Maybe this one would be better settled in the alley.
City of North Vancouver council spent Monday evening debating Onni development group’s request to add a bowling alley to their Central Lonsdale project after crews excavated a portion of the site “not originally contemplated.”
“When they excavated, what were they thinking?” asked Coun. Holly Back.
While the excavation was initially thought to be prohibitively expensive, Onni realized during construction they could satisfy parking and storage requirements and dig out the extra 7,884 square feet, according to Onni development manager Dionne Delesalle, who spoke to the issue on Tuesday.
“It started ticking all the boxes,” he said in an interview with the North Shore News.
The extra space would push the project’s density beyond what the city allows. To remedy this, Onni is offering to buy $275,940 worth of density from the city-owned lot at 105 Carrie Cates Court at the foot of Lonsdale.
If the space were used for condos, the city’s windfall nearly quadruples, rising to $1.1 million, according to staff.
“I don’t think that Onni is paying enough for the space, so either we get that from somewhere else, or we get Onni to up the ante,” Back said.
While the city should look for a “more appropriate site” to snag extra density, the project needs to move forward, according to Mayor Darrell Mussatto.
“We need to seize this opportunity and we need to take advantage of this, otherwise it’s going to be storage for people’s tires,” he said.
Storage for people’s tires is much needed, according to Coun. Don Bell, who branded himself a “defender” of storage space, particularly for downsizers.
The space could revert to storage if council scuttles the bowling alley idea, Delesalle explained. “Everything hinges on the approvals on the zoning front.”
Bell also suggested the city drive a harder bargain. “We have a limited amount of density to transfer and I think we should be trying to get maximum value for it.”
There are approximately 107,000 square feet of density at the foot of Lonsdale that could be transferred to other developments, but that space is “almost priceless to our city,” said council-watcher Cathy Lewis. “Why would the value be based on the intended use of the transferred square footage? It should be based on where the density is coming from,” she said.
Coun. Pam Bookham offered a harsher assessment, saying she didn’t understand why council was contemplating a “fire sale.” She also suggested the excess density at the foot of Lonsdale be added to whatever development is going to fund the new, approximately $150-million Harry Jerome rec centre.
But besides the dollars and cents of the issue, Bookham also questioned if a bowling alley was the best use for the space. “If this were a curling rink, I might be inclined to consider it.”
While a bowling alley is a “worthwhile amenity,” Coun. Rod Clark said Monday his major concern was about the excavation.
“Nobody that I know, who is an engineer, would advocate for over-excavating anything. It costs big money to move that dirt.”
Discussing the city’s monitoring of the project, city planner Michael Epp said builders have “quite a bit of flexibility” when reconfiguring below-grade space.
After a rocky public hearing in March 2013 in which an Onni representative stated they would withdraw the project over “public abuse” from members of council, Onni ultimately won approval to build 24- and 18-storey towers on the former Safeway site.
Coun. Craig Keating did not attend Monday’s meeting.
