homes to the Lougheed Village rental housing complex.

And up North Road around Burquitlam Station, Concert Properties’ eight-tower residential redevelopment — including a 50-storey tower — accounts for roughly half of the total number of towers planned or already underway for the area around the SkyTrain station.

The City of Lougheed

  • Site: 37-acre redevelopment of Lougheed Town Centre shopping mall
  • SkyTrain access: Lougheed Town Centre Station
  • Developer: Shape Properties
  • Lead architect: James Cheng Architects and GBL Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 20
  • Number of new homes: 10,000 units
  • Office space: 1 million sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 1.3 million sq. ft.
City of Lougheed Burnaby

Artistic rendering of the first phase of the City of Lougheed. (Shape Properties)

City of Lougheed Burnaby

Artistic rendering of the City of Lougheed’s transit plaza area. (Shape Properties)

SOCO

  • Site: 6-acre redevelopment at the northeast corner of the intersection of North Road and Delestre Avenue
  • SkyTrain access: Lougheed Town Centre Station
  • Developer: Anthem Properties
  • Lead architect: IBI Group
  • Number of residential towers: 5
  • Number of new homes: 1,390 units
SOCO 319 North Road Coquitlam

Artistic rendering of the first phase of SOCO at 319 North Road, Coquitlam. (IBI Group Architects / Anthem Properties)

Concert Properties-YMCA Burquitlam

  • Site: Two sites along the North Road corridor
  • SkyTrain access: Burquitlam Station
  • Developer: Concert Properties
  • Lead architect: Endall Elliott and Raymond Letkeman Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 8
  • Number of new homes: 2,700 units

Artistic rendering showing both parcels – Burquitlam Park (right) and Whitgift Gardens (left) – of Concert Properties’ redevelopment in Burquitlam. (Concert Properties)

Edmonds (Burnaby)

A single redevelopment by Ledingham McAllister will completely transform the Edmonds area, which has been one of the quietest in Burnaby in terms of development activity in recent years.

Southgate City

  • Site: 51-acre redevelopment of the former Safeway distribution and dairy plant
  • SkyTrain access: Edmonds Station
  • Developer: Ledingham McAllister
  • Lead architect: IBI Group
  • Number of residential towers: 20
  • Number of new homes: 6,400 units
  • Office and retail space: 200,000 sq. ft.

Artistic rendering of Southgate City in Burnaby. (Ledingham McAllister)

Richmond City Centre (Richmond)

Following the completion of the Canada Line a decade ago, transit-oriented developments have sprouted outwards in all directions from the stations along No. 3 Road, including redevelopments of underutilized sites at CF Richmond Centre and a planned massive redevelopment of Lansdowne Centre.

Construction will begin on the CF Richmond Centre redevelopment this year for completion in 2026, and the existing Lansdowne Centre mall will remain fully open until 2025.

This is in addition to a number of smaller, multi-tower projects on other sites near Richmond-Brighouse Station and Lansdowne Station.

Further up the No. 3 Road Corridor, in the area around the intersection of No. 3 Road and Capstan Way, various developers — including Concord, Pinnacle Living, Polygon Homes, and Yuanheng Holdings — are creating new developments that will house up to 16,000 residents upon full completion.

Canada Line Capstan Station

Artistic rendering depicting the location of the Canada Line’s new Capstan Way Station near the intersection of Capstan Way and No. 3 Road. This rendering depicts the general form and location of the station, not the actual design. (GBL Architects)

Developers in the Capstan Village area have also provided the City of Richmond and TransLink $32 million to date to build a new Canada Line station at Capstan Way to serve the new residential density.

And further north, just east of Bridgeport Station on the Fraser River waterfront, long-term plans call for the $4-billion development of a vacant 22-acre site (including the site of the Richmond Night Market) into an entertainment district for Richmond, including six high-end hotels, 1.1 million sq. ft. of office space, a large international shopping centre, nightclubs, bars, clubs, theatres, 450,000 sq. ft. convention centre, and 300-slip boat marina.

Artistic rendering of the redevelopment of the Richmond Night Market. (GEC / Joyce International Properties composite)

Artistic rendering of the International Trade Centre buildings and the surrounding planned redevelopment. (International Trade Centre)

Live at CF Richmond Centre

  • Site: Infill development of the parking spaces of the 27-acre CF Richmond Centre shopping mall
  • SkyTrain access: Richmond-Brighouse Station
  • Developer: Cadillac Fairview and Shape Properties
  • Lead architect: GBL Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 12
  • Number of new homes: 2,000 units
  • Retail space: 420,000 sq. ft.
CF Richmond Centre

2019 artistic rendering of the CF Richmond Centre redevelopment. (Cadillac Fairview / Shape Properties)

The Paramount

  • Site: 3.2-acre property immediately southeast of Richmond-Brighouse Station
  • SkyTrain access: Richmond-Brighouse Station
  • Developer: Keltic (Brighouse) Development Ltd.
  • Lead architect: GBL Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 3
  • Number of new homes: 563 units
  • Office space: 104,000 sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 30,000 sq. ft.
The Paramount Richmond

Artistic rendering of The Paramount at 6340 No. 3 Road, Richmond. (GBL Architects)

Lansdowne Centre

  • Site: 50-acre redevelopment of Lansdowne Centre shopping mall
  • SkyTrain access: Lansdowne Station
  • Developer: Vanprop Investments Ltd. (property owner)
  • Lead architect: DIALOG Architecture
  • Number of residential towers: 22
  • Number of new homes: 4,000 units
  • Retail space: 276,000 sq. ft.
Lansdowne District at Lansdowne Centre

Artistic rendering of Lansdowne District, the redevelopment of Lansdowne Mall, in Richmond. (Vanprop Investments Ltd.)

Lansdowne Centre Lansdowne District

Artistic rendering of the new community centre next to the Canada Line’s Lansdowne Station as part of the Lansdowne District redevelopment. (Vanprop Investments Ltd.)

Atmosphere

  • Site: 5-acre property at the southwest corner of No. 3 Road and Alderbridge Way
  • SkyTrain access: Lansdowne Station
  • Developer: South Street Development Group
  • Lead architect: GBL Architects
  • Number of new homes: 670 units
  • Office space: 65,000 sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 71,000 sq. ft.
Atmosphere Richmond

Artistic rendering of the Atmosphere redevelopment at 5333 & 5411 No. 3 Road and 7960 Alderbridge Way in Richmond. (GBL Architects)

Atmosphere Richmond

Artistic rendering of the Atmosphere redevelopment at 5333 & 5411 No. 3 Road and 7960 Alderbridge Way in Richmond. (GBL Architects)

Surrey City Centre (Surrey)

Currently, Surrey City Centre’s largest development underway is the King George Hub at The Stations — located next to King George Station, on a former parking lot.

A 510,000 sq. ft. office tower addition is planned for Central City shopping mall, which could be redeveloped into towers with a new street grid over the longer term.

Central City Surrey

Future redevelopments on the Central City property. (Blackwood Partners)

But overall development patterns for the future remain unclear following the cancellation of the Surrey Newton-Guildford LRT, which largely serves the emerging city centre area, in favour of a SkyTrain extension along the Fraser Highway from King George Station to Langley Centre.

King George Hub at The Stations

  • Site: 9-acre site immediately adjacent to King George Station
  • SkyTrain access: King George Station
  • Developer: PCI Group
  • Lead architect: MCM Partnership
  • Number of new homes: 1,100 units
  • Office space: 320,000 sq. ft.
  • Retail space: 134,000 sq. ft.
King George Hub Surrey

Artistic rendering of King George Hub at The Stations redevelopment, located next to SkyTrain’s King George Station. (PCI Group)

Georgetown

  • Site: 10-acre site east of Surrey Central Station
  • SkyTrain access: Surrey City Centre Station
  • Developer: Anthem Properties
  • Lead architect: Chris Dikeakos Architects
  • Number of residential towers: 7
  • Number of new homes: 11,000
  • Office and retail space: 180,000 sq. ft.

Georgetown in Surrey. (Anthem Properties)

Park George

  • Site: Located adjacent to King George Station
  • SkyTrain access: King George Station
  • Developer: Concord
  • Lead architect: DYS Architecture
  • Number of residential towers: 2
  • Number of new homes: 676 units
Concord Pacific Park George Surrey

Amenities at the future Park George residential complex in Surrey. (Concord Pacific)

Coquitlam

Morguard Investments and Pension Fund Realty have long-term plans to redevelop the sprawling 60-acre Coquitlam Centre shopping mall property.

This redevelopment is still in the early planning stages, but preliminary plans call for tall residential towers, office space, street front retail, and an entertainment district that could include nightclubs, movie theatres, and live entertainment venues. A 16-acre parcel on the northeast corner of the property — next to Lincoln Station — would be the redevelopment’s first phase.

The Coquitlam Centre redevelopment is deemed to be the core of the City of Coquitlam’s emerging downtown area — a catalyst of the recent Millennium Line Evergreen extension.

Coquitlam Centre redevelopment

Artistic rendering of the Coquitlam Centre redevelopment. (Morguard Investments)

Coquitlam Centre redevelopment

Artistic rendering of the Coquitlam Centre redevelopment. (Morguard Investments)

Coquitlam Centre redevelopment

Artistic rendering of the Coquitlam Centre redevelopment. (Morguard Investments)

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