Marine Drive project in Vancouver given green light
Posted July 20, 2011 1:26 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The largest building project outside Vancouver’s downtown core has been approved near Marine Drive and Cambie.
The Marine Project will be built around the Marine Drive Canada Line station in Marpole. The project has been four years in the making and underwent numerous revisions.
Three tall towers, the highest at 335 feet, will overlook the site near the Fraser River. More than 460 residential suites, including almost 50 for affordable rental housing, will be available. There will also be restaurants, office space, and a movie theatre.
Project Architect Peter Busby tells us it’s a test-case for building around transit stations:
“The downtown is pretty well built out, the Broadway corridor is built out, False Creek is pretty well built out, and there are still 40,000 people arriving every year, so we have to put them somewhere. Let’s put them on transit,” he says.
Busby says the developer is hoping to attract first-time buyers and immigrants to the suites, most of which are 500 square feet in size. “The average price will be $375,000. I know that to some people that probably sounds expensive but in the Vancouver real estate market that’s [as] affordable as condos are at the moment.”
Jo-Anne Pringle with the Marpole Area Residents Alliance says despite the emphasis on getting people to use transit in the area, many will still drive there. “There is a good amount support in the neighbourhood for the increase in shops and services but there are true concerns that come along with building such a big neighbourhood node.”
Another potential issue near the site is a rather pungent smell. The city’s transfer station is right beside the project, but Busby believes there are ways to limit the stench and new city composting rules will help.
He hopes to start building in the new year.
