A community information meeting is being held Thursday at the Port Moody Arts Centre, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., to present the latest proposal for the redevelopment of the former Chisholm Television factory site at 50 Electronic Ave. in Port Moody.
The Panatch Group is proposing a mixed-use development of two six-storey condo buildings with a total of 358 residential units above 16,941 sq. ft. of commercial space on the property, which runs along the south side of Murray Street from Electronic Avenue to Klahanie Drive. The residential units would range from 506 sq. ft. junior one-bedrooms to four-bedroom units as large as 1,556 sq. ft.
The project would also include a landscaped green space along its southern edge to buffer residents from the noise of the adjacent railway and SkyTrain tracks. The space could feature a kids' play area, open lawns, pathways, an off-leash dog area and an urban garden for residents.
The site was once home to a state-of-the-art 56,000-sq. ft. factory that manufactured radios and black and white televisions beginning in 1955 until it closed in early 1964. At one time, the company had the capacity to build 200 TVs and hi-fi stereos a day. The old factory building, which over the years housed offices and even artist spaces, was demolished in 2010.
The following year, the provincial government contributed more than $160,000 to help remediate contaminated soil on the property in anticipation of its eventual redevelopment.
In 2014, a proposal to adjust Port Moody's official community plant to allow construction of buildings up to 12 storeys on the site was rejected by council.
