The developer behind the Tantalus Gardens project in Horseshoe Bay is holding a public information meeting next week.
If approved by the council, the rezoning of the former St. Monica’s church site will change from community-amenity to residential, paving the way for a 14-unit multi-family development on Wellington Avenue.
The meeting will be held on October 2, from 7 to 9 pm, at the Gleneagles Clubhouse, Great Hall, at 6190 Marine Drive. Public is invited to drop in and learn more about the proposal from the applicant. However, this is not a district consultation.
The church site was bought in 2015 by Peter Nilsson, the owner of Quma, a development company that has applied for rezoning. Nilsson plans to build ‘Tantalus Garden’ as a pocket community”- a tight-knit residential area of duplex and coach house connected by pathways and garden spaces.
“Tantalus Gardens is the missing middle. It is a collection of duplexes and coach-houses. Tantalus Gardens addresses the need for housing diversity and variety that the community of West Vancouver is looking for as outlined in the Official Community Plan,” according to Nilsson.
Nilsson said the Tantalus gardens will appeal to seniors who want to downsize or “right-size” or better yet “right-live” as we like to say, as well young families or anybody else for that matter who wants to “right-live”. “It’s at at-grade living in modestly sized homes with both private and community outdoor spaces that are all maintained by a strata,” he said.
However, there is widespread discontent and anxiety in the community about the permanent loss of a community space. A Horseshoe Bay resident started a petition asking the council to save the site for St. Monica’s Church from redevelopment, and a local man, Kevin Faw, even proposed to buy the land from Nilsson to retain it as a community space.
At a meeting on Monday, September 9, the council voted to give first reading to the development, moving it to the public hearing on October 8.
What seems to be missing with the developers spin here is the price of these houses should the project get the green light
The plans include a parkade for 21 cars that will have to be blasted out of solid rock (the Geotech survey seems to have conveniently been glossed over so far). This parkade is necessary due to the size of the site and obviously will add considerably to the cost
Local realtors think that in order to make a profit he will have to sell townhouses well in excess of 1.5 million to break even on the cost of the project