The transformation of Port Moody’s downtown that will dramatically alter its skyline is the city’s “best way forward,” says Mayor Meghan Lahti.
On Tuesday, Feb. 4, council voted 6-1 in favour of a proposal by Vancouver-based developer Beedie Living to construct more than 1,000 new homes in three towers up to 38 storeys as well as a six-storey transitional housing facility, on four parcels of light industrial land along Spring Street.
The 32-, 34- and 38-storey towers are the first in the neighbourhood around the Moody Centre SkyTrain station to be greenlit. Another proposal by Vancouver-based PCI Developments to construct two 39-storey rental towers next to the SkyTrain station is scheduled for a public hearing in March. And on Jan. 2, Anthem Properties submitted a pre-application to the city for a 26-storey rental tower at St. Johns and Williams streets, across from the Moody Centre station.
Tuesday’s decision came after a public hearing that lasted almost three hours and heard from 47 speakers, 31 one of them in favour of Beedie’s project.
Several who spoke in support lauded the developer’s efforts to address Port Moody’s need for affordable housing and more family-friendly units.
Those include the six-storey transitional housing facility for women and children fleeing abusive relationships that will be built separately from the towers, on its own property further west on Spring Street. As well, the developer is working with the Kwikwetlem First Nation to provide it with 20 units in the towers at cost. If that deal falls through, though, the units will be moved to the transitional housing building, which will be expanded to nine storeys.
Naomi Brunemeyer, of BC Housing, said the arrangement creates a “continuum of housing” for women and children that will allow them to find stability.
Former Port Moody councillor Zoe Royer said it would “truly change lives.”
'Family-centred living'
In a presentation, Nathaniel Stuart, the senior development manager at Beedie Living, told council the company has also made a commitment to “family-centred living” by eliminating studio apartments so it could increase the number of two- and three-bedroom units as well as boost the size of most units. Apartments will range from 543 to 1,361 square feet with an average of 740 square feet.
The project also includes more than 72,000 square feet of commercial and office space located in the two-storey podiums at the base of the towers along with a child-care facility for up to 107 kids.
That excited the CEO of the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce, Leslie Courchesne, who’s also a Port Moody resident.
She said the commercial component presents “a significant opportunity for Port Moody to enhance its economic vitality.”
Another speaker said Beedie’s plan to build an expansive outdoor plaza at Spring Street and Electronic Avenue that would act as a kind of outdoor “living room” for the development as well as the rest of the community would help transform the bleak industrial area into a “vibrant, walkable street level.”
Not everyone on board
Other speakers weren’t so bullish.
They fretted about the project’s impact on the city’s roads, parks, recreation facilities and health-care services. Some said it could set the table for even taller towers in future development proposals.
“Are we creating community or just stacking people into boxes?” said one speaker. “Port Moody is nature, not the Las Vegas strip.”
Coun. Amy Lubik acknowledged the concerns but, she said, the project is on the right path and with a little more work will preserve a neighbourhood and feel like the city's beloved NewPort Village and SuterBrook developments.
“I know this is a big change,” she said. “We can create complete, resilient communities.”
Big money
Coun. Callan Morrison said the project’s $97-million financial impact on Port Moody, that includes more than $27 million in cash for density bonuses, community amenity contributions and other levies, as well as $2.1 million in annual property tax revenue, is substantial and could be used to upgrade the city’s parks and recreational facilities.
“This is a win for the community,” he said.
But Coun. Haven Lurbiecki, who cast the only dissenting vote, said it would be a pyrrhic victory as Port Moody transforms into "an unrecognizable place.”
She said Beedie’s three towers would just be the first of many more, something she contends most residents don’t want to see.
“A one-night public hearing cannot undo the truth of public sentiment that the community does not want this.”
Coun. Diana Dilworth, though, said residents have made it known they also want affordable housing and family-friendly homes, and they won’t get those without tall towers.
“If we want 12- and 26-storey buildings, we won’t have amenities,” she said. “This is a big application and it requires bold decision making.”
Lahti said the Moody Centre neighbourhood has languished for too long.
“We never envisioned that Moody Centre would have this opportunity.”
Beedie’s Stuart said once the company secures its development agreement and permits, construction will proceed in two phases over about 10 years. The transitional housing facility, that will be operated by Act 2 Child and Family Services, will be built as part of the first phase.
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