Skeena Terrace redevelopment moves to rezoning

VANCOUVER, B.C. — Efforts to redevelop Vancouver’s aging Skeena Terrace site have reached a critical milestone.

City council has approved the project’s policy statement and design approach. The project team can now enter its next phase, the submission of a rezoning application by BC Housing.

The policy statement will guide the rezoning application and contains guiding principles, objectives and policies related to:

Housing affordability
Tenant-first engagement
Land use, height and density public benefits, transportation and mobility
Sustainability
Development phasing

The city stated redevelopment of the site will provide social housing for a wide range of household types, ages, mobility and income levels, and will increase affordable family-oriented housing in the Hastings-Sunrise area.

Sixty-six per cent of the redevelopment’s homes will rent at or below the BC Housing Housing Income Limits and will be rented at no more than 30 per cent of gross household income.

Redevelopment will also provide new community-serving spaces, child care spaces, and walking, rolling, and cycling connections that are well-integrated into the neighbourhood, creating an affordable, sustainable and vibrant community.

Part of the rezoning application phase includes giving the community an opportunity to provide input once the formal application is submitted. Residents are encouraged to visit the project website for important updates and how they can get involved.

Skeena Terrace sits on a 10.8-acre site located at 2108 Cassiar St. in the Hastings Sunrise area and is owned and operated by BC Housing.

Plans to redevelop the site came as it was discovered that buildings and infrastructure at Skeena Terrace are aging and need extensive and ongoing repairs.

The redevelopment will also give the city the opportunity to improve energy-efficient and sustainability requirements.

Existing tenants will be protected by the Tenant Relocation and Protection Policy and offered priority, such as right-of-first-refusal to a new affordable home at Skeena Terrace.

BC Housing plans to try and minimize the displacement of existing tenants by phasing the redevelopment work.