Developer wants to replace proposed townhomes with apartment buildings

At a meeting on Feb 15, the District’s Advisory Design Panel will review an application by BOSA to change proposed townhouses to apartment buildings on the south site of the south side of the SEAandSKY development. This change in housing form will allow the developer to build 442 more housing units than the development was previously approved for.

District staff are supportive of the changes, even though district’s own housing report found Squamish lacking in townhomes.

The SEAandSKY development was approved in 2016 for 997 residential units, divided into two north and south locations. The north site, the development’s first phase, was approved for 479 units, a mix of townhomes and apartment market rentals. The current rezoning and OCP amendment application for the south site is now seeking 1,061 residential units, an overall increase of 442 residential units.

With the change from townhomes to condos, the developers are also planning to increase landscape and park areas, reduce overall road surface and restore ecological elements of the site by preserving the Mamquam Blind Channel cove area. They also plan to restore a bluff habitat area along the south property line.

The revised south site application proposes to create 0.59 hectares of district south parkland and 2.24 hectares of strata parkland, a green pedestrian link through the site, and 1.64 hectares for environmental offsetting and restoration. According to the district documents, this would increase the total parkland in the development to 5.38 hectares.

The revised application also proposes slightly decreasing parking requirements for some units and stall types. The north site has 82 on-street stalls and the south site proposes adding 64 on-street stalls with 18 spaces for commercial and marina use located within a parade.

District staff is generally supportive of the revised plan and are seeking Advisory Design Panel’s review of the building layout, waterfront and park areas.