Here’s what’s on the agenda at Burnaby’s Mar 21 city council meeting

Hear ye, hear ye! City council will meet to discuss the doings of our town on Monday eve at 5pm. And it is our job as the evolution of town criers to keep you, the townspeople, aware of their actions and words.

Here’s a few items on Monday night’s council agenda that we’ll be keeping an eye on.

Gettin’ high on a government supply

Burnaby could soon be home to a few more BC Cannabis Store locations. The first location in the city, at Old Orchard Shopping Centre near Metrotown, opened last October.

Now, the BC Liquor Distribution Branch is looking to open up another BC Cannabis Store at 9861 Austin Rd, inside Lougheed Town Centre. The proposed hours of operation at the store would be 9am-9pm Monday-Saturday, and 10am-7pm on Sundays.

If council approves, the proposed rezoning will proceed to a public hearing on April 26.

Council will also make a final decision on a proposed government cannabis store in the area of Market Crossing, at Marine Dr and Byrne Rd.

Brentwood high-rises

The corner of Douglas Rd and Springer Ave could be the site of another addition to the Brentwood skyline. Architecture firm Chris Dikeakos Architects has proposed a new development on the site that would include a 47-storey high-rise tower, live/work townhouses, garden plots, a pet run, and an outdoor dining area and kitchen.

74 of the development’s 357 proposed units would be considered non-market rentals, including 45 where the rent would be set 20% below the CMHC median market rates.

A rezoning bylaw will be prepared and advanced to first reading on April 4, and the planning and development committee is asking for council’s approval to proceed to public hearing on the 26th.

Childcare at work

Mara + Natha Architecture Ltd. has submitted an application proposing a licensed childcare centre on the fifth floor of Metrotower 2, one of the office buildings attached to Metropolis at Metrotown.

The space would have 147 spaces for infants, toddlers and preschool aged children, although Fraser Health would have final say over the actual capacity should the project be approved.

The fifth floor has a podium deck that the applicants say would be converted into an outdoor play space for the children, and pick up and drop off would happen on the top level of the parkade.

The planning and development committee first submitted a report to council on the project last October—now, the applicant has brought a plan of development suitable enough to bring to a public hearing. If council approves, that will happen on April 26 as well.