Latest news with #99B-Line
Global News
11-06-2025
- Business
- Global News
Trio of towers next to Commercial-Broadway station approved
Vancouver city council has approved a rezoning application for a contentious housing development next to one of the region's busiest transit hubs. The approval comes after nearly a decade of proposals, pushback and debate for the site adjacent to the Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain station. The approved plan will see a Safeway supermarket and large parking lot redeveloped into 1,044 rental homes in three towers with heights of 44, 38 and 37 storeys. View image in full screen A rendering of the trio of proposed towers for Commercial and Broadway in Vancouver. City of Vancouver The approval comes about a month after a public hearing that saw about 100 people turn out to speak, with passionate feelings on both sides. Story continues below advertisement On Tuesday, the proposal passed, with Mayor Ken Sim and most councillors in support. COPE Coun. Sean Orr voted against the rezoning, while Green Coun. Pete Fry abstained. 'I worry that we are giving the developer double the height and we're not seeing the public benefits that we could be seeing at the site,' Orr said during the debate. 2:14 Drastic changes made to Broadway-Commercial Safety redevelopment plan Under the rezoning approved Tuesday, 10 per cent of the rental units will be held at the citywide average of market rates, while the remainder will be leased at going market rates. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy During the public hearing, the affordability of the rentals planned for the development was a key point of contention for project opponents. Critics called for the development to mirror rules under the Broadway Plan, which require 20 per cent of units to be held at 20 per cent below market rates. Story continues below advertisement ABC Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung said the city simply needs more rental housing of all types. 'These are not condos that are going to stay empty,' she told council. 'These are rental homes that people are going to live in. They're not affordable for everybody, but they are more affordable than other options.' Some supporters argued that the project actually doesn't go far enough, noting that it is adjacent to the hub of two SkyTrain lines and the busy 99 B-Line bus route. 2:05 Public hearings on controversial East Vancouver development postponed again It's an argument that appears to have held sway with the mayor and councillors. 'It's by the third busiest transit hub in the region, so it just makes sense that we build there,' Sim said. Story continues below advertisement Councillors also approved an amendment aimed at maximizing public access to a 12,000-square-foot courtyard space in the project. The decision comes after years of back and forth and controversy about a development at the site. Previous drafts that faced local pushback were focused on condos rather than rentals, and included a version with two towers, the tallest of them 24 storeys, and a 2022 version that envisioned a pair of towers with one reaching 30 storeys. That version nearly made it to a public hearing in 2022, but was sidelined by the 2022 municipal election.
Global News
03-06-2025
- Business
- Global News
B.C. gives behind-the-scenes look at the Broadway subway, still aiming for 2027 launch
It's still more than two years from coming into service, but there's no question Vancouver's Broadway subway is starting to take shape. The province offered the public a sneak peek behind the scenes on the $2.95 billion project, which will see the SkyTrain Millennium line extended from its current terminus of VCC-Clark station to Arbutus Street on the city's west side. 'This line alone will be able to carry at any one time more than three times the capacity of the 99 B-Line, so it is going to be a significant improvement,' Transportation Minister Mike Farnworth said. 4:12 Impact on businesses as Broadway subway extension faces delays 'When this is complete with this project and the completion of the Surrey-Langley SkyTrain project, that is going to increase the capacity of the SkyTrain system by more than 27 per cent.' Story continues below advertisement Once complete, the 5.7-kilometre extension will whisk passengers from VCC-Clark to Arbutus Station in about 11 minutes. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The massive project is currently employing some 750 tradespeople, many of them currently working on the extension's six three-level underground stations. Crews finished boring the subway's twin five-kilometre tunnels last spring; those tunnels are now clad in concrete and the current focus is on laying track, which is being hauled in in 400-metre lengths. Work on the subway began in 2020, with an initial target completion date of 2025. The completion date has since been pushed back to the fall of 2027, with the province citing a variety of factors including the COVID-19 pandemic, a five-week concrete strike, and unexpected challenges with tunnel boring. 1:48 Completion dates for Broadway subway, Pattullo Bridge pushed back 'Whenever a tunnel-boring machine's going through, there're always issues that come along the way that … slow it down a bit,' Farnworth said. Story continues below advertisement 'We're still on time for the fall of 2027.' Extending the line from Arbutus to UBC remains a priority for TransLink, which has included the concept in the second half of its latest 10-year plan. However, despite support from the university and the City of Vancouver, that extension remains unfunded with no specific cash commitment from either the provincial or federal governments.
