Port Moody residents will get a chance to voice their thoughts about a proposal to build the city’s two tallest towers.
In a special council meeting Friday, Oct. 25, councillors voted to send the proposal by Vancouver-based PCI Developments that would see the construction of 865 new rental apartments in two 39-storey towers next to the Moody Centre SkyTrain station to a public hearing.
As well, notice of the public hearing will be sent to every household in Port Moody.
Normally such written notices are only distributed to addresses within a 140-metre radius of a proposed development as it could directly affect their property.
The extraordinary meeting was called late Thursday afternoon, Oct. 24, after Mayor Meghan Lahti said a procedural question had been raised about the way the item was originally dealt with during council’s regular meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 22.
That meeting ended in acrimony when Coun. Haven Lurbiecki accused her colleagues of rubber stamping “the most massive development project we’ve seen in our history.”
She said the few minutes left in Tuesday’s meeting to discuss PCI’s project wasn’t enough to allow fulsome debate nor would a suggested 20-minute extension beyond the usual 10 p.m. adjournment.
Lurbiecki said she had several amendments for council’s consideration that would be better dealt with at a separate meeting. But her colleagues rejected her motion to defer and instead passed first and second reading.
Friday, Lahti said the new meeting had nothing to do with Lurbiecki’s protestations but rather was necessitated because a motion by Coun. Amy Lubik to separate the two readings so each could be voted on individually hadn’t been dealt with prior to Tuesday’s vote.
During Friday’s rewind, a majority of councillors expressed satisfaction with PCI’s proposal and the amenities it brings to the city.
They include:
- a 41,398 sq. ft. grocery store and other commercial spaces
- more than 4,000 sq. ft. of artist studio spaces
- a 25,000 sq. ft. public plaza at the entrance to the SkyTrain station
- a new pedestrian bridge over the neighbouring railroad tracks to Murray Street, across from Rocky Point Park
As well, the developer will realign and daylight Dallas/Slaughterhouse Creek that runs through the four-acre site, turning over the protected riparian area to the city as a park.
Councillors also approved a motion put forward by Lubik for staff to explore with PCI further opportunities to incorporate more green space into the project, negotiate additional affordable units beyond the company’s current plan for 44 apartments to be made available at below-market rates, as well as increase the mix of larger, family-friendly units.
“We have to work to get more from projects this size,” Lubik said. “I’d like to see us work a bit more with the proponent so we can say to the public it brings so much to the city.”
However, Coun. Kyla Knowles cautioned the city must be mindful it doesn’t push too hard as the cost of further requests would likely result in higher rents.
“We have to be a little bit realistic,” she said. “We’re in a housing crisis and people are looking for homes.”
Coun. Diana Dilworth said while it would be nice to extract more from the developer, “I don’t think we can put the burden of all the affordable housing we need on one application.”
Lahti reminded her colleagues that PCI’s proposal already exceeds the city’s policy for providing rental housing and meets its requirement for the number of affordable units. She said requiring more even after the company had accommodated most of council’s requests following submissions at early input and committees would be like “pulling the rug out.”
Lahti added, “You can’t do that.”
But Lurbiecki said it behooves the city to push for more so Port Moody residents can have a full appreciation for what is at stake prior to the public hearing, especially for such a consequential development.
"There’s no doubt the community has serious and valid concerns about these towers,” she said.
"We can show we’re serious and show we can get back much more.”
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