Intracorp opting to slot its townhomes into an ?infill? environment with existing residences
CLAUDIA KWAN
The Vancouver Sun
The Intracorp Townhome Collection
Project location: 218 – 282 W. 62nd Ave.; 7430 – 7488 Granville St; Granville St & W. 57th Ave., Vancouver
Residence size: Two- and three bedroom townhomes, 1,617 – 2,650 sq. ft
Prices: from $1.49 million
Developer: Intracorp
Architect: 218 – 282 W. 62nd: EKISTICS; 7430 – 7488 Granville: Shift Architecture Inc.
Interior design: Trepp Design
Sales centre: 266 W. 62nd Ave, Vancouver
Hours: By appointment
Telephone: 604-891-1288
Website: www.intracorptownhomes.ca
Sales began: fall 2015
Occupancy: Spring 2018 and beyond
Call it an experiment, if you will, but it’s one that Intracorp says is going well. The company is currently engaged in building small townhouse developments in southwest Vancouver, roughly between Granville Street and just east of Cambie Street, and south of West 57th Avenue.
Unlike some master-planned communities, where a developer has a large parcel of mostly untouched land — with a fair bit of leeway in terms of planning where homes and neighbourhood amenities will be located, Intracorp is working with an ‘infill’ environment.
Its team is assembling small parcels in areas with existing homes and ensuring they will slot in seamlessly within their existing neighbourhoods.
“For the most part, our townhomes have been incredibly well received,” explains Barrett Sprowson, director of sales for Intracorp.
“In almost every case, the interest is coming from people who are already living in the area, have family in the neighbourhood, or grew up here and are looking for an opportunity to come back.
“We’ve actually already seen a very interesting aspect of generational buying, where one family bought a townhouse in our West 62nd development, and the parents-in-law were so intrigued, they picked up a nice corner unit in the same project.”
Two of the families from whom Intracorp purchased the original properties have also said they are strongly interested in buying in one of the new developments. Sales began for 218 – 282 W. 62nd in fall of 2015, and that project is now sold out. Intracorp says it is pleasantly surprised by the appetite it is seeing for luxury townhouses in the region.
Technically speaking, the Intracorp Townhome Collection began with Coquitlam’s The Black + Whites on Foster. However, the current push in Vancouver begins with the W. 62nd project, and extends to 26 homes at 7430 – 7488 Granville, (which the company refers to as Granville and 59th), and 14 townhomes at Granville and 57th. There are already plans in the works for another townhouse complex to come in 2017, but Intracorp isn’t ready to reveal all the details yet.
An important piece of the puzzle here, says Sprowson, is that current and prospective purchasers don’t see the townhomes as a compromise or lesser housing choice than single-family homes.
“The move-up buyers have a condo in another part of town, and maybe they need a little more space; with a little help from their parents, they’re getting a chance to live in their old neighbourhood again without taking on the cost of a whole house,” he details. “The downsizers get to stay in their neighbourhood, and they don’t have to mow a lawn or do house maintenance any longer.”
That having been said, Intracorp wanted to ensure that some of the best aspects of single-family home-style living were retained in the townhomes. Residents can walk up to their own street level front entryways, with landscaping delineating private spaces. When returning home from a driving trip, they can pull up into private parking spaces nestled underground, under the main floor and patio spaces of their homes. Then they can unlock doors that lead directly into their homes.
The lowest floor includes a cleverly designed laundry room with full-sized washer and dryer, storage space for linens and detergent, a laundry sink, and a folding counter – the equal to what you might see in a house. Storage space is also included on this level; in some homes, it would be large enough to serve as a small home gym, library, or even guest accommodations in a pinch, but Sprowson says most people have said they think they will use it as originally intended.
On the main floor, there is some variance between floor plans in terms of where a kitchen island is placed and its overall length, but all of the homes share full ninefoot-high ceilings here, and kitchens made to entertain. Guests can mingle easily before heading out to the patio, or ducking in quickly to the powder room conveniently located on this floor.
There are two bedrooms on the third floor, separated by a bathroom. One of the bedrooms can access the bathroom as an ensuite, by walking through a short hallway lined on either side by single closets, while the other bedroom has one double closet and accesses the bathroom through the main hallway. In most townhouse complexes, this is where the homes might end.
However, with ample space to play with, the master bedroom suite gets to take full advantage of a fourth floor, with a luxurious walkin closet, and an ensuite bathroom with soaker tub, standalone shower, and double sink vanity. There is also a rooftop deck for morning cups of coffee, quiet moments of contemplation, or one last glass of wine before turning in for the night.
The materials used throughout are as sophisticated as you might expect for a higher-end buyer like this: gloss or wood veneer cabinetry, engineered stone or marble countertops, stainless steel or paneled appliances, and engineered hardwood.
At Granville and 59th, Intracorp went a step beyond by laying the foundation for the creation of smart homes.
It teamed up with local company La Scala to create five zones in the homes for automated adjustments of lighting and temperature controls; pre-wiring is also available for motorized blinds.
“At these price points, we have the ability to give our consumers more, but I also think there’s the expectation that we are upping the ante and offering a little more too,” says Sprowson.
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