More rental properties are on the way, as the Bosa-Kingswood waterfront project has been given the green light to move to its next phase.
On Dec. 15, District council approved the SEAandSKY project to take another step in its development of the waterfront, reads a news release from Bosa.
A major highlight of the next phase is the construction of two, six-storey rental buildings with 55 affordable housing units and 140 units of market rental.
Originally envisioned with a combination of market rental, non-market rental, commercial space and stratified condo units, this will be the first mid-rise development within the master plan and the first to offer rentals, the release said.
“We believe in building a complete community and offering a diversity of housing options for everyone,” said Lorne Segal, president of Kingswood in the release. “We opted for this rental-only phase in order to deliver on addressing current housing needs in Squamish, and we are really excited to work with the city to deliver on this.”
“These rental buildings will form a vital part of the community, located in the northeast corner, and will be a gateway to downtown once the Pemberton bridge has been completed,” said BlueSky Properties director of development, Brendan Yee. “This new phase will
add to the long-term success of the community by allowing for more diversification and providing homes to a wider demographic of residents who are not looking to purchase, but want to live in the community.”
BlueSky is the subsidiary of Bosa handling the waterfront project.
Given the demand for rental housing in Squamish, BlueSky and Kingswood decided to fast track this application and proceed ahead of the planned Phase 3 townhomes.
Rental vacancy rate is hovering around 0.3% and the companies say this will help meet the demand for housing.
BlueSky and Kingswood intend to maintain ownership of these buildings long past completion, and they will be managed internally by a property management team, the release said.
The companies are also looking to secure a minimum of 2,000 square feet of daycare space.
