Residents of a 91原创 City neighbourhood are up in arms about plans to build a 302-unit apartment building on land owned by a local church and the municipality.
The proposed project, in partnership with BC Builds, would include 60 apartment units rented at below-market rates, a daycare with space for about 50 infants to pre-school aged kids and 24 after school spaces, 6,458 square feet of commercial space, and a new church and community hall.
The apartment building would be six storeys tall.
The site lies along 200 Street between 49 and 50 Avenues, with the south end occupied by the current Church of the Nazarene building, and the north end by several houses.
The surrounding neighbourhood is filled with single-family homes.
A number of the nearby residents have banded together to petition against the project, and as of early April had collected 522 signatures, said Louise Robertson.
"We have a number of different concerns, traffic being one of the major ones," she said.
With traffic up 200 Street already busy and multiple traffic lights in a short stretch, locals are worried about the impact of all the new residents.
Robertson also raised school overcrowding at the elementary, middle school, and high school level.
Another issue is the size of the building.
"Six storeys is just way too big," said Robertson. Locals living nearby are worried about loss of privacy from the taller structures.
The current maximum height for buildings in the area is three storeys, and the City council will have to amend local zoning rules to allow the project to go forward.
Neighbour Birgit Engen noted that the community plan allows for townhouses.
"That was accepted," she said.
The possibility of building housing on the site goes back two years, said Rev. Gordon McCann, district superintendent for the Canadian Pacific District of the Church of the Nazarene.
"We began having a conversation about it in 2023, and it was really borne out of a desire to be better stewards of the land we have there," McCann said.
He noted that the church has been on that site since the late 1960s, and the church itself goes back to 1948.
The church itself is a relatively modest building, which currently has a main congregation of about 70 people, with Spanish and English services, and a newer, secondary Congolese congregation.
Despite the small, older building, it occupied a decent-sized piece of property. The church was looking into building non-profit housing at the same time that BC Builds was looking for partners for projects.
McCann said he understands concerns about issues such as traffic, and noted that the church has hired traffic experts whose work will have to be signed off by the City.
He was concerned with misinformation about the project 鈥� among other issues, there have been claims by neighbours that the daycare would be only for residents of the apartment building, which is not true. In addition, he noted that the project is non-profit, not meant to make money.
The new building will also have a space for the congregation to gather. McCann said during development process, that space has re-imagined as more of a community hub, with space for other local groups as well.
According to a post by 91原创 City Mayor Nathan Pachal on his blog, the goal of BC Builds below-market housing projects is to create lower-cost rental housing for middle-income workers like teachers, nurses, and tradespeople.
BC Builds projects have to make at least 20 per cent of their units available at 20 per cent below market rates.
Average rent in 91原创 as of late 2024 was $1,892, according to data collected by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
The City council is scheduled to have a public hearing on the proposal of Monday, April 7 starting at 7 p.m. at City hall. Both neighbours and McCann said they plan to speak.
The next chance after that for City council to debate and vote on the third reading of rezoning bylaws for the site would be Monday, April 28.
