Harbourside receives favourable Council vote

Thank you to everyone who has shown their support for Concert’s Harbourside in North Vancouver. Leading up to our recent Public Hearing, many wrote letters of support to the City and a number also took the time to attend the hearing and speak in favour of the project. At a recent Council meeting a favourable vote was cast for Harbourside’s rezoning application (second and third reading). Rezoning enactment will follow finalization of necessary agreements with the City. 

The next step in the process is for Concert to advance the design development for phase one of the community in order to ultimately submit a development permit application. Concurrently, a City-led parks planning process with the community will serve to re-evaluate Kings Mill Walk park and determine the programming for the additional park space which Concert is dedicating to the City. 

We look forward to taking the next steps on Harbourside and realizing our vision for the creation of an animated waterfront community in North Vancouver. 

Harbourside progress update: Oct 19 – Nov 28

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

First Reading

Concert has been working collaboratively with the City of North Vancouver to finalize details related to the Harbourside Waterfront development. That means revising the rezoning application based on feedback received at the Town Hall meeting, updating the development permit area guidelines, drafting the rezoning bylaw and deciding upon Concert’s community amenity contributions. Once finalized, we anticipate that our application will be put before Council for a “first reading” prior to the holidays.

Public Hearing

Once Concert’s application has had a first reading, it can proceed to a Public Hearing. Anticipated for early 2014, this will be Council’s opportunity to hear presentations from City staff, Concert and other stakeholders who have an opinion on the rezoning proposal. Following the Public Hearing, Council will make a decision on Concert’s application.

Harbourside progress update: Sept 8 – Oct 18

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Town Hall Meeting

On the night of September 30, Concert held a Town Hall Meeting as a way of providing further public engagement. For a complete recap of the event, click here.

Finalization of DPA guidelines
The revised Development Permit Area (DPA) guidelines for Harbourside have now been finalized and resubmitted to the City on October 9. DPA guidelines control the form and character of a development in addition to regulating the look and feel of the surrounding public realm. This document will be submitted to Council for review and consideration at Harbourside’s Public Hearing. 

  

Rezoning Application submission

While Concert’s application to the City to amend their Official Community Plan (OCP) was approved in July of 2012, an application for rezoning is required prior to submitting individual development permit applications. Following the recent Town Hall Meeting, the Harbourside team refined the rezoning application and resubmitted it to the City on October 10. The rezoning application aligns with the amended OCP and proposes significant public amenities. To learn more about the proposed amenities, click here.

  

Additional parking under construction
Having secured City approval for a “temporary use permit” to allow for the development of 50 on-site parking stalls at the northwest portion of 925 Harbourside Drive, construction is now underway with completion targeted for early 2014. While the ultimate plan for Harbourside includes the permanent addition of approximately 50 on-site street parking stalls on a new internal street network, these temporary stalls will alleviate demand through pre-development and construction.

Stakeholder meetings

In an effort to continuously engage the organizations within and adjacent to Harbourside, the team met with representatives from Bodwell High School as well as the North Shore Automall in September. These meetings served as a forum for answering questions, gathering feedback and communicating where we are in the process.

Harbourside progress update: June 8 – July 9

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Transportation planning 
Our transportation consultants, Bunt & Associates, have recently conducted further on-site analysis of existing traffic flow at Harbourside. Specifically, they were observing and documenting traffic flow with an eye towards how the City of North Vancouver can best optimize the evening traffic outflow from Harbourside.

In addition to the work Bunt is doing, a dedicated transportation planner from the City will review their recommendations and ultimately oversee the holistic transportation plan at Harbourside which will include traffic, parking and transit service.

Reporting to Council
Concert is preparing to go to City Council on July 22 as a “delegation”. For those not familiar, the term delegation is used to define the formal process whereby an organization or individual appears before the Council; in our case it will be to check in and provide an update on our rezoning efforts.  

Development Permit Area Guidelines
The Development Permit Area (DPA) guidelines document has now been finalized and is with the City for their review before the Public Hearing, which is anticipated for Fall 2013. This document, which contains high-level guiding principles and goals for the development, has been created in collaboration with City staff, advisory bodies and Concert. 

Temporary use permit for additional parking
Concert’s application for a “temporary use permit” to allow for the development of 50 on-site parking stalls at the northwest portion of 925 Harbourside Drive has been approved. 

Harbourside on-site parking assessment - open house 
The City will be holding an open house on Thursday, July 18 to gather input that will help them in their investigation into options for improving on-street parking within the Harbourside area. The event is being held at Bodwell High School from 4:00pm to 7:00pm, for more information click here.

Harbourside progress update: May8 – June 7

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Continued dialogue with TransLink
Recognizing that good public transit service is integral to the success of any community, Concert has continued exploring options with TransLink for how to best increase transit service to Harbourside. Several ideas have been put forward including the introduction of a new bus route that would service Harbourside in addition to others who aren’t currently well-connected by transit (such as the Norgate comunity or SPAN). Concert is proud to have the distinction of being the first developer to be working collaboratively with TransLink to ensure the viability of transit usage prior to construction commencing. 

Development Permit Area Guidelines
City staff, advisory bodies and Concert have been working to finalize the Development Permit Area (DPA) guidelines document. These guidelines control the form and character of a development in addition to regulating the look and feel of the surrounding public realm.
For more information, click here to read the article we recently posted which discusses these guiding principles in detail. 

Timeline Update
Earlier this year we had been operating under the assumption that Concert would be able to bring Harbourside to a Town Hall meeting, and subsequently a Public Hearing in the Spring. However, the determination of the appropriate type and magnitude of community amenity contributions (CACs) have taken longer than expected. A plan for proposed CACs – things like parks, public art, rental housing, street upgrades and cash donations for Council’s discretionary use – must be finalized before the plan for Harbourside can go before either a Town Hall meeting or Public Hearing. It is anticipated that we will be able to schedule a Town Hall Meeting this Summer and then a Public Hearing for early Fall.  

Harbourside progress update: April 23 – May 7

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Temporary use permit for additional parking
The Harbourside development team recently applied for a “temporary use permit” which would allow for the development of 50 on-site parking stalls at the northwest portion of 925 Harbourside Drive. While the ultimate plan for Harbourside includes the permanent addition of approximately 50 on-site street parking stalls on a new international street network, these temporary spots will alleviate demand through pre-development and construction. The plan will be to phase out these temporary stalls as the permanent ones are constructed.      

Harbourside progress update: April 8 - April 22

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Sustainable Heating and Cooling
The Harbourside development team had a follow-up meeting with representatives from LEC (Londsdale Energy Corporation) and the City to further discuss the innovative proposal Concert submitted last month for sustainably managing heating and cooling demands. While further study is required, there is a strong commitment to working together to implement the most appropriate sustainably-minded solution for Harbourside. 

Public Transportation Planning
The team had another constructive meeting with Translink which covered important topics such as optimal bus stop placement and routing options to increase transit service to and from Harbourside. This positive meeting reinforced the commitment all parties share towards acting as partners while working towards the shared goal of enhancing accessibility and fostering a “transit-taking” culture at Harbourside.   

Community Amenity Contributions
Right from the outset of planning for a mixed-use Harbourside, significant community amenity contributions (CACs) have been planned – things like parks, public art, rental housing and street upgrades. The City has engaged Sandra Cawley of Burgess, Cawley, Sullivan & Associates to act as an independent, third-party mediator in assessing the methodology for calculating the CACs. Concert and the City will work together to finalize the CAC proposal in advance of Harbourside’s Town Hall Meeting. 

Harbourside progress update: March 19 - April 5

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Public art update

Since engaging Leesa Strimbiscki from Urban Art Management (UAM) as the art consultant for Harbourside, as mentioned in the Harbourside progress update: March 2-18, UAE, Concert and PWL Partnership have put together a preliminary Public Art Master Plan which has been submitted to the North Vancouver Public Art Advisory Committee (NVPAAC). The Public Art Master Plan identifies the vision and approach for public art at Harbourside. The concepts that underly the approach is to advance creative design through integrated and discrete pieces that celebrate the site and connect the community. The proposal will be presented on April 10 at the next NVPAAC meeting.

Harbourside progress update: March 2 – 18

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Public art 
Concert has engaged Leesa Strimbiscki, principle of Urban Art Management, as the public art consultant for Harbourside. In this capacity, Leesa will coordinate the creation of public art by local artists which will be integrated into Harbourisde’s public realm with the help of PWL, the project’s landscape architect. Throughout this process, the North Vancouver Public Art Advisory Committee (NVPAAC) will provide feedback and guidance. With such experienced consultants, this approach is sure to create dynamic public environments through the integration of public art into well-planned landscaping.

Click here to view Urban Art Management’s portfolio
Click here to view PWL’s portfolio 


Connecting to district energy
Concert has been working with the LEC (Lonsdale Energy Corporation) and the City of North Vancouver to develop an innovative heating and cooling system for Harbourside which is consistent with the sustainability targets of both Concert and the City. 

The Harbourside team has submitted a high-level proposal for consideration which will be further discussed in a follow-up meeting later this month. The proposal outlines how Harbourside would utilize geothermal technology and incorporate energy trading between buildings, measures which are expected to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions associated with heating and cooling. By utilizing an ambient loop system of energy distribution, this approach capitalizes on the fact that Harbourside would be a mixed-use community. Because commercial tenants require the most heating/cooling during the workday and residential tenants require the most heating/cooling in the evenings, it becomes possible to reap the many benefits of an ambient loop system. 

If approved, this system would ultimately be owned by the LEC and provide the residents of Harbourside with among the “greenest” heating/cooling on the North Shore. 

Harbourside progress update: February 18 – March 1

A summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Meetings with ACDI & ADP

With the support of the Integrated Transportation Committee (ITC), Advisory Planning Committee (APC) and Parks and Environment Advisory Committee (PEAC), the team recently met again with the remaining two advisory bodies to review comments previously made and to provide further information. 

The team received the unanimous support of both the Advisory Committee on Disability Issues (ACDI) and the Advisory Design Panel (ADP) as well as constructive feedback. Although not a requirement, Concert has made a commitment to continue meeting with ACDI throughout the various development permit stages to ensure they are able to provide meaningful input. 

We are pleased to now have the support of all five advisory bodies as we move into the rezoning process. 


Finalization of DPA guidelines

The team circulated a second draft of the Development Permit Area (DPA) guidelines document to City staff and the various advisory bodies for their review early in February. Having had a chance to meet individually with each advisory body again, the team is now working to incorporate their feedback. Once completed, City staff will finalize the document for Council’s consideration at the future Public Hearing. 

DPA guidelines control the form and character of a development in addition to regulating the look and feel of the surrounding public realm.

This week at Harbourside: week ending February 15

A weekly summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Follow-up meetings with APC & PEAC
This week the team had follow-up meetings with two City advisory bodies to address comments they had previously received. 

In meetings with both the Advisory Planning Commission (APC) as well as the Parks and Environment Committee (PEAC), Concert received support for their rezoning application. APC commended the team on the commercial component of their plan and supported the “splaying” of buildings to optimize views. PEAC encouraged Concert to continue striving for sustainability excellence and maintain efforts to manage parking at Harbourside for the benefit of park users. 

With the support of the Integrated Transportation Committee (ITC), APC and PEAC, the team will meet again with the remaining two advisory bodies next week.

This week at Harbourside: week ending February 8

Addressing issues raised by advisory bodies

This week the team met internally to work on responses to comments from various City advisory bodies they met with last month. Some of these include:

• Widening of view corridors.
• Exploring further storm water management solutions.
• Clarifying the phasing of commercial space.
• Working with neighbouring tenants to improve ambient lighting.
• Clarifying public realm enhancements.
• Encouraging Concert to work with City staff to finalize the Spirit Trail connection between Harbourside and Lonsdale Quay.

Meetings are scheduled for next week with three of the advisory bodies to address these comments.

Revisions to DPA guidelines

The team completed the second draft of the Development Permit Area (DPA) guidelines document this week. These guidelines control the form and character of a development in addition to regulating the look and feel of the surrounding public realm.

The second draft has now been circulated to both City staff and advisory bodies for their review prior to finalization. Once finalized, the document will be submitted to City Council for consideration. 

This week at Harbourside: week ending February 1

A weekly summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Meetings with ACDI
In December 2012 Concert made a group presentation to five City of North Vancouver advisory bodies. After having met individually with four of the five advisory bodies in January, the team met with the Advisory Committee on Disability Issues (ACDI) this Thursday. Their presentation outlined the specifics of Concert’s vision for universal accessibility within Harbourside which entails the inclusion of adaptable homes for persons with disabilities (25% minimum). The team also addressed inquires regarding beach access, underground and at-grade parking, and how navigation along Harbourside Drive would be impacted for persons with disabilities given sea level rise mitigation strategies. The ACDI has recommended their comments be referred to their sub-committee which specializes in real estate development. 

This week at Harbourside: week ending January 25

A weekly summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Harbourside Developer Information Session
Following last week’s “open house”, Concert held a “developer information session” for Harbourside at the Pinnacle Hotel this Thursday night. After a presentation by consultants and the project team, which included Brian McCauley (Concert’s President & COO), there was an open forum for questions. City staff were also on hand to help answer questions. The event was well-attended by North Vancouver residents as well as Harbourside’s current commercial tenants, many of whom have embraced Concert’s vision. The team looks forward to meeting again with the public at the Town Hall Meeting scheduled for March 5, 2013 (location TBA). 

This week at Harbourside: week ending January 18

A weekly summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Meetings with advisory bodies
This week the Concert team continued to meet individually with City advisory bodies which specialize in specific areas of community planning and make recommendations to the City. On Wednesday night the team met separately with two advisory bodies:

• The Integrated Transportation Committee (ITC) gave their unanimous support and commended Concert’s work with Translink to provide the necessary level of transit service to Harbourside. 
• Concert also met with the Advisory Design Panel (ADP). They were in support of Concert’s development plans in principle, but requested additional information. A follow-up meeting was scheduled for February.

Concert has now met individually with four of the five relevant advisory bodies. A meeting with the remaining body, Advisory Committee on Disability Issues (ACDI), is set for next week. 

Harbourside Open House
On Thursday night, Concert held an “open house”, welcoming the community to drop by and learn more about what is being envisioned for Harbourside. The event was well-attended, and the feedback received was overwhelmingly positive. Many area residents were enthusiastic about the transformation of this waterfront site into a true community. While transportation and traffic continue to be areas of concern, a comprehensive review of mitigation strategies will be covered in the upcoming “developer information session” on January 24 (6pm – 8:30pm at the Pinnacle Hotel, presentation by the project team at 7:00pm). 

This week at Harbourside: week ending January 11

A weekly summary of what’s happening in the Harbourside planning process.

Meetings with tenants at 889 Harbourside

889 Harbourside is an office building constructed and owned by Concert on the Harbourside site. The Concert development team met with tenants on Wednesday to gather feedback.

• Tenants were generally impressed with our plans for Harbourside. 
• Areas of concern include parking, Spirit Trail connection, increased traffic and transit services to Harbourside. 
• Concert will continue to explore options for addressing these concerns. 

Meetings with advisory bodies

Concert made a group presentation to the City of North Vancouver’s five relevant advisory bodies in December 2012. This week the team met individually with two of those advisory bodies. Advisory bodies specialize in specific areas of community planning and make recommendations to the City.

• This Wednesday night Concert met with the Advisory Planning Committee (APC) and received their unanimous support. A follow-up meeting was scheduled for February. 
• Concert also met with the Parks and Environment Advisory Committee (PEAC) on Thursday night. They had a constructive discussion and are also planning to meet again in February.  

Over the coming weeks, the team will meet with the remaining three advisory bodies.