A Port Moody councillor is questioning the timing of council’s decision Tuesday to suspend reviews of development applications by the city’s advisory design panel (ADP) for 12 months.
Coun. Haven Lurbiecki said putting the assessments by the volunteer panel of experts on ice — just as council was to consider a developer’s request to forgo the review of its project — “is sending a signal to residents that developers can sidestep our processes just because they want to.”
The ADP is comprised of architects and engineers as well as professionals with expertise in landscaping, urban design, accessibility and sustainability.
Vancouver-based Wesgroup Properties had asked for the exemption after an ADP review of the first phase of its massive Inlet District project that had been scheduled to occur in January was deferred because the panel’s monthly meeting ran long. The company then requested the review be removed from the agenda of February’s meeting. The group next meets on March 28.
Wesgroup’s development manager, Louis Landbolt, said every month the company isn’t able to secure a development permit so it can begin construction is costing it “upwards of $1,000,000” and could put elements of the project in jeopardy.
“We cannot afford another month’s delay without revisiting what amenities are currently proposed,” Landbolt said in a letter.
Wesgroup’s Inlet District project is the biggest development in Port Moody’s history.
It will transform the former 14.8-acre Coronation Park neighbourhood of 51 mid-century single-family homes into a dense urban mixed-use community with six residential high-rises up to 31 storeys, three six-storey residential buildings, a four-storey office building along with commercial spaces and a central park. The first of four planned phases includes two 26-storey towers atop a four-storey podium along Ioco Road, as well as the office building and a new daycare centre.
Wesgroup’s request was considered by council’s city initiatives and planning committee on Tuesday, but the decision earlier in the evening’s proceedings to suspend the ADP essentially rendered it moot, said Port Moody’s general manager of community development, Kate Zanon.
That alarmed Lurbiecki.
“This request was made when we still had an ADP,” she said. “It doesn’t seem to make any sense.”
But Zanon said the ADP’s form and function has been presenting challenges for some time, including the effort it takes to recruit qualified professionals, keeping the group focused and coordinating reviews with staff workloads.
In fact, since February 2022, nine of 20 scheduled meetings have been cancelled.
Zanon said over the years Port Moody has been able to bolster its own ability to review the design elements of development applications with in-house and contracted professionals. The cost is covered by developers.
“We have a lot more expertise on staff than we used to,” she said. “There is a pretty thorough vetting process that is happening outside the ADP.”
Zanon said Wesgroup’s Inlet District project is already undergoing an extensive review by contracted architects.
“This application has taken an elevated process with more involvement from professionals,” she said.
Mayor Meghan Lahti said it’s only right that highly qualified experts be paid for their services.
“We’re getting feedback from professionals,” she said. “We should be professional in getting these types of reviews done.”
Coun. Diana Dilworth said neighbouring communities like Coquitlam and Burnaby conduct design reviews professionally rather than relying on a committee of volunteers.
“When you’re relying on contracted professionals they are going to come with a very focused view based on their expertise.”
Coun. Amy Lubik said it’s important those professionals have some sort of connection with Port Moody so their assessments are rooted in the context of the city's environs.
“We’re going to see a lot of changes,” she said. “Having Port Moody-specific professionals with the knowledge that we’re hoping for is going to be good for the community going forward.”
Zanon said reviews require on-site visits and consideration of neighbourhood context.
“This isn’t just a quick office review,” she said, adding highlights of the assessments will become part of any development’s public record.
The suspension of the ADP will be reviewed after 12 months.
