Commercial Property

In a joint venture, DiamondCorp and Kilmer Group are teaming up to restore and redevelop Chester Public School in East York — an 1891 brick school house designated under the Ontario Heritage Act. The redevelopment would preserve certain elements of the historic building while delivering a 26-storey mixed-use condo development with over 300 new residential units, retail at grade, and a new public park.

Plans were filed in early September and comprise an Official Plan Amendment (OPA) and Zoning By-law Amendment (ZBA) application to permit the newly proposed height, density, and uses on site. This application follows previous approvals for the site granted in February 2023 in favour of a 14- and four-storey mixed-use development containing 207 residential units, and aims to build upon those plans in light of recent planning framework developments.

The race is on between Vancouver and Surrey to see which City's development entity has the biggest projects and the latest round goes to the Surrey City Development Corporation (SCDC), which was revived in 2023 and recently submitted a rezoning application for a big four-tower project. (The Vancouver Housing Development Office will also be unveiling a four-tower project soon.)

The subject site of the SCDC's proposal is located at the southwest corner of 108 Avenue and University Drive, immediately west of the Expo Line SkyTrain's Gateway Station. The site currently consists of 10744 133 Street, 10725-10757 University Drive, and 13310-13350 108 Avenue and spans approximately 5.7 acres. The site makes up most of the block bounded by 108 Avenue on the north, University Drive on the east, the Whalley Athletic Park on the south, and 133 Street on the west, save for the two Citypoint towers at the northeast corner of the site developed by Century Group.