WEST Vancouver's sprawling Park Royal shopping centre is about to get even bigger.
The Marine Drive mall has announced it will be adding 20 more retail shops to the Village at Park Royal at the western end of its property.
"Our customers have spoken loud and clear that they enjoy that type of open air environment," said Rick Amantea, vice president of Park Royal.
The expansion, which is part of an already-announced redevelopment of the mall's south side, will attract "the new wave of tier one retailers," he added. "We needed to create the right space for them to join Park Royal."
The redesign aims to make the space more pedestrian-friendly, with tree-lined streets, public art displays and public gathering places, according to a release.
Although the work has put 600 parking stalls out of commission for the time being, there will be a net gain of 300 spaces once the expansion is finished, as two more levels will be added to the existing parking structure east of the Village site. In the coming weeks, West Vancouverites can expect to see two large cranes going up as work on the parkade begins.
The current expansion is all happening on land owned by the Squamish Nation, which has already signed off on the project. The mall also wants to build two condo towers on a smaller piece of property that falls under the jurisdiction of the District of West Vancouver. That part of the plan will go back to council this fall, said Amantea.
Changes to nearby Marine Drive are also in progress. This month, crews will be removing one of the mall overpasses and replacing it with an at-grade intersection, a plan that has drawn the ire of some residents who believe it will add more traffic to the already busy road.
New turn lanes, bus pullouts, sidewalks and streetlights, bike paths and parking lot improvements will also be added in the fall.
