Century Group has unveiled a significantly scaled-back plan for its proposed Tsawwassen Town Centre redevelopment project in Delta, B.C.

The revised proposal reduces building heights by 25% and cuts the number of homes by 57%, to about 600 from 1,433. The changes reflect community feedback while still aligning with Delta’s Official Community Plan and provincial housing targets, said the company.

“We’ve heard the concerns about needing better health care delivery and made changes to address this,” said Century President Sean Hodgins. “This revised plan reduces scale while still delivering new homes, dedicated space for health care services, and retail that will strengthen our town centre. Projects like this will always involve tradeoffs, but we must keep moving forward to tackle Delta’s and the region’s housing challenges.”

Healthcare will be prioritized as a core community amenity, with dedicated space in the first phase permanently allocated to the Delta Hospital and Community Health Foundation. The updated plan also includes a larger Thrifty Foods grocery store with a pharmacy following the insertion of 17,000 square feet in additional retail, along with new apartments and townhomes. And, 100 new market-rental units have been added.

Hodgins called for additional discussions about community planning in the wake of the changes.

“We believe in building in places that make sense,” he said. “But this process shows how difficult it can be to deliver housing in line with OCPs when even responsible development on an increased scale continues to face opposition. We’ve made big concessions because we believe in working with the community, but there’s a larger conversation to be had here about how we’re going to meet Delta’s and the region’s housing targets.”

Century said the project could serve as a case study for industry leaders navigating similar challenges in municipalities across B.C.

The project continues to focus on infill development, renewing an urbanized area rather than expanding into greenfields or farmland, said the company.

New Westminster, B.C.-based Century is a mixed-use developer that has been operating in Tsawwassen for more than 60 years. The company’s projects span the multi-residential, retail, hotel and seniors housing sectors.

Century also provides property-management services through its Barbican subsidiary

Rendering: Century Group