After nearly three years of community consultation, Coquitlam city council unanimously gave the green light in April to rejuvenate Austin Heights, a neighbourhood in dire need of an upgrade.
But a month later, when Beedie Living formally introduced its proposal for a 24-storey highrise at the corner of Blue Mountain Street and Austin Avenue, on the former Shell gas station site, many area residents were up in arms.
Beedie staged an open house and brought forward a new application for 19 storeys that received majority council support, without a second public hearing held.
The topic was so contentious that it boiled over into November's municipal election: Dennison Avenue homeowner Todd Purves dropped flyers at his neighbours homes to "remind" them of council's actions. Purves told The News he believed the Austin Heights redevelopment was "driven by landowners that want maximum return on their dollar" and added, "We want to see revitalization but done with respect for the people who live there."
Meanwhile, in the new year, city staff will undertake more public consultation on the Austin Heights Neighbourhood Plan (AHNP) and the C-5 zone on heights for highrises, the results of which will be reported back to city council.
The AHNP calls for 5,000 more residents in 2,500 more homes between Blue Mountain and Linton streets and Foster and Rochester avenues; a total of 15 sites are proposed to have towers of more than 15 storeys.
Other neighbourhood plan updates are scheduled by the city for Maillardville, Burquitlam and City Centre while new neighbourhood plans are to be created for Partington Creek and Hazel Drive on Burke Mountain.
