DEVELOPING STORIES
/RENTAL TOWER MAY REPLACE THE HAMPSTEAD
Rezoning Application Moving Ahead
by Jake McGrail
(click images to enlarge)
One of the rezoning applications currently making its way slowly through the bureaucracy of the municipal government is for 1188 Cardero Street.
The Hampstead today.
Since 1989, the site has been home to a building known as The Hampstead, a four-storey condo complex with 33 strata units. It’s also right next door to Gabriola Mansion, a heritage building that has since been turned into a group of rental properties.
The Hampstead first made news headlines back in 2017, when a handful of its owners went all the way to the BC Supreme Court in an effort to block the sale of the entire lot to a developer. The court ended up ruling in favour of the sale (approved by over 80 percent of The Hampstead’s condo owners) and BC-based real estate developer Townline reportedly paid around $45 million (split between the owners) for the property.
The future of 1180 Cardero? Note the Gabriola mansion to the right. (Boniface Oleksiuk Politano Architects/City of Vancouver)
Since then, the complex has continued to operate as it did before, with Townline slowly putting together plans to proceed with their investment. Originally, a proposal submitted in 2022 stated that they wanted to tear down The Hampstead and replace it with a 20-storey, 128-unit strata complex. But a revision last year changed that to a 22-storey, 198-unit rental complex.
This application was last reviewed in June, and pending a decision from the city whether the project can proceed.
Should the plan go forward, there would 161 market rental units and 37 designated below-market rental units. In addition to the 22 storeys above ground, there would also be three levels of underground parking.
Of course, that will all be in the distant future. If the plan is approved, there would have to be a full teardown of the existing building before any construction on a bigger complex can begin. And recently, we have all seen how quickly these big tower projects can get delayed, or even abandoned, after they have been approved for development.
On a historical note, the site of The Hampstead was occupied from 1925 to the mid-1970s by a brick, three-story apartment building known as The Angus Apartments. The Angus was built by Mary Isabella (“nee Angus") Rogers, the widow of B.T. Rogers, who built the Gabriola mansion in 1901. The Gabriola still stands as a historic landmark. The Angus Apartments stood at the corner of Davie and Nicola until it was demolished following a major fire.
For now, at least, The Hampstead remains intact where it has stood for the last 35 years. How much longer will that last? We will just have to wait and see.
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