Affordable housing project may get an extra 230 units

At the City of Burnaby’s Planning and Development Committee (PDC) meeting on Feb. 12, a delegation from BC Housing proposed adding more height and units to an affordable housing development approved in 2021. The property in question was Stratford Gardens at 6005 Pandora St., a building dating back to 1972 which houses seniors and people with disabilities. 

According to a staff report about the rezoning proposal, “The development is near the end of its life cycle, with one building having already been demolished after being damaged by fire. BC Housing proposes to replace the original 126 units and add approximately 230 additional affordable purpose-built rental units for seniors, couples, individuals, and families.”

An amendment to the city’s official community plan (OCP) will be required to allow for the extra density. BC Housing applied for rezoning for a multi-family development of up to six storeys. 

“As the proposed rezoning is inconsistent with the existing single and two-family urban land use designation, an OCP amendment is required,” the report said. “The proposed OCP amendment would change the designation of the subject site to Suburban Multi-Family Community, which is characterized by low-density multi-family residential housing, including townhouses and garden apartments.”

During the PDC meeting, the BC Housing delegates explained how the new development would help provide much-needed affordable housing in the community. 

“At 6005 Pandora St., located in the Capitol Hill neighbourhood, BC Housing is exploring a very well-designed six-storey form of development, five levels at the street edge that will allow BC Housing to replace 126 rent peer-to-income homes for people living with very low income in one building under direct BC Housing management, and create the opportunity for approximately an additional 365 homes to accommodate a wider mix of working families with rents affordable for moderate incomes, up to market rent levels,” said Nicholas Hardy, BC Housing development manager during the presentation. 

The delegates also said that BC Housing consulted with the community and will take concerns into account in developing the site, including concerns about the height of the development affecting the light and views of the single-family homes in the area. 

However, some concerns were not clearly addressed in the proposal, although they were alluded to. 

“The rumour that was going around is that there were going to be a large number of people with addiction that were going to be housed there, and that scares people,” said Coun. Pietro Calendino. 

The proposal will now go to council for approval and once approved, construction is scheduled to start in 2027. 

“We could, in theory, start construction shovels in the ground at some point in 2027, so there is funding available now to deliver and start the project,” Hardy said. “It would be a phased development built out over maybe eight years, depending on market conditions.”

This piece was made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.

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