The lights and razzle dazzle of London's entertainment and tourist hub could be coming to Burnaby.
Shape Properties, the company that owns and manages Brentwood Town Centre, presented its conceptual master plan to Burnaby council.
On Monday night, council approved the ambitious plan, which did not include rezoning applications for constructing the new town centre, for public hearing on Aug. 28.
"It's a multi-year development, said Coun. Pietro Calendino. "There's plenty of time to learn more about what will come down the pike."
But once the project is completed, it would be a major part of Burnaby's landscape, according to Calendino.
"It will become a real town centre," he said. "It will be the Piccadilly Circus of Burnaby."
The plan divides the 11.5-hectare site at 4515 and 4567 Lougheed Hwy. into four quadrants for development.
The southwest quadrant, which is currently a vacant lot, would be the first to be developed. The plan proposes putting in two residential highrises with commercial business podiums, and a low-rise building, as well. The residential towers would range from 45 to 70 storeys in height. There would also be a high street in the quadrant and a two-tiered public plaza at Willingdon Avenue and Lougheed Highway.
The southeast quadrant could be the second phase of development. It would include two residential towers. The plans for this quadrant include a 50,000 square-foot food store on the north side of the high street, with a base that could potentially accommodate another residential tower later on. The residential towers would range in height from a minimum of 25 to a maximum of 55 storeys, depending on the location on the site.
There would also be a smaller public plaza in this quadrant, and a green roof atop the food store and an underground parking area.
The northwest quadrant, which could be the third phase of development, would consist of two residential towers, with
retail and commercial space as well.
The towers would range in height from a minimum of 20 to a maximum of 55 storeys, depending on the location on the site.
There would also be another, smaller public plaza in this quadrant.
And finally, the northeast quadrant could be the fourth phase of development. It would encompass the majority of the mall site and some surface parking.
The plan for this quadrant includes four mid to highrise residential towers, low-rise townhouses, two office towers, and redevelopment of the commercial centre.
The office towers would be between 30 to 40 storeys in height.
The plans include extensive redevelopment to create public spaces - from the town centre boulevard along Lougheed Highway to the entertainment precinct, the high street, and more.
The project would also include redevelopment to accommodate vehicle, bus, SkyTrain and pedestrian traffic.
"One of the prime issues is going to be, how do we control traffic?" Coun. Nick Volkow said.
Though the project is ambitious in scope, Coun. Dan Johnston said it is something he thinks area residents are ready for.
"I think people are looking for a modernization of Brentwood," he said.
Shape Properties conducted two open houses earlier this year to present plans to people in the area and get feedback from residents.
The public hearing on Aug. 28 will be another opportunity for people to speak to council and the company about their
thoughts, Coun. Sav Dhaliwal said.
As the project moves forward, changes may be made to the plan.
But there is no doubt that, once completed, it will be a completely different Brentwood, he added.
"I think a change is coming," he said.
Public hearings take place at the council chamber at city hall at 7 p.m.
For those who cannot attend, written submissions must be received at the city clerk's office by 4: 45 p.m. on the day of the public hearing.
jfuller-evans@burnabynow.com
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Big plans for Burnaby's Brentwood
A concept plan for the massive redevelopment of Brentwood Town Centre that could take 30 years to complete will go to a public hearing Aug. 28.
A report to city council this week said Shape Properties is proposing a concept that would be a complete redevelopment of the 28-acre Brentwood mall site. If it is carried out, it would have up to 11 residential high rises and two office towers ranging from 25 to 70 stories, townhouses, a large amount of retail at ground level and a public plaza for year-round activity.
"The plaza and pedestrian promenades are intended to be the hub of the development and the heart of the Brentwood Town Centre," said the report.
The proposal calls for the project to be broken down into four quadrants. The first to go up would be the one right at Willingdon Avenue and Lougheed Highway. It's proposed the residential towers would range from 45 stories to 70 in addition to some low-rise and commercial.
Coun. Paul McDonell said the city wants to keep the tallest towers, and their high density, close to the SkyTrain station. He has his doubts, though, it will reach as high as 70 stories or even 60.
"Once you go over 58 you've got to put in a third elevator shaft and that gets expensive. The economy of scales just become too much," said McDonell. "Personally, I don't have a problem if we go higher with buildings because that gives us more open space on the ground."
In addition to the big buildings, the focal point of the first phase would be a two-tiered public plaza with the upper tier connecting to the Brentwood SkyTrain Station concourse.
Next up in the process would likely be the section along the Lougheed to the east. It would have two residential high-rises and commercial including a 50,000 square foot supermarket.
If the market is good, the third quadrant along Willingdon Avenue could be built in conjunction with the second with towers ranging from 35 to 55 stories at Halifax and Willingdon.
The fourth and final phase could also be started earlier if the market conditions are favorable and it would have four towers and a linear parkway to transition the development to the homes to the north of the site.
The concept also calls for the building of High Street to run through the development. It would be the spine of the shopping area designed to be highly active and connect residents, employees, shoppers, cyclists, motorists and pedestrians to all aspects of the site.
In the report, acting planning director Lou Pelletier said the concept has exceptional architectural expression that will serve Burnaby and its citizens well into the future.
"The interplay of land use, urban design, place-making, architecture, landscape architecture and signage showcases a highly creative approach to development within the Brentwood core area, and significantly contributes to Brentwood's transition into an urban town centre," wrote Pelletier.
He said the site's redevelopment complexity and foresight to guide development over the next two or three decades makes it worth supporting.
Development cost charges are expected to include a new school site acquisition charge, a parkland acquisition charge and a sewerage charge.
Early version's of the concept have already been presented at two open houses. The public hearing will be for Shape's application to rezone the property to allow the project to proceed.
30 years? Must be an extrapolation of the 4 months it takes to construct a "Tim Hortons"
ReplyDeleteI will believe it when I see it. Add anither off price shoe store in the meantime. Brentwood is a joke.
ReplyDeleteI think the redevelopment will be fantastic. Can't come soon enough. Check here for conceptual drawings of the proposed plans:
ReplyDeletehttp://habilisblog.com/brentwood-town-centre-redevelopment-details/
Thank you for the link. You have some great sketches of the redevelopment. I'll be checking out your other posts as well.
ReplyDeleteI encourage all Brentwood area residents to attend the August 28th Council Meeting and let Council and Shape Properties know that this development is over the top in terms of its design and density. The amount of people, traffic and the crime it will bring into the area is not acceptable. Council has continually ignored Brentwood Park residents' concerns. It is quite obvious they are all about the money, not the welfare of the residents. We will all end up feeling like animals in a cage.
ReplyDelete