The City of Vancouver has received a proposal for a multi-tower development that would add a substantial amount of social housing to the city, according to a rezoning application published on Friday.
The subject site of the proposal is 8080 Yukon Street in the Marpole neighbourhood. The 1.9-acre site, situtated about one block away from Marine Gateway and the Canada Line SkyTrain's Marine Drive Station, is bounded by Yukon Street on the west, a rear lane on the north, a rear lane and single-family homes on the east, and SW Marine Drive on the south.
BC Assessment values the site at $6,164,000 and the property is co-owned by the Kiwanis Club of Vancouver — an organization dedicated to improving the lives of children — and Soroptimist International of Vancouver — an organization dedicated to improving the lives of women and girls — under Kiwanis-Soroptimist (1974) Senior Citizens Housing Society.
The 8080 Yukon Street site is currently occupied by a large three-storey apartment complex called Southwynd Place, which was originally constructed in 1976 and houses 90 units of seniors housing.
The 8080 Yukon Street site (left) and the layout of the proposed buildings (right). / GBL Architects, Kiwanis Club of Vancouver, Soroptimist International of Vancouver
For the site, the Kiwanis Club and Soroptomist International have proposed three high-rise towers and one low-rise building that would together deliver 847 social housing units split between 255 units provided at rates below Housing Income Limits (HILs) as defined by BC Housing and 592 units provided at rates above HILs rates. The proposal has a floor space ratio (density) of 6.99 and a maximum height of 312 ft. The site is currently zoned CD-1 (Comprehensive Development) and the applicants are seeking to rezone the site to a new CD-1 zone.
The redevelopment would see a six-storey Building One constructed at the northeast corner of the site and deliver 123 seniors social housing units — 113 studio units and 10 one-bedroom units — split between 37 below-HILs units and 86 above-HILs units. The 20-storey Building Two would then sit at the northwest corner of the site and deliver 200 social housing units — 41 studio units, 89 one-bedroom units, and 70 two-bedroom units — split between 60 below-HILs units and 140 above-HILs units.
The 32-storey Building Three, the tallest of the four buildings, would then rise at the southwest corner of the site and deliver 272 social housing units — 58 studio units, 118 one-bedroom units, 95 two-bedroom units, and one three-bedroom unit — split between 82 below-HILs units and 190 above-HILs units. Finally, the 28-storey Building Four would be constructed at the southeast corner of the site and deliver 252 social housing units — 82 studio units, 80 one-bedroom units, 68 two-bedroom units, and 22 three-bedroom units — split between 76 below-HILs units and 176 above-HILs units.
In terms of parking, the proposal is for 207 vehicle parking spaces and 1,266 bicycle parking spaces that would be housed in a three-level underground parkade shared by all four buildings.
The Southwynd Place redevelopment, from north looking south. / GBL Architects, Kiwanis Club of Vancouver, Soroptimist International of Vancouver
A ground-level view of the Southwynd Place redevelopment, from along SW Marine Drive. / GBL Architects, Kiwanis Club of Vancouver, Soroptimist International of Vancouver
"Within a city dealing with an affordable housing crisis, Southwynd Place Redevelopment is an unparalleled opportunity to deliver large-scale social housing at the Cambie & Marine transit station, to be developed, owned, and delivered by a non-profit society in perpetuity," the applicants said in their rezoning application. "This project will deliver affordable housing for seniors, single-parent and low-income families, and workforce housing desperately needed in our city."
Serving as the development manager of the project is Purpose Driven Developments, who is also working with Soroptimist International of Vancouver on a women's housing project at 550 W 13th Avenue in Vancouver. Serving as the architect is GBL Architects.
The project is expected to be constructed in two phases, with Phase One focusing on the two northern buildings and Phase Two focusing on the two southern buildings. According to the rezoning application, the existing building would need to be entirely demolished first. The applicants are proposing that the tenants of the existing building be relocated to the aforementioned project at 550 W 13th Avenue, which broke ground in December 2023 and is expected to be completed prior to the demolition of Southwynd Place.
The public space between the four buildings. / GBL Architects, Kiwanis Club of Vancouver, Soroptimist International of Vancouver
A ground-level rendering of the Southwynd Place redevelopment. / GBL Architects, Kiwanis Club of Vancouver, Soroptimist International of Vancouver
According to the development team, they intend to seek financing for the project from the City of Vancouver's Community Housing Incentive Program (CHIP), the CMHC's Affordable Housing Fund, the CMHC's Apartment Construction Loan Program, Vancity, BC Housing, BC Builds, and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities' Green Municipal Fund. "Financing will be confirmed through a parallel process to the City's regulatory approval process," the applicants said.
The project has been in the works since as early as June 2023, when the applicants submitted a rezoning letter of enquiry. Since then, working in conjunction with City staff, the project has shifted from mixed-use to 100% residential, the height of Building Two was increased, and the massing of each building has been slightly revised.
The applicants say they are targeting a 7.5-month timeline to achieve rezoning in order to meet lender requirements and unlock funding from some of the aforementioned lenders. Following rezoning approval, the project will then be guided by individual development applications for each building.
The City of Vancouver has yet to set a Q&A period for the rezoning application. The proposal is one of the larger social housing proposals the City has seen in recent years. It is also located near the Ashley Mar redevelopment — which has since been renamed Signal — by Oxford Properties and Intracorp, which includes one of the largest co-op developments in Canada.
