Concord Pacific reveals 12-tower, 5,000-home plan for long awaited development of northeast False Creek
Village plan modelled after Italy's Portofino hinges on city making good on 2015 promise to demolish viaducts
Concord Pacific says it's ready to push forward with what it's calling Concord Landing — a development of the long-dormant northeast shore of False Creek that it says will create 5,000 new homes but also "a vibrant, walkable village that serves both residents and visitors."
On Tuesday, the developer shared with the media its new plans for the site, which currently consists of parking lots sandwiched between two viaducts to the north and the False Creek shoreline to the south.
Peter Webb, Concord's senior vice-president of development, said the plans present "a comprehensive and ambitious vision that integrates local and global elements of urban design."
The area is part of the former Expo 86 lands, between the Plaza of Nations and Science World. It's been undeveloped for decades but features temporary uses such as Cirque de Soleil.
A rendering of the site shows a ring road encircling a sprawling space defined by green areas, pedestrian thoroughfares and 12 stacked towers, some as high as 65 storeys, near Georgia Street.
Vancouver's current tallest building is the Living Shangri-La on Georgia Street. It is 62 storeys high.
The developer said the 5,000 new homes would be above a village retail hub and "reflect a mix of options, aligned with the city's goals for housing inclusivity."
Construction on the proposed project is still at least two to three years away, said the developer, with the first step being submitting a formal rezoning inquiry to the city, which is said could come over the next month.
Concord said its design is inspired by the Italian fishing village of Portofino, which features stacked housing along a walkable, picturesque shoreline.
The developer said it would complete three kilometres of the seawall in the area so that it could "showcase Vancouver's local merchants, festivals, and culture," such as the Dragon Boat Festival.
The project's success would hinge on Vancouver finally demolishing the raised freeways into the city — the Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts — to open up the space and connect Rogers Arena, B.C. Place, Chinatown, the new St. Paul's Hospital, Science World and the Olympic Village in a new way.
"One of the significant features of the plan is to connect the downtown to the waterfront by realigning Georgia Street down for pedestrians, cyclists and cars," said Webb.
Vancouver Coun. Peter Meiszner said he's excited about the proposal, considering it would create thousands of new homes and finally deal with the viaducts.
"I'm looking forward to the establishment of a new road network which will be much better for traffic management and active transportation, and just a big improvement over what we have right now, which is really like a freeway-like viaduct that terminates in downtown."
Vancouver city council voted in October of 2015 to remove the viaducts, but it hasn't happened. A development plan for the area was approved in 2018.
Concord Pacific says its hopeful a 2024 contribution of $110 million from it and $100 million from Metropolitan Properties (Plaza of Nations) will help address the funding gap to finally do it. It said the combined funds are about half of what the city needs to undertake the demolition.
'Very challenging work'
Lon LaClaire, Vancouver's general manager of engineering services, said the estimated infrastructure costs for changes to the street network in 2018 was $438 million. That would have to be reassessed, he said, because of Concord's changes to its design, which adds density but also plans to divert traffic.
LaClaire said the multiple landowners in the area, including the province, plus the SkyTrain running through it make the project tricky and confusing over who will pay for what.
But he said, the project, if approved and costed, will be transformative for the city.
"Because it takes a portion of the downtown ... probably one of the least desirable areas, and it would turn it into one of the most desirable areas," he said.
Concord also said the city's recent decision to reassess and change Vancouver's protected "view cones" will allow it to build higher towers on the site than previously allowed.
The view cones have historically been used to preserve the city's vistas, but council saw them as outdated and in need of an update partly to favour housing density amid a housing crisis.
Other features of the False Creek design include up to 50 smaller stores or restaurants, which Concord wants to be occupied by local businesses, artisans and entrepreneurs.
It also said the final site, if approved, would feature convertible playing and event fields, child play spaces, bike and walking routes, waterfront features, and tidal areas.
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With files from Liam Britten