On June 17, the Burnaby City Council approved UniverCity’s proposal to rezone Phase 4 of the Burnaby Mountain campus. The transformation of this space, previously the home of G Lot and the Visitor Parking Lot, will, according to a press release, “[pave] the way for a significant diversification of residential development at SFU’s UniverCity.”
Phase 4 is the fourth area of the campus that has been rezoned during the development phase. The Burnaby City Council approved rezoning of Phase 3 (northwest of the Water Tower Building) in 2010, and Liberty Homes is in the process of rezoning Parcel 25 in Phase 2, which will be a mixed use site with three types of buildings on it: townhomes, a small tower, and a four-storey building.
Phase 4 — otherwise known as UniverCity Slopes — is comprised of eight development sites on which developers are planning to create units to accommodate the growing number of families on the mountain. These buildings will be a maximum of six stories in height and will contain ground-oriented, larger average size units.
When asked what motivated the decision for this new type of housing, Jesse Galicz, Development Manager of the SFU Community Trust Staff, responded that the impetus came from the Burnaby Mountain community itself.
Galicz does not feel that student housing can be ruled out yet.
“What we are seeing is we have a lot of first time homebuyers that have moved into Phase 1 of the community, and what we’re finding is we have a slightly higher average number of families in our community than in the city of Burnaby.” said Galicz. “Those families want to stay and grow in the community, so there was some discussion that they wanted to see larger unit sizes.”
UniverCity has already begun the next step in the development phase of the Slopes neighbourhood, leasing Parcel 30 to Polygon Homes. Their proposal, which would be the first project in the neighbourhood, is to create approximately 160 new homes. If approved, the project would move forward in early 2014 and would take between one and a half to two years to complete.
Still, UniverCity’s plans for development do not stop in Phase 4. “What we’re trying to create here is a complete community for everyone, from the very young to senior citizens,” said Galicz when speaking to the end goal of the Burnaby Mountain development. “That means a complete sustainable and healthy community that provides all the necessary amenities in one space.”
What we’re trying to create here is a complete community for everyone.” – Jesse Galicz, Development Manager of the SFU Community Trust Staff
The blueprints for this future development can be found on the Official Community Plan, which shows development reaching from Discovery Park to the Swing Area on the west side of campus. The south neighbourhood, which has been designated but not officially planned, would include 1,500 units beyond what has already been zoned.
Despite the obvious excitement that comes with new development, not all residents have been convinced by UniverCity’s future plans. For many students, the hesitation comes with the lack of any concrete proposals to create affordable housing on campus.
Aware of these concerns, Galicz does not feel that student housing can be ruled out just yet.
“We don’t actually have the specific buildings in place yet,” said Galicz. “We try to partner with certain developers to provide different types of housing so in the future we would like to provide more affordable housing. We don’t have a specific project in mind yet, but there are opportunities in both Phase 3 and 4 to do that.”
Students can expect to see 300 new units up for lease each year during the next stages of UniverCity development. Galicz feels that even without specifically targeting students, the university will be able to provide substantial housing opportunities for SFU students.
“In comparison to the rest of the lower mainland and Burnaby, our housing is quite affordable running at about $400 to $450 per square foot, which in the context of Vancouver is more affordable than a lot of other regions,” said Galicz.
“Average [cost] is about $450 per square foot. Obviously views and finishings play a role in that, so you can find some housing that’s a little bit cheaper and some that’s more expensive. We do that on purpose so we’re providing different levels of housing for a diversity of people,” concluded Galicz.
