A sizeable new social tower building development is proposed for Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood, just south of the West 4th Avenue retail district.
Brightside Community Homes Foundation has submitted a new rezoning application to redevelop 2079-2085 West 5th Avenue — the northeast corner of the intersection of Arbutus Street and West 5th Avenue, situated about a six-minute walk north of SkyTrain’s future Arbutus Station and 99 B-Line bus exchange on West Broadway.
This project is not to be confused with BC Housing’s controversial 13-storey supportive housing project at 2086-2098 West 7th Avenue at the intersection with Arbutus Street. In December 2024, the BC Court of Appeal ruled against the provincial government’s methods of pushing the supportive housing project forward.
Currently, the Brightside development site is occupied by a 1964-built, three-storey building with 21 apartment units and a single-family house. The non-profit affordable housing organization acquired the apartment building in 2005, which is currently tenanted to mainly seniors, but the aging building is now in need of replacement. The adjacent house was more recently acquired to avoid it becoming an orphaned property surrounded by towers and to enable a larger social housing development.
Site of 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Existing condition:
Existing condition of 2079-2085 West 5th Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)
Future condition:
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Designed by Francl Architecture, the new proposal calls for the construction of a 214-ft-tall, 21-storey tower, including a partial rooftop level for shared indoor and outdoor amenity spaces.
There would be a total of 200 social housing units, with a unit size mix of 113 studios, 27 one-bedroom units, 54 two-bedroom units, and six three-bedroom units.
According to Brightside, this social housing tower would primarily be home to low-income seniors, with inclusive accommodations for people with disabilities.
The second level would contain 9,400 sq ft of office space for non-profit organizations, including office space for Brightside.
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
The ground level would feature about 5,000 sq ft of retail/restaurant space, with the storefronts fronting Arbutus Street to activate the north-south pedestrian corridor linking the future transit hub, West 4th Avenue retail district, and Kitsilano Beach Park. Additional indoor amenity space and a few ground-oriented residential units would also be found on this main level.
In addition to patio space for cafe/restaurant businesses, there would be a small corner plaza with ample additional seating areas to create an inviting, publicly accessible private space.
“This approach reinforces the site as both a social hub and a commercial anchor within the community,” reads the project’s design rationale.
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Two underground levels would provide 22 vehicle parking stalls, and portions of the ground and underground levels would accommodate over 300 secured bike parking spaces.
The project would create a total building floor area of about 141,000 sq ft, establishing a floor area ratio (FAR) density of a floor area that is slightly over 10 times larger than the size of the 14,000 sq ft lot. This far exceeds the City’s Broadway Plan’s prescription of a density of up to 6.5 FAR, plus minor increases (typically 0.3 FAR) for the inclusion of retail/restaurant space or childcare.
The additional density is achieved by proposing larger floor plates than what is prescribed by the Broadway Plan.
According to Brightside, this increased density significantly beyond what is permitted by the area plan is necessary to make this a financially viable project to build.
“The proposed density for this project, coupled with identified complementary uses, is crucial for ensuring financial viability, particularly amidst fluctuating construction costs and interest rates, and the project’s ambitious goal of maximizing affordability on the site,” states the design rationale.
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
With the future Millennium Line extension and the prescriptions of the Broadway Plan, the area around the future Arbutus Station has quickly become a hotspot for high-rise residential projects, particularly for secured purpose-built rental housing developments.
If approved, this project would add to Brightside’s growing portfolio of affordable housing properties, with the organization currently operating 24 buildings with a combined total of nearly 1,000 below-market rental homes. They cater to independent-living seniors, families, and people with disabilities.
In addition to this Kitsilano site, they also have various other future projects in the pipeline that will add over 500 new units by 2028.
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)
Concept for 2079-2085 West 5th, Vancouver. (Francl Architecture/Brightside Community Homes Foundation)