Two new highrises in Central Park area approved by Burnaby council

City council has officially approved two new highrise developments in the Central Park area.

The developments, owned by Polygon, will occupy two separate parcels of land on Olive Avenue just east of Central Park and very close to Patterson SkyTrain Station.

Presales for the first development, Perla at 5900 Olive Ave., have already begun.

The building will house 339 strata units and 118 rental units in a separate building, 71 of which will be non-market rentals. The nearby development at 5868 Olive, meanwhile, will have 261 strata units, 47 non-market rental units, and one market rental unit.

Previously, there were low-rise buildings on the lots dating back to 1967 and 1970 that house a combined 118 rental units.

The low-rise building at 5900 Olive Ave. has already been demolished, while the one at 5868 Olive Ave. is still occupied.

A report to city council from October 2021 notes that staff allowed Polygon to transfer density from another project located at 6438 Byrnepark Dr., allowing for additional rental units to be built on Olive Avenue.

The area is a hotbed for residential development at the moment, with new highrises coming up along the length of Wilson Avenue to the rear of Olive Avenue. Those developments include Central Park House, owned by Bosa Properties, and NOVU by Anthem Properties.

A public hearing on the developments in November of 2021 heard concerns about the level of construction in the area from several residents, including one from the low-rise building directly between the two new Polygon sites—who wrote in a letter that they would now be surrounded by construction on all sides.

“I am guessing that this is a phenomenon which the developers have never, themselves, personally experienced while living in any of their domiciles and so they cannot imagine how peace-destroying that degree of nearby noise can be, or how unnerving the demolition of one’s neighbourhood can be,” wrote that resident to city council.

Another resident wrote to council that, while they appreciate the need for increased density in the quickly growing Metrotown neighbourhood, they hoped that strata and rental units wouldn’t be “segregated” in separate buildings in the Polygon developments.

Currently, new multi-family residential developments in Burnaby are required under the Rental Use Zoning Policy to reserve at least 20% of units for below-market rentals. Rental units in old buildings torn down for new developments must also be replaced at a 1:1 ratio, and tenants returned to their units will pay the same amount in rent that they paid prior to the new development.