Biggest development in Port Coquitlam gets green light

The biggest project in Port Coquitlam crossed its final hurdle on Tuesday night.

One year after it was formally approved, council adopted the zoning bylaw that will allow construction to start on two approximately 300-foot tall towers and 556 housing units on six lots at Westwood Street and Woodland Drive.

Despite coming before council during election season and representing the greatest amount of densification the city has seen, the project was not particularly controversial, noted Coun. Darrell Penner on Oct. 10.

“The only person to speak against it was a lady from Coquitlam that wanted to save the trees because she liked to come down here to walk because the city she lived in, they took the trees down.”

Approximately 100 trees set to be chopped down to make room for the project, according to a staff report. Despite some new street trees and a pocket park, the development is expected to result in a net loss of about 60 trees.

While the schedule is tentative, a representative from Mosaic said the plan is to have the south tower ready for occupancy by the spring of 2027.

Expected to house between 850 and 1,000 residents, the site was formerly occupied by four houses.

Besides the towers, the project also includes a row of three-storey townhouses fronting Woodland Drive as well as a 1,485 square foot park that would take shape near Woodland Drive and the Anson Avenue extension.

Discussing the project in 2022, Mayor Brad West touted the site as being ideal for higher density.

“Currently, you could not get any closer to a SkyTrain station than this particular site,” West said, noting the project is about 400 metres from Lincoln SkyTrain station.

The south tower is set to be 30 storeys or 311 feet with 292 apartments and four townhouses fronting Woodland Drive.

Floor area ratio, which measures a building’s total floor area against its lot size – is set to be 5.65.

The north tower is set to be 28 storeys, or approximately 288 feet, with 264 apartments and 7,158 square feet of commercial space fronting Westwood. FAR is set at 6.1.

Cash on the table

In total, Mosaic would be on the hook for approximately $14.8 million in exchange for approximately 296,963 square feet of extra density.

Breakdown

• Studio/one-bedroom units: 316 (including 98 one-bedroom apartments with dens)
• Two-bedroom units: 196 (including 98 with dens)
• Three-bedroom units: 40
• Townhouses: 4
• Strata ownership apartments: 486
• Non-market rental units: 49
• Market rental units: 21
• Parking spots: 660

Unit size ranges from 401 square feet for a studio to 1,579 square feet for a townhouse.

Parking and traffic

The project includes a plan to extend Anson Avenue east toward Westwood Drive and to put two new left-turn lanes on Westwood.

A 1,485 square foot park is set to be built near Woodland Drive and the Anson Avenue extension.

A traffic assessment based on the addition of 282 new units and 480 residents estimated the project would put another 102 cars on the road during afternoon rush hour, according to draft by Binnie and Associates.

The project includes a total of 660 parking stalls.