With the approval of a new community plan this week, the stage is now set for the Royal Oak neighbourhood of Burnaby to undergo significant redevelopment and densification.
The Royal Oak neighbourhood spans approximately 554 acres located between the well-established Metrotown neighbourhood to the west and the burgeoning Edmonds neighbourhood to the east.
The neighbourhood is a historic one thanks to Kingsway, a road that was constructed way back in 1860 and now runs from the boundary with New Westminster all the way through Burnaby and East Vancouver to Main Street and Broadway.
Other main arterial roads include the namesake Royal Oak Avenue that runs north-south through the entire neighbourhood, as well as Imperial Street, which runs east-west through the entire neighbourhood.
According to the City of Burnaby, Royal Oak was home to about 6% of Burnaby's population as of the 2021 Census. From a land use perspective, as of 2024, the neighbourhood has a mix of uses comprised of 56% single-family residential, 14% industrial, 12% public use, 11% multi-family and mixed-use, 7% commercial, and 1% institutional.
The Royal Oak Community Plan
The new community plan, however, envisions significant changes, with low-rise apartment buildings or higher allowed in a majority of the neighbourhood, with the highest densities concentrated around two nodes. For planning purposes, the neighbourhood is envisioned as having six districts: Village Centre, Station Area, Creative Employment, Royal Oak North, Royal Oak West, and Royal Oak South.
The two nodes and six districts under the Royal Oak Community Plan. / City of Burnaby
The Village Centre district is home to one of the two mixed-use nodes: the intersection of Royal Oak Avenue and Kingsway, where up to 30 storeys will be allowed at the northeast corner of the intersection. That allowance is specific to what is currently just a handful of parcels that are owned by a grand total of two owners.
The most prominent site is 5235 Kingsway, located at the corner of Kingsway and Royal Oak Avenue. This parcel and the 6440 Royal Oak Avenue to the north are currently vacant after the Safeway that previously occupied the site was demolished several years ago. The two parcels, along with the adjacent 5280 Irving Street parcel, are beneficially owned by Toronto-based Origin Merchant Partners under Origin Royal Oak Nominee Inc.
The other parcel where up to 30 storeys is being allowed is the parcel to the east, 5335 Kingsway, a 2.8-acre single parcel that is currently occupied by a Wholesale Club, the Costco-like chain owned by Loblaws. The property is owned by Arbutus Properties Ltd.
Directly to the east is then 5367 and 5411 Kingsway, a 2.7-acre site occupied by a Best Western that was recently acquired by Bosa Properties. Under the Royal Oak Community Plan, the Best Western site allows for heights up to 20 storeys, a height that will also be allowed for the properties on the south side of Kingsway, which currently consists of low-rise commercial buildings. One project is already underway here, however. At 5292-5318 Kingsway, Porte Communities is developing a six-storey project called Olive that has already received third reading (conditional approval).
A concept sketch of the Kingsway-Royal Oak Avenue intersection. / City of Burnaby
The second node is the Expo Line SkyTrain's Royal Oak Station, located at the intersection of Royal Oak Avenue and Beresford Street. Notably, despite being home to the station, this node allows less height than the Village Centre node, as residential buildings up to only 20 storeys are envisioned for this node.
The area immediately around the station is currently occupied by primarily single-family residential, although a few low-rise residential and low-rise mixed-use buildings have been constructed in recent years, such as the six-storey non-market rental building at 6889 Royal Oak Avenue with 134 units that was recently completed through Burnaby's City Lands for Non-Market Housing program.
However, this node is much larger than the Village Centre node, as it includes most of the properties between the SkyTrain guideway and Imperial Street, and 20 storeys will be allowed for most of this area. This area along Imperial Street is currently occupied by many old commercial properties, making it prime for redevelopment.
One layer removed from each of the two nodes, including the entire area between the two nodes, which are separated by just a few blocks, residential buildings up to 12 storeys will be allowed — although 12-storey buildings are an uncommon building form in Metro Vancouver. This in-between area is also home to many old commercial buildings, a few of which are already being redeveloped as part of Wanson Group's six-storey Nido project at 6632, 6660, and 6692 Royal Oak Avenue, which received final approval in January.
The land use map and designations under the Royal Oak Community Plan. / City of Burnaby
Continuing along Imperial Street towards the east is then the Creative Employment District, bounded by Kingsway on the north, Gilley Avenue on the east, Beresford Street on the south, and Macpherson Avenue on the west. This area is currently an industrial area with numerous car dealerships and auto-repair facilities, among other industrial uses, and is being retained as an employment district within the Royal Oak neighbourhood.
Although this was the proposed plan for the area when the City of Burnaby first began working on the Royal Oak Community Plan in 2023, this area has seen several properties either sold or listed for sale since then. That includes the small retail square at 5900 Kingsway, the Fountain Tire at 5850 Kingsway, and the Midas at 5788 Kingsway.
Outside of the three aforementioned districts, residential buildings between six and eight storeys will be allowed for a majority of the three remaining districts. Most of these districts are currently occupied by single-family residential, such as the area north of Kingsway, where a five-lot land assembly at 6229-6311 Denbigh Avenue was recently listed for $20.5 million.
Under the new plan, low-rise residential such as townhouses and multiplexes are envisioned to be concentrated on the outskirts of the neighbourhood, near several existing parks.
The Royal Oak Community Plan was approved by Burnaby City Council on March 25, but — as with most planning documents — it will be a living document that may be amended in the future. Those amendments could be introduced to align with shifting priorities or trends, or when the City updates its Official Community Plan and City-wide zoning bylaw, both of which are expected to happen this year.
