Some last-minute changes to a proposal for housing near Capilano University may have saved it from getting scrapped altogether.
At a regular meeting Monday evening (May 30), District of North Vancouver councillors voted unanimously to send the proposal back to staff for review.
The plan for 315 residential rental units and commercial spaces, put in by Darwin Properties on behalf of the owners of 1310 Monashee Dr., was on the chopping block for not adequately meeting affordability and accessibility requirements.
In part because of its distance from urban centres, the pitched development would require significant rezoning and amendments to the official community plan.
Prior to Monday’s meeting, staff had recommended that council reject the proposal. But last Friday, Darwin sent in some last-minute changes that haven’t yet been reviewed, so staff asked for time to look over the revisions.
While both staff and council are supportive of housing in the area, and more rental units in general, primary concerns about the project revolved around a lack of provisions to make sure the Monashee apartments continue to go to people at CapU.
“We all want to see effective and affordable rental housing in this space that supports the university, but it’s critically important that this be protected in perpetuity as much as reasonably practical,” Mayor Mike Little said.
In other housing projects CapU has worked with, he noted, the university has aimed for around 80 per cent of units going to faculty, staff and students. In contrast, only 16 per cent of the units of the Monashee development are secured in the long term.
At the outset, there would be a window of preference for people at CapU, but as years go by and wait-lists decrease in the summer, vacant units would likely be filled by non-university goers.
“We need to push for a higher standard of protection,” Little said, noting he might have been supportive of rejecting the proposal but recognizes the urgent need for more housing.
He also cited project support from CapU’s student union, and that he doesn’t want to see another two years go by without progressing more rentals in the area.
