A rendering depicting Plexxis Tower, now under construction on Westhills Drive at Langford Lake Road in the City of Langford. The six-storey project will become the home of tech firm Plexxis Software founded over 20-years-ago in Ontario. © Plexxis Software
ESQUIMALT
Aragon Properties’ Esquimalt Town Square (ETS) development adjacent to Esquimalt’s city hall celebrated its public art unveiling in early July. Multiple art pieces commissioned for the project used wood materials in-keeping with the design theme of ETS, a four-building community comprised of two condominium buildings (60 per cent sold-out), a rental building (fully leased) and an office block home to an expanded branch of the Greater Victoria Public Library scheduled to open this fall.
LANGFORD
Software development firm Plexxis is relocating most of its leadership to Langford from Brampton, Ontario, and construction is already underway on the company’s new offices. The concrete and steel-designed Plexxis Tower, featuring over 59,500 square feet of office and ground floor retail space across six floors, is rising at 1319 Westhills Drive adjacent to the Westhills YMCA recreational centre. The company will occupy floors five and six, totalling 25,000 square feet, while the remainder is currently for lease on levels two-through-four. Ground floor commercial units earmarked for cafe or restaurant operations are available across 5,000 square feet.
The tallest building on the West Shore will rise as an 18-storey condominium tower atop Langford’s Bear Mountain Resort. One Bear Mountain, from developers 360 Pacifica and Terracap, is coming to 2000 Hannington Road along the 18th fairway of Bear Mountain’s Mountain Course on the former site of The Highlander, a 14-storey condominium that reached four levels in 2009 before the project stalled. One Bear Mountain will begin pre-sale of over 200 homes this summer.
SAANICH
Developer Mike Geric Construction has secured approvals for Doral Forest Park, a two-building condominium with an 11-storey tower and a five-storey attainable ownership low-rise, both of which are slated for the 4700-block of Elk Lake Drive. Collectively the project will add nearly 250 homes to the Royal Oak neighbourhood.
VANCOUVER ISLAND
A BC-based green construction company pioneering environmentally-friendly building technologies has announced plans to open a manufacturing plant on Vancouver Island that could employ up to 200 workers. Alexzi Building Solutions has issued a request for information (RFI) to solicit bids from local real-estate developers capable of delivering a state-of-the-art 150,000 square foot industrial plant for the production of Nexii construction materials and panels. The RFI identifies the Capital, Cowichan Valley and Nanaimo regions as suitable locations, with a development window targeting delivery of a production-ready plant by early to mid-2023. A selected site is expected to be announced this month, and may have been announced prior to the publication date of this segment.
VICTORIA
The Customs House mixed-use condominium and retail project at the nexus of Government, Wharf and Humboldt streets is nearing its grand unveiling after four years of construction. The $100 million project from developer Cielo Properties includes a heritage portion with a restored façade dating back to 1914 (with modern interiors across five levels), and a new-build wing rising to seven-storeys. Customs House’s residential portion includes 57 luxury suites in two styles, one a heritage collection within the restored 1914 wing, and the other a contemporary release in the elegant, stone-clad new-build designed by Merrick Architecture and Studio One Architecture. The offering is nearly sold-out.
Victoria-based Jawl Properties has unveiled redevelopment plans for downtown Victoria’s Capital Six Theatre complex on Blanshard Street between Yates and View streets. The existing two-storey property at 1221 Blanshard Street, purchased by Jawl in 2015, has operated as a six-screen movie theatre for multiple decades. According to plans submitted to the City of Victoria, Jawl’s concept calls for transforming the site into a ten-storey office and retail tower with employment capacity for 600 workers.
Plans to open a microbrewery, distillery and restaurant at downtown Victoria’s Hudson District are coming to fruition four years after Victoria publican Grant Turner set out to open a new establishment kitty-corner from the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. Hudson Brewhouse & Distillery is scheduled to welcome patrons this fall after a lengthy planning and municipal permitting process stemming back to 2017 when Turner, a partner at Yates Street Taphouse in the 700-block of Yates Street, unveiled his concept for a second location.
VIEW ROYAL
Council has granted support for 9 Erskine Lane, a four-building rental community of five-storey apartments envisioned for an expansive property near Victoria General Hospital. Over 330-homes are planned as part of the project.
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