Nick Cairns recently asked us via Twitter whether we knew what the open house scheduled for tomorrow evening (Thursday, April 16) at St. Augustine’s was about. My first thought – and response to Nick – was that I assumed it was about St. Augustine school’s plans to build a new school on the existing property.
But the open house that Nick describes is clearly not about the school.
A little digging revealed some rather interesting information about plans for the lot that is currently occupied by the Liquor Store, IGA, and David Hunter Garden Centers. And, no, Walmart isn’t coming in.
The City of Vancouver’s development application‘s site reveals that Pinnacle International wants to build another Pulse/The Vine type mixed-use high-rise. Not at all a surprising in and of itself of course, but what IS interesting is that the plans only pertain to the space currently occupied by the parking lot and David Hunter. The application very explicitly mentions that the plans do not include the space occupied by the IGA and Liquor Store.
However, it is almost inconceivable that these two stores would remain if they are building a high rise right in front of it. The stores would be inaccessible for one, and parking, which is already a nightmare at certain times of the day, would be non-existent. Visioning documents dating back to 2004 [PDF] reveal that the City would like the South half of the lot to be developed into townhouses/condos a la Arbutus Walk.
Details of the Open House:
Thursday April 16
5:00-7:30pm
St. Augustine’s Church – Parish Hall (2028 West 7th @ Maple)
