The 39-storey tower that will be built at Broadway and Granville in Vancouver generated a pitched battle among supporters and opponents for weeks
Vancouver city councillors have voted in favour of a significant new office and rental tower at a key corner along the new Broadway subway line. The decision is seen as a strong indicator about how the council is likely to vote on a rezoning plan that would affect huge swaths of land along the corridor.
The tower, being built by PCI Developments, will provide a “much needed grocery store, office & 223 secured rental homes including 49 below-market rental units delivering desperately needed rental & more affordability,” said ABC councillor Sarah Kirby-Yung in a tweet after the decision. The two councillors who opposed it are almost diametrically opposed politically, but often aligned in their concerns about new housing in Vancouver, although for different reasons.
Despite the surprisingly strong support for the tower, the vote for the plan could be closer, even though this central, nondescript and often low-rise stretch of Broadway is often referred to as the city’s “second downtown.” It is still being adjusted, as council members and planners look for ways to prevent massive redevelopment of older apartments and much stronger protections for renters than exist now.