Great West Life Realty Advisors is planning to develop more North Vancouver multi-family rental projects after gaining the city’s approval for a central Lonsdale project.

“North Van has very favourable rental fundamentals,” said Geoff Heu, GWLRA’s vice-president of development for Western Canada, in an interview with Connect. “So, we would like to continue investing and developing on the North Shore.”

North Vancouver city council unanimously approved GWLRA’s proposed project at 140 West 19th Street. Plans call for a six-storey building to contain 91 rental units. Amenities will include a tenant lounge, fitness centre and children’s play area.

GWLRA acquired, and is developing, the property on behalf of the Canada Life Real Estate Fund. Toronto-based GWLRA is a owned by Canada Life, which is also based in the Ontario capital.

The central Lonsdale site appealed to GWLRA because of its location in the North Shore’s historical downtown as well as its close proximity to retail amenities, services and transportation.

At the central Lonsdale site, GWLRA plans to demolish an existing 32-unit apartment building and replace it with the larger development.

The development will include many sustainability features that are intended to exceed the B.C. Building Code Step 3 performance requirements, said Heu.

Although heat pumps have become highly popular in B.C. multi-residential developments as the provincial government incentivizes their use. But heat pumps, which also act as air-conditioners, are not pragmatic at the location due to its required connection to Lonsdale Energy Corporation, a city-owned utility, said Heu.

LEC will provide space heating and domestic water heating. Suites will be cooled by four-pipe fan coils in each unit that are connected to a rooftop chiller. Each suite will also contain electric-recovery ventilation, which provides high levels of fresh air ventilation to the indoor space while recapturing heat from energy-saving exhaust air before it is ejected.

Other sustainability features will include:

• Building insulation intended to exceed the BC Building Code Step 3 performance requirements;
• In-suite metering for domestic heating and cooling, to help tenants manage their energy use;
• 27 net new trees to be planted on the site;
• Drought-tolerant plants; and,
• On-site stormwater management to mitigate runoff and drainage impacts on local infrastructure and streams.

The central Lonsdale development project comes after GWLRA developed the Bowline in lower Lonsdale in recent years.

Rendering: Courtesy of GWL Realty Advisors