39-storey tower coming to Granville and Broadway after city council approval

Article content

Vancouver city council approved a 39-storey mixed use building Tuesday for the corner of Broadway and Granville, taller than any current building outside the downtown core.

Article content

The proposal drew a fervid response leading up to and during a weeks-long public hearing process, with supporters saying the badly needed rental homes couldn’t come fast enough, while opponents complained the building was too tall and decried its impacts on views, traffic and the surrounding neighbourhood. Many voices on both sides said that council’s decision — whichever way it went — would be an important signal for the future direction of the Broadway corridor and the city at large.

The building will be directly above the South Granville subway station currently under construction and will include retail, offices, a grocery store and 223 rental homes, 20 per cent of which will be permanently secured at below-market rents.

Article content

The rezoning application, from PCI Developments, drew a high level of public response, with dozens of members of the public addressing council over three full nights of public hearings before the final debate and decision at Tuesday morning’s meeting. City hall received more than 1,000 pieces of written correspondence.

The development took an unusual path to council, and many citizens who spoke in opposition — and some of the councilors who eventually voted in support — raised concerns with the process.

In 2019, PCI obtained a permit under the existing zoning for a five-storey commercial building, which is already under construction at the site, integrating the subway station below ground. But PCI, which has owned the site since 2007, had long hoped to build something bigger on the site; a city report last year noted the developer had expressed interest to the city a decade ago about rezoning the property to allow for more office, retail and rental residential space.

Article content

PCI’s attempts to rezone the site were slowed by delays in the Broadway plan process, council heard Tuesday: while the Broadway plan was initially expected to come to council for decision by 2020, it was delayed by COVID-19 and other factors and hasn’t yet been finalized. (A final decision on the plan is expected later this spring).

But the federally and provincially funded Broadway subway began major construction last year, before city hall had finished its planning process.

While there has been a temporary moratorium on most new rezoning applications in the Broadway corridor since 2019, city staff last year recommended allowing PCI to proceed with an application citing “exceptional circumstances,” and council agreed.

Article content

That atypical process was criticized Tuesday by Coun. Colleen Hardwick, who introduced an amendment seeking to postpone debate on PCI’s application until after the Broadway plan was complete.

“I am concerned we are pushing through profound changes during a pandemic, when we really should be pressing pause and going through this systematically,” said Hardwick, who is running for greater this year with TEAM for a Livable Vancouver. “The larger question is one of sequencing, but also pace of change.”

Hardwick’s motion was seconded by NPA Coun. Melissa De Genova but was defeated when every other council member voted against delaying the decision.

Later, explaining her reason for opposing the project, Hardwick called the process “anti-democratic.”

Article content

COPE Coun. Jean Swanson was the only other councilor to vote against the project, citing concerns the 223 new rental homes wouldn’t be affordable enough for lower income people.

Council’s nine other members all voted in support, with many saying the city needs more rental homes, especially near rapid transit.

Green Coun. Adriane Carr, who supported the project, refuted Hardwick’s contention that the process hadn’t been democratic, citing the 44 people who spoke to council to oppose the project, the 40 who spoke in support, the 409 who wrote in on the “no” side and the 607 who wrote for “yes.”

“That’s democracy at work,” Carr said.

The project was also supported by Carr’s Green colleagues, councilors Pete Fry and Michael Wiebe, as well as De Genova, Mayor Kennedy Stewart and OneCity Coun. Christine Boyle.

Councilors Rebecca Bligh, Lisa Dominato and Sarah Kirby-Yung — all of whom were elected in 2018 with the NPA and have since joined the new ABC Vancouver party — also voted in support.

[email protected]

twitter.com/fumano

More news, fewer ads: Our in-depth journalism is possible thanks to the support of our subscribers. For just $3.50 per week, you can get unlimited, ad-lite access to The Vancouver Sun, The Province, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Vancouver Sun | The Province.