Coquitlam Revises Housing Plans Near SkyTrain Stations

Photo: Reuters

Coquitlam city officials have started asking people what they think about new plans for building homes and shops near SkyTrain stations. This is part of the city’s work to follow a rule from the provincial government called Bill 47. This law says that cities must build more homes close to transit, like SkyTrain stations, so people can live and travel easily without needing a car.

In the first step, the city marked areas within 800 meters of eight SkyTrain stations where new homes could be built. These areas are called transit-oriented areas, or TOAs. They include stations like Burquitlam, Lougheed Town Centre, Coquitlam Central, and others. In these places, the city also removed the rule that said buildings needed to have a certain number of parking spots.

Now in the second step, the city is making changes to how land is used in and around two major SkyTrain stations—Burquitlam and Lougheed. They are also looking at nearby neighborhoods, known as shoulder areas and corridors, to decide what kind of buildings can go there.

One issue the city is dealing with is that the province used perfect circles to draw TOAs. But cities aren’t made of perfect shapes. This meant that some properties ended up in confusing spots. To fix this, Coquitlam’s team carefully adjusted the map so that property lines make more sense.

In the outer parts of the TOAs, which the city calls Tier 3, some areas that were planned for townhouses now have to be used for medium-sized apartment buildings. This change was needed to meet the rules of Bill 47. But the city still wants to keep townhouses because they are popular with families. So, they plan to build townhouses just outside the TOAs in places like Oakdale, East Burquitlam, and West Austin.

According to city planner Andrew Merrill, townhouses are important in Coquitlam because they offer more space than an apartment but are more affordable than a big house. These homes are a good fit for families who need room but can't afford a full house.

Besides the TOAs and shoulder areas, the city is also looking at long roads called corridors, like parts of Austin Avenue and Como Lake Avenue. In these places, they want to mix small homes with shops and six-story apartment buildings. The idea is to create small, walkable neighborhoods where people can live, shop, and easily catch the bus or SkyTrain.

Some of these areas had already been planned for growth before the province made Bill 47. These include the city center areas like Lincoln, Lafarge Lake-Douglas, and Coquitlam Central. Since these places already allow tall buildings, the city doesn’t need to make changes there.

But there are still some parts of the city that haven’t been planned yet. These are areas south of Coquitlam Central and around Braid Station. The city hasn’t studied things like roads, sewers, or how many schools are needed there, so for now these areas are being saved for later planning.

Merrill said the city had already spent a lot of time making thoughtful plans based on the needs of each neighborhood. But when the province created its own map using perfect circles, some of the city’s plans didn’t match anymore. He believes it would have been better if the province allowed cities to plan using local knowledge instead of fixed shapes.

Still, the city is moving forward. People can share their opinions about the new land use changes until July 14. After that, the city will finish this second planning phase by the end of the year and then move on to the final phase, where more details will be decided.