Western Canada's tallest tower approved for Lougheed SkyTrain

Western Canada's tallest tower approved for Lougheed Town Centre SkyTrain station in Burnaby

2022 concept artistic rendering of Pinnacle Lougheed at 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Place, Burnaby, with the first phase highlighted. (JYOM Architecture/Pinnacle International Development)

The proposal to build two groves of new high-rise towers next to SkyTrain Lougheed Town Centre Station in Burnaby has received the green light.

The final approval was granted by Burnaby City Council in late September 2024, providing local developer Pinnacle International with the ability to build five towers across two separate sites next to the transit hub where the Millennium Line and Expo Line meet.

The most significant of these sites is the “Pinnacle Lougheed” project at 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Place, which is a 6.2-acre land assembly immediately northeast of the SkyTrain station and bus exchange — replacing surface vehicle parking lots and the former Sears Outlet Store building (currently used by Shape Properties for the City of Lougheed’s condominium sales centre).

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The Pinnacle Lougheed site’s first phase entails two towers, including an 850-foot-tall tower with 80 storeys that will become the tallest building in Canada west of Toronto. The second tower of Pinnacle Lougheed’s first phase will reach 782 feet with 73 storeys, making it Metro Vancouver’s second tallest building.

Both towers will have a height above Metro Vancouver’s existing tallest building of the 708-foot-tall Two Gilmore Place — also located in Burnaby, next to SkyTrain Gilmore Station in the Brentwood district — and the 659-foot-tall Living Shangri-La in downtown Vancouver. They will also be taller than Concord Pacific’s 720-foot-tall Sky Park tower in Burnaby’s Metrotown district, which is expected to reach completion in 2025.

Within Western Canada, the tallest tower will exceed the height of the 823-foot-tall Stantec Tower in Edmonton and the 810-foot-tall Brookfield Place East in Calgary.

9850 Austin Road 9858-9898 Gatineau Place Burnaby Pinnacle Lougheed 2022

The development site and three phases of Pinnacle Lougheed at 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Place, Burnaby. (JYOM Architecture/Pinnacle International Development)

Pinnacle Lougheed site next to SkyTrain Lougheed Town Centre Station. (Google Maps)

Both towers in this first phase are physically attached to each other, with dozens of condominium floors sitting above a shared 13-storey office and retail podium.

The first phase of Pinnacle Lougheed will have a total of 1,466 strata market condominium homes, including 788 units within the tallest tower and 678 units within the second tallest tower. The unit size mix is 524 one-bedroom units, 199 two-bedroom units, and 65 three-bedroom units for the tallest tower, and 438 one-bedroom units, 188 two-bedroom units, and 52 three-bedroom units for the second tallest tower. No studio units are planned.

There will be 515,000 sq ft of office space and 13,000 sq ft of retail/restaurant space within the podium below the residential levels.

Last year, during City Council’s earlier review process, this project drew some new attention for not only its tall heights but also its plan to include up to 14 underground levels of vehicle parking. However, the provided vehicle parking supply has since been reduced.

This first phase will have a total building floor area of nearly 1.9 million sq ft, establishing a floor area ratio (FAR) density of a floor area that is 22.3 times larger than the size of the land it sits on.

2022 concept uses of Pinnacle Lougheed at 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Place, Burnaby, with the first phase highlighted. (JYOM Architecture/Pinnacle International Development)

2022 concept artistic rendering of Pinnacle Lougheed at 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Place, Burnaby. (JYOM Architecture/Pinnacle International Development)

Originally, Pinnacle International had proposed building three towers on the Pinnacle Lougheed site, but due to technical siting and land ownership issues, they are pursuing four towers. The remaining two towers — including one tower roughly half the height of the tallest tower — will be pursued in a future application for the second and third phases of Pinnacle Lougheed.

The approved first phase sits on a parcel that is occupied by the former Sears building, while the future second and third phase parcels are immediately to the west and south, respectively. The future phases could entail a mix of condominium, hotel, and retail/restaurant uses.

The project will also establish major public realm and accessibility improvements, including improved pedestrian connections to reach the transit hub.

9850 Austin Road 9858-9898 Gatineau Place Burnaby SkyTrain Lougheed Town Centre

2022 revised concept for 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Road in Burnaby, next to SkyTrain Lougheed Town Centre Station. The redevelopment now has four towers across three phases. (Pinnacle International Development)

As for the remaining three towers now approved by City Council, these are located within the separate 3.4-acre “Pinnacle Carrigan” site located just west of Lougheed Town Centre Station at 3846 Carrigan Court.

The municipal government has provided the developer with an exception to fulfill Pinnacle Lougheed’s 20% inclusionary rental housing requirement (in exchange for the significant strata market condominium housing component) on a nearby separate site, as there would otherwise be challenges with achieving even more density on the main development site.

Therefore, the Pinnacle Carrigan site — currently occupied by 1970-built structures reaching up to seven storeys with a total of 141 rental homes — will be redeveloped into three towers reaching 33 storeys, 25 storeys, and 23 storeys.

3846 carrigan court 9850 austin road 9858 9898 gatineau place burnaby

Walking distance between the Pinnacle Carrigan site (left; 3846 Carrigan Court) and the Pinnacle Lougheed site (right; 9850 Austin Road and 9858-9898 Gatineau Place). (Google Maps)

Pinnacle Carrigan site. (Google Maps)

Pinnacle Carrigan will produce 900 homes, including 405 inclusionary rental units at below-market rents, 141 below-market rental units to replace the existing 1970-built apartments, and 354 condominium units. All of the rental homes will be built in the first phase of Pinnacle Carrigan.

All three towers of Pinnacle Carrigan will generate a combined FAR density of 5.0, not including the underground levels containing nearly 800 vehicle parking stalls.

If fully realized, both the Pinnacle Lougheed and Pinnacle Carrigan sites will generate over 3,700 homes, including the future second and third phases of Pinnacle Lougheed.

JYOM Architecture is the design firm for Pinnacle Lougheed, while Bingham & Hill Architects is leading the design work for Pinnacle Carrigan.

Concept for the Pinnacle Carrigan site at 3846 Carrigan Court, Burnaby. (Bingham & Hill Architects/Pinnacle International)

3846 carrigan court burnaby lougheed pinnacle

Concept for the Pinnacle Carrigan site at 3846 Carrigan Court, Burnaby. (Bingham & Hill Architects/Pinnacle International)

Concept for the Pinnacle Carrigan site at 3846 Carrigan Court, Burnaby. (Bingham & Hill Architects/Pinnacle International)

Proposed redevelopment concept for 3846 Carrigan Court in Burnaby near SkyTrain Lougheed Town Centre Station. (Bingham & Hill Architects/Pinnacle International Development)

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