Ivanhoé Cambridge has unveiled plans to develop 15 new multi-family real estate towers on its Metropolis at Metrotown mall site in Burnaby, B.C..

The multi-family towers would contain 12,000 units and become the company’s first residential developments on the mall site. The suites would include condominium units and rental apartments, with 20% available at below-market value.

Montreal-based Ivanhoé Cambridge has launched an engagement website designed to facilitate public consultation and feedback. The website contains a new Metropolis at Metrotown master plan, on which the company has collaborated with the city.

Plans call for the towers to be constructed on the mall’s southern side. The new towers would be part of the first phase built over the next 30 years. Ultimately, Ivanhoé Cambridge plans to convert the enclosed mall into a much more walkable indoor-outdoor retail centre.

With the city’s approval and assistance, nearby north-south streets will be extended through the mall site, reducing vehicle traffic congestion and bottlenecks that currently plague the area during peak periods. (Ivanhoé Cambridge envisions that, in the future, most automobiles accessing the mall will be shared self-driven vehicles, and the redevelopment’s design seeks to maximize their benefits.)

The interrupted north-south streets also contribute to heavy foot traffic congestion to foot traffic congestion near the SkyTrain station. The mall and station are connected by an elevated walkway. However, to access the mall at street level in that area, pedestrians must pass through an often crowded bus loop.

Ivanhoé Cambridge is one of two owners of the mall site, along with Vancouver-based Concord Pacific. As Connect has reported, the companies are partnering on five approved towers, to be located on the site’s north side.

That project’s first phase involves two mixed-use towers that are now under construction. The buildings are slated to stand 49 and 40 storeys, according to the Burnaby Now.

The second phase is slated to include a 58-storey structure containing strata, market rental and non-market rental residential units above restaurant and retail spaces; a 60-storey market multi-family rental tower and a 47-storey office/hospitality building.

Rendering: Ivanhoé Cambridge

Image Credit: Concord Pacific and Ivanhoé Cambridge