Master Planned Community in Canada
JODIE WARREN
The Vancouver Sun
Burnaby’s Lougheed Town Centre is poised for a dramatic transformation, as developer Shape Properties Corp. launches the first tower of The City of Lougheed, its master-planned 40-acre community which, when complete, will be home to more than 23 towers and 10,000 residents.
In addition to the towers, the City of Lougheed will include 1.4 million square feet of retail and one million square feet of office space. Through purposeful planning and a cohesive vision, Shape has designed the development to become “a super-regional shopping centre destination attracting shoppers, residents, business and workers from Burnaby, Co quit lam, New Westminster and throughout the region.”
According to Shape’s senior project manager Angelica Yang, the new community, which will be home to numerous character neighbourhoods housed ina lush ly landscaped environment, will be similar in feel to its 28-acre project, The Amazing Brentwood, but larger in scale and possessing some other unique qualities .“The City of Lougheed is nearly twice the size of The Amazing Brentwood,” says Yang. “The sheer size of The City of Lougheed, its strategic location where the Millennium SkyTrain and future Evergreen extension lines will intersect, and Shape’s long-term commitment to creating a new urban destination for the region truly differentiate this community from anyother project in the Lower Mainland.”
At 55-storeys, Tower One in The City of Lougheed will be the tallest in the community’s inaugural four-tower phase. Depending on where you are, it will offer commanding views – of downtown, the North Shore, Mount Baker, the Port Mann Bridge, the Fraser River and Simon Fraser University. The first phase is the work of GBL Architects, while the overall community is being designed by James K.M. Cheng Architects, the award-winning firm renowned for creating master-planned, mixeduse neighbourhoods, as well as such iconic Vancouver towers as Shaw Centre, the Shangri-La, and Fairmont Pacific Rim.
The one-, two- and three-bedroom homes in Tower One come with a host of impressive features. Offered in two standard colour schemes, all homes have standards such as European cabinetry, quartz countertops and marble herringbone backsplashes in the kitchens, as well as integrated Bosch appliances. A high-end, luxury scheme can be selected as an upgrade, which includes everything from premium marble slab countertops to cabinetry made of a scratch-resistant, repairable nanotech material.
Also included in The First Neighbourhood will be the main amenity building – 18,000 square feet on three levels, which will house a state-of-the-art fitness facility, craft room, lounges, and a rooftop garden with community garden plots.
Yang says early interest in the first tower is similar to what Shape Properties experienced in The Amazing Brentwood. “We anticipate a cross section of buyers – downsizers, first-time buyers, young families – the majority of them local,” she says.
“As one developer leading all components of The City of Lougheed, including long-term management of the asset, we have a vested interest in adding value to the project far into the future,” she says. “This for example, includes active involvement in upgrading amenities, strengthening the retail mix, programming event schedules and keeping theproperty immaculate. Ultimately, this translates to an accrual of long-term value for our homeowners.”
Tower One will be complete in 2020 and prices start at $329,900. The 18,000-square-foot presentation centre with three designer show homes are set to open Oct. 1. For more information and to register, v is itwww. the city of loug heed. com
Founded in 2005, Shape Properties Corp. is a Western Canadian real estate investment, management and development company that is passionate about creating dramatically better places. Shape is currently leading the development of some of the largest and most exciting projects underway in North America. In addition to The Amazing Brentwood and The City of Lougheed, the Shape portfolio includes Highstreet Fraser Valley and Destination: Deerfoot City in Calgary.
According to a January 2016 City of Burnaby council report, the Master Plan forth eLoug heed Core Area (in total a 72-acre site bounded by bordered by North Road to the east, Lougheed Highway to the south, Bartlett Court to the west, and Cameron Street to the north) involves “a plan that envisions its transformation, over time, into a vibrant, transit-connected, mixeduse area with diverse housing, employment, service, and recreation opportunities.
“This re-imagined district is comprised of seven unique neighbourhood precincts, each connected to one another and to the broader Lougheed community with a network of pedestrian and bicycle-friendly streets and public open spaces. The master plan sets out to create a truly memorable place where residents and the broader Loug heed community will want to live, work, shop, and play.”
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