Thursday, July 26, 2012

Solo sells out in 2 days

Solo District's phase 1 residential tower, Stratus has sold out its first 200 available units in the first 2 days.  Its location across the street from Brentwood Station and Mall makes Solo District a sought-after place to live regardless of the prevailing view that housing in Metro Vancouver is cooling.  It also doesn't hurt that the Bosa quality is behind the development by APPIA.

Burnaby NewsLeader article

Solo sells out first 200 condos in two days

The first 200 condo units in Appia Developments' Solo District sold out in two days despite media reports of a cooling real estate market.
When completed in early 2015, the first residential tower, the 45-storey Stratus, will include almost 400 homes at the corner of Lougheed and Rosser Avenue. Additional units will be released for sale in the fall, with the date and numbers still to be determined.
Before sales opened on July 21, previews of the sales centre attracted thousands of people who waited up to two hours to see the show suites.
"We quickly realized that community demand was there and that people wanted to start buying," says Jim Bosa, president of Appia Developments, in a press release. "We decided to release a few homes as an introductory release and we've had an excellent response. We've sold out our first release and we're also oversubscribed for the next round."
Prices started at $229,900 for a junior one-bedroom, $289,900 for a one-bedroom,  $389,900 for a two-bedroom and $589,900 for a junior one-bedroom.
"Our first Solo District buyer on Saturday morning was a first-time homebuyer in her late 20s who had grown up in the area," Bosa said. "Like many other buyers she knew the area well, saw the potential in the community and wanted to be a part of it."
The overall Solo project will comprise four towers ranging from 38 to 55 storeys, and totalling about 1,400 homes at the southwest corner of Lougheed Highway and Willingdon Avenue. It will also be home to more than 100,000 square feet of retail space, including Burnaby's first Whole Foods store, and 40,000 square feet of office space. It's located kitty-corner from Brentwood Town Centre and Brentwood SkyTrain station.
wchow@burnabynewsleader.com

No Frills Brentwood?

This is pure speculation, but the decision by Loblaw to decide not to open a No Frills grocery store in Greystone Plaza might have to do with Loblaw's desire to open a No Frills in the Brentwood Village District.


No No Frills to North Burnaby

Loblaw isn't bringing No Frills to North Burnaby after all.
Instead, it is opening a SuperValu in late fall of 2012, according to a Loblaw spokesperson. "We have a franchisee in place and we are finalizing the layout and ordering equipment."
The store will be in the Greystone Plaza shopping complex on Burnwood Drive, formerly the site of a Marketplace IGA which closed last November.
While Loblaw had earlier stated it was opening a No Frills, the plans changed "due to a change in the strategy of the business," the company said.

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Project ads kicking into high gear

Competing projects in the area appear to be kicking into high gear as concerns about a housing slump increase.  Aviara and Solo District have both had their projects written about in Vancouver Sun and Marketwire "articles" recently as they try to lock up buyers before the projects get underway.  It makes sense for the the 2 projects to aggressively market themselves considering the prevailing view that the housing market is cooling down and that the nearby Brentwood Mall Redevelopment is expected to begin Phase 1 next year, adding to the stock of condos on the market.


Aviara offers perfect perch in burnaby’s Brentwood

 

Ledingham McAllister’s tower stands out due to sweeping curves and calming water features; and it’s near handy to all amenities

 

With its sweeping, sensual curves, flowing façade, and welcoming water features, Ledingham-McAllister’s Aviara is on the forefront of contemporary modern architecture. This boldly inspired exterior evokes the soaring vistas that Aviara residents will enjoy from their perch in the epicentre of Brentwood – Burnaby’s emerging modern community based on convenient ease of access to a supply of shops, services, parks, and trails that will be unparalleled in the Lower Mainland in the decades to follow.
Elva Kim, Director, Sales and Marketing for Ledingham McAllister Properties Ltd., says: “We have built 20 communities across Burnaby. We are connected to Burnaby more than any other developer out there – it is a part of who we are as a community homebuilder. Every home we’ve built has been an extension of how we focus our efforts in making things better for the homeowner and the specific community of Burnaby that we are in.”
Kim continues: “We find Brentwood the most attractive place in Metro Vancouver to invest because it’s affordable and within close proximity to Vancouver, which makes it a stable environment to develop in. We have loved Brentwood since the beginning, with our success at Brentwood Gate in 2006. It was the largest development ever seen in the Brentwood neighborhood, for that time. Brentwood Gate, a master-planned community comprised of seven phases, was welcomed with open arms and we have had continued success with Memento, and Perspectives.”
Aviara, a 34-storey tower, will contain 239 homes configured in a variety of one-bedroom with den, two bedroom, and three bedroom homes ranging in size from 645 — 1,285 square feet, for a total buildable area of over 231,000 square feet. Designed for airy, spacious living, all floor plans embrace an open-concept plan through the dining and kitchen spaces and bring the outside in with private, exclusive balconies. Large sweeping balconies act as a sun shade to shield the west façade from the afternoon sun, while maintaining expansive views. Outside air and sunlight even infiltrate into the interior parking levels. Concealed behind the parkade, a select few southfacing luxury garden townhomes complete with private garages are located along Halifax Street. The entire project takes up just over two acres.
Homeowners will be greeted by the grand waterfall and Zen reflecting pools at the entry. Aviara’s sloped building site makes its water features visible from both the entryway and from the visitor’s parking area. Homeowners experience a sense of tranquility as they cross a bridge over the extensive water feature at the entrance to the building. As dusk descends, an illuminated, full-height, beacon will be a signal for this inspired architecture and project an unparalleled profile on the cityscape.
Aviara residents will enjoy a number of in-house amenities, including a private lounge, a fitness centre and guest suite. All homes will also have private, secured bike storage lockers in the underground parkade. Aviara owners can also take advantage of two shared co-op cars with dedicated parking.
Centrally located in North Burnaby, this new community will continue to revitalize this exciting neighbourhood. The site is easily accessible to major roads, highways and transit lines and for ultimate convenience, Gilmore SkyTrain station is just two blocks away with Brentwood Mall station of the Millennium SkyTrain line and bus loop a five-minute walk away. Aviara’s construction will result in a realignment of First Avenue with an expansion to Willingdon Heights Park.
Nearby Brentwood Town Centre is located east of the site. The shopping centre offers 110 stores with over 517,000 square feet of retail space with major tenants, including Sears, London Drugs, Starbucks, and a number of prominent financial service providers. Brentwood Mall will also soon be home to a Target store as they have bought out the former Zellers locations. Madison Centre is only one block away with Save-On-Foods and a Winners store. Home Depot is also a short distance south of Aviara.
Young families considering an Aviara purchase will be happy to know that the new Madison Centre daycare facility in nearby Brentwood Town Centre has just been completed. Both Kitchener Elementary School and Alpha Secondary School are a short walk away. BCIT and Simon Fraser University are easily accessible by transit or a short drive away.
Residents can also enjoy the range of amenities at Confederation Park, which is located a short distance from the site heading north along Willingdon Avenue. Amenities include a leisure pool, community centre, fitness centre, library, running track, playfields, tennis courts, miniature railway, skateboard park, and wilderness trails. Upon completion of the Central Valley Greenway it will provide pedestrians and cyclists an attractive east-west link traversing across Vancouver, Burnaby and New Westminster.
Aviara is part of Ledingham McAllister’s extensive portfolio of Brentwood communities including the Perspectives tower (located across the street from a seven-phase master-planned community at Brentwood Gate); and Memento.
Elva Kim concludes: “Our history, commitment, and vision to developing in Brentwood over the years has allowed us to understand our home owners better, honing in on what they love most about their home and the area. It is what made us successful with every community we’ve built in Brentwood and why we continue to build here.”
Aviara is sure to be another very fast sellout in the emerging, ever-changing Brentwood community story. Construction starts in September 2012, with an estimated completion date of Spring 2014. Register now at www.ledmac.com/aviara to be amongst the first to receive more information as it becomes available.




Vibrant Brentwood district goes Solo

 

Shopping, dining and professional services are just steps away in this contained green neighbourhood at Lougheed highway and willingdon

 

Neighbourhoods with abbreviated names have been popular ever since New Yorkers copied London’s swingin’ Soho district with their very own SoHo — short for “South of Houston” in the mid 1980s.
Now, this hip neighbourhood naming trend is reaching into Burnaby, where Jim Bosa’s Appia Developments will soon be pre-selling Solo District – “South of Lougheed.”
Over the past 15 years, coordinated planning between City of Burnaby and the Appia/Embassy/BOSA Developments family has created Brentwood — the centre of vibrant urban life that is anchored by a major SkyTrain station on BC Transit’s Millennium line. Solo District is the next logical stage in this community planning process — a self-contained clean, green neighbourhood where everything you could possibly want is within a short walk or bike ride. This four-phase mixed commercial and residential development will eventually feature four gleaming towers with 1,400 new homes.
George Wong, spokesperson for Magnum Projects, says: “It has always been Jim Bosa’s vision to create Burnaby’s most livable urban community in Brentwood. At Solo District, everything is right at your doorstep – you can easily walk to shopping, dining, and professional services.”
Located on the southwest corner of Lougheed Highway and Willingdon, Solo District is in line with the City of Burnaby’s vision to urbanize North Burnaby. Solo District will make Brentwood one of the fastest growing communities in the next 10 years, making it an excellent investment opportunity. Solo District is in the middle of it all, whether by transit or by car. The Brentwood Town Centre Station of the Millennium Line is steps away, connecting to downtown Vancouver within 20 minutes. By car, Lougheed Highway and Highway 1 are instantly accessible. North Burnaby is already a local entertainment destination — with Joey’s Burnaby, Brown’s Social House, Cactus Club, all within a two- block radius. In 2013, the Brentwood commercial area will welcome the very first Whole Foods organic market outside of Vancouver.
Wong continues: “There is excitement and value in high-speed growth. With a combination of city-mandated change and mass market receptivity, Solo District will propel population growth and home values will appreciate. Indeed, it is very important that developers introducing new products to the market ensure good long-term investment value to their customers, whether they are owner-occupiers or investors. Walkability and livability are intertwined – you want a common linkage between where people live, work, and recreate. Brentwood’s proximity to both transit into Vancouver and Burnaby’s dozens of municipal green spaces is pretty much unbeatable.”
Solo District’s energy efficient, sleek glass building will cater to the changing demographics of North Burnaby — younger, highly educated urban professionals who perhaps work in downtown Vancouver and who value an uncrowded, yet vibrant neighbourhood with an urban ambience. These new homes have a space and energy-saving minimalist urban look, designed to encourage comfortable, practical living.
Solo District is committed to offering outstanding value, with typical savings of anywhere between $35,000 to over $100,000 compared to downtown Vancouver. Wong says: “You can save up to $200 per square foot by purchasing a home in Solo District. The area really delivers affordability and value to homeowners and investors alike.”
In terms of sales demographics, Burnaby residents have been extremely receptive to all of Appia’s developments; from young buyers to empty nesters. To date, buyer interest has come from all over Metro Vancouver, including downtown, Kitsilano and East Vancouver.
At Solo District, there is a home for everyone, from first-time homeowners through to the downsizer and everybody in-between. Even the most budget-conscious buyer is able to get in, with luxurious and spacious suites catering to those who want to pursue their dream home. The sales centre is now open. Residences in this stunning 45-storey tower will boast panoramic views of the North Shore mountains, Mount Baker, and downtown Vancouver.
Magnum’s George Wong concludes: “Those who act fast and early will be rewarded handsomely, as North Burnaby is a sleeper … but not for long!”



Marketwire article

July 24, 2012 13:12 ET

SOLO District Sales Prove Real Estate Still Hot Despite Beliefs

North Burnaby's Newest Master-Planned Community Receives Strong Buyer Support
BURNABY, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - July 24, 2012) - After three weeks of select previews that garnered a lot of attention for North Burnaby's newest master-planned community, buyers lined up two hours before Appia Developments opened the doors for the first release of sales of the highly-anticipated SOLO District.
"We quickly realized that community demand was there and that people wanted to start buying," says Jim Bosa, president of Appia Developments, the developer behind the new community on the southwest corner of Lougheed Highway and Willingdon. "We decided to release a few homes as an introductory release and we've had an excellent response. We've sold out our first release and we're also oversubscribed for the next round."
Despite critics who claim a "cooling" real estate market in the Lower Mainland, more than 2000 people visited the sales centre during the opening weekend, but it's not all about the numbers. Buyer demographics show that SOLO District has something for everyone, from first-timers to young professionals, families and empty nesters from every corner of the Lower Mainland.
"SOLO District proves that market strength exists for a strong community concept, which is exactly what Appia Developments has created here at Brentwood," says George Wong of Magnum Projects. "The best developments will counter any negative real estate market trends."
The site will eventually be home to four residential towers, more than 100,000 square feet of retail space, including a Whole Foods and 40,000 square feet of office space. The first tower to be built, named Stratus, will have nearly 400 homes over 45 storeys. However, it's SOLO District's location that is getting people excited about the future of Brentwood.
Says Bosa, "Our first SOLO District buyer on Saturday morning was a first-time homebuyer in her late 20s who had grown up in the area. Like many other buyers she knew the area well, saw the potential in the community and wanted to be a part of it."
SOLO District's proximity to public transit (SkyTrain) and the short, 20-minute commute to downtown Vancouver has also been very appealing to investors.
The next release is scheduled for sometime in the fall.

Contact Information

Friday, July 20, 2012

Solo's Stratus ready by 2015

According to the following story in the Vancouver Sun, the pending "housing slump" will not affect projects in areas like Brentwood in Burnaby.  Time will tell.

Location, price, key draws at Solo District

Just a 20-minute SkyTrain ride to downtown, new development aims to please urban dwellers




Solo District (short for South of Lougheed)
Project location: Burnaby, at Lougheed and Willingdon
Project size/scope: A four-phase project on a 6.65-acre site with 1,400 suites in four towers, ranging from 39 to 48 storeys. All suites have geo exchange heating/air conditioning, premium appliances, spacious balconies and nine-foot ceilings. On-site amenities include a Whole Foods store, an expansive rooftop garden, fitness facility and social space. Spaces for Modo car co-op vehicles; views of North Shore mountains, downtown Vancouver, Burnaby south slopes and Golden Ears; Steps from SkyTrain and Brentwood shopping mall.
Prices: Junior One-bed (479-489 sq. ft) $229,900 to $243,900; One-bed (587-616 sq. ft) $289,900 to $375,900; Two-bed (907-935 sq. ft) $379,900 to $584,900; 3-bed (1,137-1,164 sq. ft) $679,900 to $764,900; SkyVilla 3-bed, den and loft (1,785 sq. ft) $1.28 to $1.32 million.
Monthly strata fees: Starting from $180 per month, about 35 cents a sq. ft.
Contact: SOLO District Sales Team
Telephone: 604-298-8800
Email: info@solodistrict.com
Builder and developer: Appia Development Ltd.
Architect: Chris Dikeakos Architects Inc., Burnaby
Interior Design: Cristina Oberti Design, Vancouver
Presentation centre: 2131 Willingdon Ave., Burnaby
Hours: noon to 5 p.m., Sat. to Thurs.
Occupancy: Early 2015

Housing sales slump? What slump?
It’s what you would expect the marketers of a 48-storey Burnaby tower to say after more than 2,500 people stood in line for up to an hour on two occasions to get a sneak preview of the presentation centre show suites.
Appia Developments anticipates the same crowds today when it officially opens the Solo District sales centre on Willingdon Avenue, just steps from the Brentwood SkyTrain station.
While some realtors have been crying the blues since the new federal mortgage rules came into effect July 9 — increasing down payment and monthly mortgage instalments — Appia’s director of marketing seems unfazed.
“I don’t think it will have much of an impact at all what with interest rates being so low,” Dennis Serraglio said. “I think it was just like when the HST came in and there was that one-week slowdown until everybody figured it out.”
Serraglio says the strong turnout was probably triggered by Solo District’s prime location — a 20-minute SkyTrain ride to downtown — as well as the development’s relatively affordable prices. Suites range from $229,000 for a 479-square-foot studio to $389,000 and up for a two-bedroom two-bathroom suite. Those prices are about $65 a square foot cheaper than comparable properties in Metrotown, he said.
At 48 storeys, Solo District’s $78-million Stratus will be the tallest residential building in Metro Vancouver, outside of Vancouver’s city limits. It is the first of four towers to be built on the 6.65-acre site and will be ready for occupancy in early 2015.
Included with the first building is a Whole Foods store, which, if history is prologue, bodes well for Solo District and the surrounding area. In the U.S., they call it the Whole Foods effect: wherever the Texas-based organic food chain locates a store, prices for surrounding real estate jump. The debate continues over whether those prices rise because of Whole Foods’ presence, or because the chain is good at selecting markets where the future is bright. In any case, no one questions that Whole Foods is a desirable amenity.
The space on the store’s roof will be landscaped, providing many of the units with a pleasant lush green area to look down on.
Up in the tower, homeowners will enjoy some breathtaking panoramic views. To the west is the city of Vancouver and Vancouver Island; to the north, the North Shore Mountains and the Lions; to the south, Burnaby’s Central Park, and to the east, Golden Ears mountains.
“Vancouver is constantly being rated as one of the most beautiful cities in the world,” project architect Chris Dikeakos said. “Anybody who gets to live up high where you can take in all these vistas has it as good as you can get.“
Dikeakos said he and his team have carefully thought through the private-public space connection in designing the ground level space between the towers.
“Even though we have these big towers on the site which provide the population, we paid particular attention to the pedestrian. The site is an entire city block, which in an urban setting like this, doesn’t come up very often.”
The centre of the site is in the shape of a cruciform and will feature a landscaped clock tower, walkways, and retail stores on a people-friendly “high street” where the shop doors open directly onto the street.
Appia’s presentation centre includes a scale model of the entire site and two model suites. The studio unit is 479 square feet, while a two-bedroom, two-bathroom model measures 935 square feet. All 465 suites in the tower have nine-foot ceilings and generous balconies, ranging between 76 to 182 square feet for studios and one-bedroom suites, to 278 square feet wraparound for a three-bedroom plus den SkyVilla.
The studio suites have cabinetry by Italian Armony Cucine, including a panel-fronted New Zealand-made Fisher and Paykel refrigerator and panel-fronted German Blomberg dishwasher. A Bosch gas cooktop and over-the-range microwave and Blomberg apartment-size oven round out the kitchen package. A stacked washer and dryer are discreetly located in a closet adjacent to the bathroom, which is fitted with a tub-shower combo. The studio suite also has a partial height wall that permits outside light through to the bedroom while separating it from the entrance and sitting areas. In addition, see-through shelving in the bedroom wall allows in even more light.
The two-bedroom unit features a kitchen island with quartz countertop, an under-mounted single or double sink, a spacious living and dining area, 12-by-24-inch porcelain tile in the bathrooms, with a tub-shower combo in one and an ensuite glass shower enclosure in the other. The two bedrooms are separated by the kitchen and living space for added privacy. The secondary bedroom has a door opening to the balcony.
All units have basement storage rooms and all but 10 have at least one assigned parking space. In a bid to encourage Stratus’ new residents to use the SkyTrain, Burnaby required the developer to give 15 per cent of unit owners two years of transit passes.
Another “green” feature is that Solo District is providing parking spaces to the Modo Car Co-op and plug-in outlets for electric cars.
All units will have economic geo-exchange heating and air conditioning, a simpler system than geothermal in which heat is transferred from the soil at shallower depths. Having air-conditioning is unusual in residential complexes this size and a bonus in these times of climate change.
While maintenance-fee-heavy swimming pools are a thing of the past for these large residential complexes, fitness facilities have become huge attractions for buyers, Serraglio said. “We are making ours larger and larger and spending way more money on equipment than we did even three or four years ago.”
Stratus will have a covered rooftop terrace barbecue area with wet bar and outside seating. And for pet lovers: a park where a dog can strut its stuff.
Stratus won’t be ready for almost three years, but some people are planning ahead. Gordon Chen and his partner Danielle Ewan just finished buying a home in Vancouver’s Mount Pleasant neighbourhood. But the two, who grew up within a few kilometres of Solo District, and have parents living in the area, spent part of their Saturday morning checking out the show suites. “Gordon has lived all over the world and I have lived in other parts of B.C., but at the end of the day, we want to come home and be in the area we grew up in,” Ewan said.
Special to The Sun

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Solo District receives approval

Solo District has received final approval of phase 1 titled, "Stratus" which will include Whole foods.  The following article is from the Burnaby NewsLeader.  Considering the current cool-down in the real estate market in Metro Vancouver, it will be interesting to see if attractive locations such as Brentwood continue to see consistent demand.


Appia's Solo project gets final approvals, on sale Saturday

Appia Development's Solo District received final approvals from Burnaby council Monday, paving the way for sales of the condo units to start this Saturday, July 21.
When completed, Solo (short for South of Lougheed) will comprise four glass towers, ranging from 38 to 55 storeys, and 1,400 homes at the southwest corner of Lougheed Highway and Willingdon Avenue. It will also be home to Burnaby's first Whole Foods store and is located kitty-corner from Brentwood Town Centre and Brentwood SkyTrain station.
The first tower, Stratus, will be located at the corner of Lougheed and Rosser Avenue, and is scheduled for completion in early 2015.
Prices for its units, on sale Saturday, start at $229,900 for a junior one-bedroom, $289,900 for a one-bedroom,  $389,900 for a two-bedroom and $589,900 for a junior one-bedroom. The tower will also have three, three-bedroom-and-den "sky villas" on the top floors featuring 20-foot ceilings.
All units will have nine-foot ceilings (except, of course, the sky villas) extra-large balconies, geothermal heat exchange systems and individual gas meters, air-conditioning and access to Modo car sharing vehicles.
“We’ve already had an overwhelming response from people all around the Lower Mainland about Solo District,” said Jim Bosa, president of Appia Developments, in a press release. “We’ve had several thousand people visit our sales centre to preview the units over the past few weeks. We’re now excited to be able to start selling.”

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

New sidewalks on Graveley

I just noticed that Graveley St west of Willingdon Ave has gotten new sidewalks.  It wouldn't have been worth mentioning had there already been sidewalks there in the first place.  These sidewalks are going in decades after houses were first built there.  I guess it's better late than never.

Monday, July 9, 2012

Brentwood Redevelopment will extend existing streets

According to the posterboards posted on Shape Properties` website, the Brentwood Mall Redevelopment will involve extending existing streets through the mall site.  As the map below shows, Ridgelawn and Brentwood Drives will extend westward into the mall from Beta Ave and connect with Willingdon Ave at the west end of the mall.  Halifax Street will extend eastward into the mall from Willingdon where it will connect with an extended Alpha Ave which will extend northward into the mall from a new intersection at Lougheed Hwy.  Brentwood Drive, once in the Mall site, will be called Brentwood Bvd and the existing "Brentwood Drive" name will remain unchanged east of Beta Ave.  The confusing part; Brentwood Bvd will again become "Brentwood Drive" during a brief half-block stretch ending at Willingdon Ave.  This half-block stretch will be further north on the map than the existing stretch between Beta and Delta Avenues,


Townhouses on Ridgelawn Drive

The future townhouses built at the north end of the site will have their addresses on the extended portion of Ridgelawn Drive.  The townhouses will face east-west instead of north-south to minimize their impact on the single-famly homes to the north.  The development also appears to have dropped its original idea of tapping into the rear lane located behind those homes to use as a shared lane with the townhouses.

Brentwood's 'Robson Street'

The 'Fashion' and 'Village' districts will be located on the new Brentwood Bvd.  The new boulevard is expected to be a destination street where the hustle and bustle of human activity will take place.  Major brand stores are expected to front this section of the development and the level of lease rates will certainly reflect this.  The map above has confirmed the desire of the development to have a grocery store in the Village District of Brentwood Bvd.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

Brentwood Open House in the NewsLeader

Being out of town without accss to my arsenal of blog tools, a dissection of the Brentwood Mall Open House will be left to the following story until my return sometime next week.

Burnaby NewsLeader article:

Brentwood Town Centre master plan complete: Shape

By Wanda Chow - Burnaby NewsLeader
Published: July 01, 2012 12:00 PM

The master plan for the redevelopment of Brentwood Town Centre is complete after incorporating the input of area residents, says Darren Kwiatkowski of mall owner Shape Properties.

Kwiatkowski, executive vice-president of Shape Properties, said several changes were made to its master plan in response to issues raised by people who attended the project's first open house in the winter.

Many of the adjustments were made along the northern frontage of the 28-acre site at Lougheed Highway and Willingdon Avenue.
While Shape had originally planned to keep the current setup, with the lane including access to the mall site, the plan now is to turn it into a lane that only serves the single family homes located along it.

The greenbelt along that length of the property has been widened and the two- to four-storey residential buildings along it are now perpendicular instead of running parallel. That's so residents in the single-family homes won't be looking at the wider face of the buildings but rather the narrower ends, to allow for view corridors, said Kwiatkowski, who said residents at the second open house on June 27 were "happy about that."

The tower at the northwest corner of the site, will be a mid-rise, and has now been tiered to move the tallest portion further back from that northern property line.

Concerns about shortcutting traffic through the neighbourhood were also addressed with the addition of two roads through the mall property that would link Beta Avenue with Willingdon.

"If people are going to shortcut, they're most likely to shortcut through our property versus the single-family neighbourhood," Kwiatkowski said. "We can design for it."

In fact, he said, "we want people on our property." Shape envisions the coexistence of pedestrians and vehicles in its development to be similar to what's happening on Granville Island or Robson Street where people generally drive slowly, all the better to people watch.

Wide sidewalks will be a constant, with the entire lengths of Lougheed and Willingdon rebuilt to include double rows of street trees, and wide sidewalks to accommodate not only pedestrians but cyclists, rollerbladers and the like.

The bus loop will be removed and replaced with streetside bus stops, with one bus route going on the mall site. "It's more intuitive," he said. If you want to catch a bus from Brentwood up to Hastings, you're going on the east side of Willingdon, and vice versa.

The Brentwood SkyTrain station will be more integrated with the mall site. That corner of the site will also be home to a one-acre community plaza. Parking would be moved mostly underground.

Six to 10 towers will eventually be built on the site ranging in height from 15 to 60 or 70 storeys, he said. The tallest will be at the Lougheed and Willingdon corner and the rest will step down in height in all directions from there.

Shape will be applying for Burnaby city hall's s-category bonus density program, he said, and the plan is to design tall and skinny towers that lets in more sunshine and maintains view corridors, instead of shorter, wide buildings with the same density.

"Everyone kind of got it," he said of the response of people at the open houses.

"It was no surprise, everyone was expecting the town centre was going to get built out."

The key to neighbourhood acceptance appears to have been Shape's approach to creating the plan.

"The strategy was, let's go talk to the neighbours early before we've got everything figured out," Kwiatkowski said.

Now that the master plan is finished, it will go to a public hearing in front of Burnaby council, where people will have another chance to comment. Kwiatkowski said the earliest the public hearing would take place is late August.

If it gets council approval, then Shape will begin detailed design work on each phase of the project, which will each require rezoning approval and a public hearing.

If all goes as planned, construction could start on the first phase in the fall of 2013. The mall would stay open throughout the transformation of the property.

wchow@burnabynewsleader.com
twitter.com/WandaChow