Redevelopment of West 4th Avenue Safeway in Kitsilano approved | Daily Hive

Rental housing redevelopment of West 4th Avenue Safeway in Kitsilano approved

Concept for the redevelopment of Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership/LowTide Properties/PCI Developments)

The Development Permit Board (DPB) of the City of Vancouver has approved the redevelopment of the Safeway grocery store property within the West 4th Avenue retail strip, paving the way for a major mid-rise, mixed-use rental housing and retail complex in the core of Kitsilano.

Last month, the project for 2315 West 4th Avenue (also referred to as 2308 West 3rd Avenue) saw unanimous approval from City staff.

The 2.18-acre development site is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of Vine Street and West 4th Avenue, just beyond the westernmost border of the City’s Broadway Plan area.

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The project’s now-approved development permit application was not preceded by a rezoning application, as the proposal generally aligned with the prescriptions and stipulations of the City’s existing zoning and policies. This project is not to be confused for Kitsilano’s other Safeway grocery store on West Broadway (at Macdonald Street), which is also eyed for redevelopment.

2315 West 4th Avenue Vancouver Kitsilano Safeway redevelopment design

Site of the Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver, in relation to its walking distance to SkyTrain’s future Arbutus Station. (Google Maps)

Site of the Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

2315 west 4th avenue vancouver kitsilano safeway

Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

The West 4th Avenue Safeway redevelopment is spearheaded by a partnership between local developers PCI Developments and LowTide Properties. Records show the two properties that form the Safeway property changed hands in January 2024 in a combined deal worth $90 million. The development permit application was subsequently submitted in November 2024.

There will be 385 secured purpose-built market rental homes, with a unit size mix of 72 studios, 176 one-bedroom units, 103 two-bedroom units, and 24 three-bedroom units, plus 10 two-storey townhome units that front the building’s rear along West 3rd Avenue.

Also expect significantly expanded commercial retail uses on this site, including a new replacement 42,000 sq. ft. Safeway — considerably larger than the existing grocery store — along with over 18,000 sq. ft. of retail/restaurant space, divided into smaller commercial units, serving to activate and providing a seamless continuity of the West 4th Avenue retail strip.

Concept for the redevelopment of Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership/LowTide Properties/PCI Developments)

Ground-level floor plan and uses; concept for the redevelopment of Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership/LowTide Properties/PCI Developments)

Building uses from the perspective of the Vine Street frontage; concept for the redevelopment of Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership/LowTide Properties/PCI Developments)

A big difference for West 4th Avenue and Kitsilano

Currently, most of the site is used as a surface vehicle parking lot, and the 1968-built Safeway building is situated closer to the property’s rear fronting West 3rd Avenue.

“I think this is a really very significant project for West 4th Avenue and in fact for Kitsilano as a whole. It’s a large site, it’s somewhat underused, the current configuration of development is pretty suburban with the Safeway set back from the street with a sea of parking surrounding it that has kind of undermined the continuity of retail and the character of the street for a long time, I mean many decades,” said Matt Shillito, the City of Vancouver’s director of special projects, during the DPB meeting.

“It will expand and diversify the retail on West 4th… it also kind of anchors and extends the West 4th Avenue village concept established in the Broadway Plan.”

Existing condition:

Site of the Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

Concept for the redevelopment of Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership/LowTide Properties/PCI Developments)

This will be a horseshoe-shaped building with varying heights reaching up to nine storeys, with an internal landscaped courtyard on the rooftop of the grocery store serving as a shared outdoor amenity space for residents. This height is achieved by the City’s endorsed relaxation, enabling an increase of height from the permitted six storeys under existing policies to nine storeys to enable a portion of the development to retain mature trees.

Adjacent to the new Safeway entrance at the intersection corner will be a prominent three-dimensional public art installation on the building’s Vine Street facade, where a vintage Volkswagen microbus appears to be playfully embedded into the colourful mural wall — a big homage to Kitsilano’s hippie past.

Underground levels will provide 388 vehicle parking stalls, including 166 stalls for the building’s various commercial uses. The parkade entrance will be located at the northeast corner of the building, fronting Vine Street. There will also be over 500 secured bike parking spaces. The location is also a relatively short walking distance of about 12 minutes from SkyTrain’s future Arbutus Station and 99 B-Line exchange.

Existing condition:

Site of the Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

Concept for the redevelopment of Safeway at 2315 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver. (Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership/LowTide Properties/PCI Developments)

The total building floor area will reach 352,000 sq. ft., establishing a floor area ratio density of a floor area that is 3.7 times larger than the size of the lot. The project’s architectural design firm is Musson Cattell Mackey Partnership.

“The project looks amazing, quite honestly. It’s easy to make the relaxations to accommodate a project like this when it’s trying to do so many of the right things,” said Lon LaClaire, the general manager of engineering services for the City of Vancouver, during the meeting.

“I think that not only does it actually fits with the neighbourhood, I would say it goes further than that. It’s going to enhance the character of this neighbourhood and then, of course, deliver on all the functionality of the shops and the homes. So I’m very happy to support a project like this and excited to see it move forward to construction.”

In March 2025, Vancouver City Council approved the rezoning application for the redevelopment of the former Safeway site at 4545-4575 West 10th Avenue within the West Point Grey retail village. There will be buildings up to 21 storeys, containing 571 secured purpose-built rental homes and commercial retail uses, including a 35,000 sq. ft. new replacement grocery store.

This week in a public hearing, City Council will consider the rezoning application to pursue a high-density, mixed-use rental housing redevelopment of the Safeway next to SkyTrain’s Commercial-Broadway Station.