A trio of four-storey apartments with a vista of the Burrard Inlet has been proposed for Dollarton Highway, but at least one District of North Vancouver councillor took a dim view of the development plan.
Council gave the project first reading Monday, and will take it to public hearing later in the year, contingent on Polygon Development clarifying their plans for public shore access and foreshore remediation.
Spanning four industrial lots currently occupied by Dollarton Shipyard and McKenzie Barge and Marineways, the development would consist of 80 condos and 15 townhouses.
The new tenants may be within earshot of industrial noise, according to Coun. Doug MacKay-Dunn, who likened the scenario to new homeowners moving next door to a raucous nightclub.
After reading a letter from Port Metro Vancouver, MacKay-Dunn concluded the agency is unlikely to turn down the volume.
"What the port is telling us is 'We don't want any complaints; we were here first,'" he said.
A public information meeting in June drew a packed house to Seymour Golf and Country Club.
Concerns included parking, traffic, the effect of construction, and the lack of a commercial component in the development. Polygon's reaction to those concerns was unsatisfactory, said MacKay-Dunn.
"Some responses, quite frankly, seemed to be rather cavalier... 'That's what we're going to do and that's it.' That causes me concern."
Despite a few misgivings about creating a "procedural marsh," council voted 6-1 to move the project forward with MacKay-Dunn as the lone voice of dissent.
For Mayor Richard Walton, the development offers a chance to reclaim the shore for public access.
"One of the really compelling things for this community is the fact that you're taking basically a dead beach, which has suffered a hundred years worth of pollutants on it, and cleaning it up."
If Polygon takes over the nearly five-acre strip just west of Cates Park, the port will require the foreshore be rehabilitated.
The site is labelled high-risk on the province's contaminated sites registry. Paints, blasting grit, creosote, fuels and lubricants can be found in the soil and sediment due to the long history of shipbuilding on the site.
Remediation includes an excavation of the marsh and the removal of contaminated soil from Cates Park.
Polygon's development plan includes a pedestrian path along the waterfront.
The buildings may range up to 53 feet in height, but the rents will be sky-high, according to Coun. Lisa Muri.
"The cost of renting one of these units is going to be astronomical. A house next door is listed on the market right now for $3.49 million," she said.
Two-bedroom condo suites would range from 997 to 1,426 square feet. Three-bedroom townhouses would range from 2,728 to 3,008 square feet.
The development would include 15 docking spots at the marina. Muri said she was disappointed to see so few, as the district loses boat traffic in the summer because of a lack of mooring space.
The building will include a flood construction level of 5.3 metres in order to mitigate rising sea levels, erosion, and the effect of a tsunami.
A traffic study found the effects of the development would be negligible, and that Dollarton Highway would remain free-flowing during rush hour.
