Gilmore Station Development mentioned in NewsLeader

The following Burnaby NewsLeader article mentioning the Gilmore Station development by ONNI Group provides a bit of a glimpse into what we might expect there.

Photo of approach from the west dated 2012 

Major changes eyed for Burnaby's Gilmore Station

• by  Wanda Chow - Burnaby NewsLeader
• posted Jul 29, 2014 at 11:00 AM

The Onni Group is planning a major redevelopment around the Gilmore SkyTrain station that will turn it into a "gateway" to the Brentwood Town Centre area.

The developer has applied for a rezoning to establish a conceptual master plan and a detailed first phase of development.

The property, identified as 4161 and 4171 Dawson St. and 4120, 4160, 4170, and 4180 Lougheed Highway, is almost 12.5 acres and located on the east side of Gilmore Avenue between Lougheed and Dawson.

While six of the parcels are vacant, two are home to light-industrial and office buildings and the largest is occupied by two mid-rise office buildings built in 1982.

A portion is taken up by the Millennium line SkyTrain station built in 2003.

Onni is proposing a highrise , mixed-use residential and commercial development with a substantial office component.

It also proposes building a new public road linking Dawson to Lougheed on the site to improve access to the station and pedestrian-oriented retail on Dawson, said a city staff report.

The Brentwood Town Centre Development Plan adopted by council in 1996 designates the site for high-rise housing and business park development "with a high office use component."

the subject site is one of the few within the region that have the opportunity to be fully integrated with SkyTrain at ground level, mezzanine level and potentially at track level.

In 2002, the former owner of the property, Standard Life Assurance Company, received rezoning approval in principle for a proposed mid- and high-rise office project.

It was to be a new regional office for Standard Life and to include over one million square feet of office space.

 It also included a smaller multi-family and mixed use component along Dawson.

But the rezoning never moved forward to final approvals “with the applicant citing changes in the office market which made the proposal no longer economically feasible,” the report said.

Between 2004 and 2010 Standard Life tried to amend the redevelopment concept but one suitable to be forwarded to council never materialized.

The company sold the site to Onni last year.

The aim is to create  a “mixed-use gateway” into Brentwood Town centre that’s been long expected, the report said.

"While Burnaby has become a model for transit oriented development, including the Master Plan concepts for Brentwood and Lougheed Malls, the subject site is one of few within the region that have the opportunity to be fully integrated with SkyTrain at ground level, mezzanine level and potentially at track level, providing unprecedented access to transit by residents, employees, patrons and the surrounding community," it said.

"With this opportunity in mind, the Gilmore SkyTrain Station was purposefully scaled back in its form and materiality, so that in the future it could be fully integrated with surrounding development."

Burnaby’s planning department will work with Onni on a concept and Phase 1 development plan.
When it’s complete, it will go to a future public hearing.

Tough times ahead for drivers on Lougheed

The following notice has been published in the local newspapers regarding work along Lougheed Hwy beginning soon and continuing through to the spring of 2015.

Prep for excavation begins at Brentwood

Pavement is being stripped away to set up the excavation that will kick off construction of Phase 1 of the Brentwood Mall Redevelopment.

Access to Brentwood Station reduced to Lougheed Hwy

This morning I noticed that access to Brentwood Station from the mall parking lot has been closed off.  Attendants were out in full force this morning to inform pedestrians that access to the station is available only from Lougheed Hwy.

 One can see machinery on either side of the ramp that leads to the station.

Furthermore, the Halifax and Alpha entrances to the Mall have also been closed to vehicles and pedestrians.

The Brentwood Mall website has the following map showing the available entrances to the Mall site:

The only accesses are just north of Halifax between Halifax and Brentlawn and the existing entrances on Beta Ave.

Speaking of entrances, in addition to the future light-controlled intersection at Alpha and Lougheed, it appears that a new tunnelled entrance is in the works.  A section just east of Alpha has been marked off with rounded sidewalk corners on either side of what appears to be a future tunnel entrance into the mall site.

The tunnel will enter there and, according to markings on the surface of the parking lot east of the closed Alpha entrance, the tunnel will proceed west towards the plaza area past the current site of the McDonald's/BMO storefront.

4-way stop at Beta and Brentlawn

Within 2 weeks of the City of Burnaby approving the recommendation by the Traffic Safety Committee, a 4-way stop was installed on Brentlawn Drive yesterday.  The efforts of Brentlawn Drive resident Matthew Senf were instrumental in getting this latest safety improvement.

Bus loop gone

The dismantling of the Brentwood Bus Loop began yesterday.  By today few remnants of it exist at Willingdon and Halifax.

Brentwood bus loop fenced off

Although the Brentwood bus loop closed earlier this year, you could still see people having a rest at the benches there.  That was until  a few days ago when the entire area from Halifax Street along Willingdon to Brentwood Station was fenced off into 1 large site in preparation for the removal of the old bus loop structure and for its excavation.  That site will see Brentwood One and the massive Entertainment Plaza take shape as part of Phase One of the Brentwood Mall Redevelopment.

To the east, the old site of the IHOP and Kin's Market has been torn up and fenced off in preparation for building underground parking and a tunnel system there.