A rendering of three-story townhomes at Washington, a 34-residence project from Victoria homebuilder Formwell Homes. Washington is coming soon to 3080 Washington Avenue in the City of Victoria’s Burnside-Gorge Neighbourhood. © Formwell Homes
By Mike Kozakowski of Citified Media, he can be reached at mike@citifiedmedia.com.
ESQUIMALT
A culmination of over four years of construction at Esquimalt’s landmark Esquimalt Town Square community coincided with the grand opening of Gallery Splash, a new arts initiative from Esquimalt’s Township Community Arts Council (TCAC).
At a September 25th ceremony, TCAC and developer Aragon celebrated the opening of Gallery Splash in a community flex space adjacent to Greater Victoria Public Library’s (GVPL) new Esquimalt branch slated for opening this fall. Featuring artist works from around the community, Gallery Splash will hold hours in tandem with the library.
LANGFORD
Several highrise towers have been proposed for the city’s Peatt Road corridor.
Surrey-based Jagpal Developments is pursuing approvals for what may become a duo of residential buildings standing 24 and 19-storeys tall, known as Langford Central, with 271 residences between the 2700-blocks of Peatt and Scafe roads. A four-storey office building, ground floor retail spaces and a daycare facility are also planned.
Further to the north Langford Gateway Developments has proposed a three or four-building development dubbed Langford Gateway on Peatt Road at Arncote Road. Gateway’s towers could stand as tall as 22-storeys and comprise of 456 residential units, collectively.
SAANICH
16 years following Mayfair Lanes’ closure, the building’s razing and the property’s sale to Ontario-based Loblaw corporation, signs of progress are on the horizon for what is currently a vacant 3.4-acre parcel straddling the Victoria-Saanich Tolmie Road border.
Sold to Loblaw in 2006, the now-vacant holding at 760 Tolmie Avenue is on the market and includes a 100,000 square feet in-tow lease for a Loblaw-branded grocery store.
Saanich’s Home Depot will grow larger if council approves the latest changes to a redevelopment proposal of a shopping mall on Shelbourne Street at McKenzie Avenue.
Vancouver-based developer Wesbild Holdings, which initially proposed a new vision for University Heights Shopping Centre in the fall of 2017, has submitted updated documents to the District of Saanich calling for an expanded Home Depot by some 9,200 square feet, bringing the total store footprint to 85,000 square feet, and several amendments to what it hopes will become a mixed-use retail and residential project comprised of nearly 600 rental apartments and 165,000 square feet of commercial space.
Saanich council has voted to send the project to a public hearing.
A creatively-designed proposal along Saanich’s upper Douglas Street corridor could become a mixed-use landmark with rental residences and modern retail units.
Victoria’s Aryze Developments and Winnipeg-based 5468796 Architecture have envisioned a six-storey, 169-unit rental complex for Island Outfitters’ former location at 3319 Douglas Street. If built, the project will stand as one of the earliest adopters of Saanich’s new Uptown-Douglas Plan guiding the build-out and densification of the district’s core.
SOOKE
A newly constructed condominium has a listing on the market that could set a record among the town’s real-estate offerings.
The Residences on Sooke Harbour, a four-storey, 27-suite waterfront development in Sooke’s town centre, was completed last summer at the foot of Maple Avenue South and one of its penthouse listings in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom configuration has been listed for sale at $1.1 million. The price fat outpaces prior local condominium prices topping out in the mid-$700,000 price range (also at the same project) and potentially setting a new top-end valuation in Sooke at over $1,100 per square foot.
VICTORIA
Local homebuilder Formwell Homes has unveiled its first residential project as demand for ‘missing middle’ housing reaches an all-time high in Victoria.
Formwell co-founders Sam Ganong and Kyle Ryan – no strangers to the Capital’s real-estate development industry with a combined 30-years during which they helped deliver more than 800-units of single- and multi-family housing – have joined efforts on a traditionally-inspired townhome development in the Burnside Gorge community.
Known as Washington, Formwell’s introductory offering (at 3080 Washington Avenue) will deliver 34 two, three and four-bedroom townhouses to the up-and-coming neighbourhood.
A homeless shelter on Russell Street in Vic West will be transformed into 40 supportive homes with construction to begin by mid-2023, if plans outlined by BC Housing are approved.
BC Housing, as part of a community information session held in July, says it plans to submit a formal rezoning application to the City of Victoria this fall. The agency is seeking approvals to transform a warehouse facility at 225 Russell Street, currently being used as a homeless shelter, into a residential complex managed by Victoria’s Our Place Society.
