Even more homes: 2,800 units eyed near SkyTrain station in Coquitlam

Even more homes: 2,800 units in nine towers eyed near SkyTrain station in Coquitlam (RENDERINGS)

November 2022 artistic rendering of the revised design for Polygon Homes' Coronation Heights project in Coquitlam, with Wesgroup Properties' separate Coronation Park project in Port Moody also depicted. (Polygon Homes)

The Coronation Heights proposal by Polygon Homes to redevelop the former Coronation Park Elementary School site in Coquitlam is now even bigger.

Revisions to the high-density, mixed-use development design recently unveiled by the developer outline an expanded project, with the developer acquiring two additional single-family lots at the southwest corner of the development site — growing the development footprint from 10 acres to 11.3 acres.

The site’s western border is also the municipal border for Port Moody and Coquitlam, and its southwest corner is about a seven-minute walk from SkyTrain Inlet Centre within Port Moody.

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As the result of the minor additional property acquisitions, Polygon Homes has added an additional tower for a total of nine towers between 29 storeys and 47 storeys in height.

The revised plan calls for 2,834 homes — up from the previous 2021 plan for 2,558 homes.

This includes 1,702 condominium homes, representing a reduction from the previous figure of 1,968 condominium homes.

coronation heights coquitlam polygon homes november 2022

November 2022 artistic rendering of the revised design for Polygon Homes’ Coronation Heights project in Coquitlam, with Wesgroup Properties’ separate Coronation Park project in Port Moody also depicted. (Polygon Homes)

The number of rental homes has been increased from 590 units in the previous proposal to 784 units in the new proposal, with about 27% set aside as below-market units — representing the doubling of below-market units. The project’s rental housing component will be contained within three standalone rental towers.

The redevelopment’s floor area ratio (FAR) density has grown from 5.22 times larger than the size of the lot in the previous design to 5.53 FAR in the latest design.

Altogether, upon full buildout of the six phases, this project will be home to up to over 5,600 residents — up from the previous total of about 5,100 residents.

Additionally, there will also be a minor retail/restaurant/cafe component of 3,600 sq ft, and a standalone 27,000 sq ft amenity building for residents.

Two childcare facilities will have a combined floor area of 10,500 sq ft for a capacity of up to 79 kids. This is up from the previous proposal’s 6,000 sq ft of childcare floor area for up to 37 kids.

November 2022 layout of the revised design for Polygon Homes’ Coronation Heights project in Coquitlam. (Polygon Homes)

November 2022 artistic rendering of the revised design for Polygon Homes’ Coronation Heights project in Coquitlam. (Polygon Homes)

The proponents have retained the major public space component of a one-acre public park at the northwest corner of the former school site. This is in addition to about three acres of publically accessible open space and pedestrian pathways across the property.

If this rezoning is approved, it is estimated the City of Coquitlam would gain $140 million in public benefits, including density bonus payments, development cost charges, and voluntary community amenity contributions (CACs).

Coronation Park Elementary School first opened at 135 Balmoral Drive in 1963, and closed in 2007 due to its poor condition, with student enrolment growth redirected to other nearby schools. In 2016, Coquitlam’s school board approved the $25-million sale of the unused school site to Polygon, with the proceeds directed towards funding renovations on other schools.

Polygon’s form of development and density is permitted under Coquitlam’s recently approved City Centre Area Plan (CCAP), which prioritizes the intensification of transit-oriented development. CCAP also calls for the future construction of an additional SkyTrain station at Falcon Drive, next to the SkyTrain operations and maintenance in the area — about a five-minute walk east from the southeast corner of the Polygon development site.

November 2022 layout and phasing plan for the revised design of Polygon Homes’ Coronation Heights project in Coquitlam. (Polygon Homes)

November 2022 artistic rendering of the revised design for Polygon Homes’ Coronation Heights project in Coquitlam. (Polygon Homes)

Immediately to the west of the Polygon’s Coronation Heights site is Wesgroup Properties’ separate 14.8-acre land assembly property for a redevelopment called Coronation Park, within Port Moody.

In April 2022, the previous makeup of Port Moody City Council approved the amendments for the official community plan for Wesgroup Properties’ proposal, which has since progressed to the rezoning application.

Despite being significantly closer to SkyTrain Inlet Centre Station, Port Moody is permitting less density and significantly lower tower heights for the Wesgroup project than the Polygon project further away just across the municipal border in Coquitlam.

The Wesgroup project will have six towers between 26 storeys and 31 storeys, plus various mid-rise buildings, all containing a combined total of 2,655 new homes — including 2,560 condominium homes and 105 market rental homes. Upon full buildout, based on the latest revised design, Wesgroup’s Coronation Park would be home to between 4,800 and 5,860 residents, and host about 1,000 on-site jobs within 77,000 sq ft of retail/restaurant space, including a major grocery store, 29,500 sq ft of office space, and a 9,500 sq ft childcare facility.

This separate project by Wesgroup would have a total floor area density of 3.48 FAR, along with 2.5 acres of new public parks and 1.5 acres of publicly accessible open spaces.

The combined residential populations of the Coronation Heights and Coronation Park redevelopments could reach up to about 11,000 people. This would likely provide Inlet Centre Station with a major ridership boost, which is SkyTrain’s 50th busiest station out of 53 stations across the entire network.

In 2019, Inlet Centre Station recorded 694,000 boardings over the course of the year, with averages of 2,210 boardings per weekday, 1,530 boardings per Saturday, and 1,010 boardings per Sunday/holiday.

coronation park wesgroup port moody april 2022

April 2022 artistic rendering of the revised design for Wesgroup Properties’ Coronation Park redevelopment in Port Moody. (Boniface Oleksiuk Politano Architects/Wesgroup Properties)

coronation park port moody wesgroup 2022

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

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