Major 25-year development plan for west side site draws mixed reviews from the public

What happened: The Jericho Lands – a 25-year plan to develop a 90-acre plot of land in northeastern West Point Grey – is at the next stage in its approval process at City Hall. 

A staff report recommends that, following the public hearing, city council approve the project’s official development plan (ODP), which would regulate future land use and development on the site through a new bylaw. 

Background: The project, owned and led by a partnership of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations (MST), proposes building about 13,000 new homes, plus commercial space, a community centre, parks, a library, and an elementary school (paid for by the Province).  

• MST and Canada Lands Company (CLC), a federal Crown corporation, acquired the Jericho parcel between 2014 and 2016. CLC has agreed to sell their portion of the land to MST over the next five years, according to Storeys.

Unlike the Sen̓áḵw project in Kitsilano, the Jericho site isn’t on reserve land and is therefore within the city’s jurisdiction.  

Public hearing: On Tuesday, over 50 people spoke to council about the plan, with a majority (32) speaking in opposition. Many of them referenced being either involved in or having attended meetings hosted by the Jericho Coalition, a neighbourhood group organizing against the project. Tower heights, density, and environmental impacts were some of the biggest concerns for speakers. 

There were also a significant number of speakers (21) who supported the proposed plan, with some pointing out the currently inaccessible housing market in West Point Grey. 

There were also over 500 messages of correspondence – roughly split between support and opposition – submitted to council ahead of the hearing.    

• A representative for West Point Grey Academy, one of the area’s current tenants, said they are in full support of the project and are seeking a partnership with MST to have their school included in the project. MST said they intend to have them as a commercial tenant, while WPGA wants to be considered as a community amenity.  

One speaker described how councillors “listened intently and asked good questions” regarding the developer’s presentation, “but I have watched you sit the rest of the time through the public presentation scrolling through your telephones and laptops. I really do implore you, please pay attention to the members of the public who come to speak here,” they said. 

• The public speaker portion of the meeting took about four hours on Tuesday evening.   

The area: The development project would dramatically change the neighbourhood, bringing around 24,000 new residents to West Point Grey – which is currently overwhelmingly comprised of multi-million dollar single-family homes, with one struggling business area along West 10th Avenue. 

• Staff said the neighbourhood’s population did not change between 1996 and 2021, while overall the city’s population grew by 28%, or about 148,000 people, over the same period.

The project is also located adjacent to Jericho Beach Park, a wetland with a relatively long history of disturbance due to urban development. According to the Jericho Stewardship Group, the park suffers from invasive species and changes in water levels due to climate change.    

• One of the objections made by the Jericho Coalition is that development could reduce groundwater flow to the park. 

The Jericho Lands water plan points out that previous development in the area has led to historic streams that fed the wetland being diverted into stormwater pipes. They’re suggesting the park board work with them to restore some of that rainwater flow from the site back into park.       

The transit piece: The project vision is highly reliant on the new Broadway Subway line being extended out to UBC. In 2022, city council and TransLink endorsed a plan for one future station to be built in Jericho Lands, with another station very close by at Broadway and Alma. The ODP says the line is integral for the development to be a “car-light community centred on rapid transit,” as planned.  

• However, the province and federal governments have not yet committed to funding the SkyTrain extension, though advancing the project was prioritized in Premier David Eby’s recent mandate letter to his Minister of Transportation.     

The Jericho Lands ODP says the plan would need to be reviewed and adjusted if the SkyTrain line were significantly delayed or cancelled to ensure the project wouldn’t overburden the area’s existing roads and bus lines. 

What’s next: Final debate amongst councillors and decision on the plan was deferred until April 22. 

• If the project moves forward, the first phase of development wouldn’t begin until around 2028, according to MST.