More townhomes eyed for this busy Coquitlam neighbourhood

A company that’s building townhouses in western Coquitlam plans 78 more units in the rapidly changing neighbourhood of Oakdale.

Tonight, Sept. 9, Coquitlam city council is expected to give three bylaw readings to rezone 626–638 Thompson Ave. for the Everglade Development project.

According to a report from Chris Jarvie, the city’s director of development services, Everglade wants to assemble four single-family lots to construct five three-storey stacked townhomes over an underground parkade.

The properties, close to the base of Burnaby Mountain, slope south–west with an elevation difference of 9.8 feet. A total of 60 per cent of the proposed townhouses would have three bedrooms, Jarvie noted.

Located within walking distance to the Burquitlam SkyTrain station, the area is located in what is now being referred to as "Tier 3" in the Burquitlam transit-oriented zone that, under the new housing legislation, allows floor area ratios up to three times the lot area and an eight-storey height limit — without any residential parking requirements.

Still, Jarvie said Everglade has signed a letter saying it wants council to approve its current plans and waive the entitlements allowed by the province’s Bill 47.

A Richmond-based company, Everglade currently has three more townhouse projects in the Oakdale and Burquitlam neighbourhoods:

• Satori
  • 606–612A Thompson Ave.
    • 77 townhouses in five buildings
• Miller Avenue
  • 815–823 Miller Ave.
    • stacked townhomes with 46 units
• Sydney Avenue
  • 604–608 Sydney Ave.
    • 20 townhomes

For its Thompson Avenue 2 bid, three other townhouse sites are in the works close by:

• Adera Development proposes 118 townhouses at 614–624 Thompson Ave.
• Forte Living Corp. has conditional approval to build 47 townhouses at 647–655 Harrison Ave.
• Woodbridge Homes plans to build two six-storey buildings with 243 strata units and a two-storey stacked townhouse development with 16 units

Should council vote in favour of the Thompson application, it would yield for the city:

• $2.8 million in development cost charges
• $501,500 in Community Amenity Contributions
• $1,560 for transportation demand monitoring

Everglade will also provide a financial contribution to the city’s Child Care Reserve Fund for the estimated 42 children who would live in the proposed Oakdale development, Jarvie wrote in his report.

Under Bill 44, which Victoria passed last fall, public hearings are now banned for rezoning bids that are consistent with the Official Community Plan (OCP).

📣 Got an opinion on this story or any others in the Tri-Cities? Send us a letter or email your thoughts or story tips to [email protected].

📲 Want to stay updated on Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Anmore and Belcarra news? Sign up for our free daily newsletter. 

💬 Words missing in an article? Your adblocker might be preventing hyperlinked text from appearing.