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555 W Cordova St (DP-2019-01035) development application

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The Director of Planning has requested you be advised that this development application was cancelled on February 3, 2022.


Cadillac Fairview Corp. Ltd. has applied to the City of Vancouver for permission to redevelop the existing surface parking area, immediately east of the Waterfront Station Building, consisting of:

  • A 26-storey office building
  • Maximum building height of approximately 376 ft. (114.7 m)
  • A public plaza at grade
  • A public viewing terrace on Level 4
  • Bicycle storage, end of trip facilities, service rooms and loading space below grade

Under the site’s existing DD zoning, the application is “conditional” so it may be permitted. However, it requires the decision of the Development Permit Board.

Upon the applicants request, the Development Permit Board and related advisory panel meetings have been postponed until further notice. For updates and more information please visit this webpage or contact the Project Facilitator directly.

In response to COVID-19 (Coronavirus), an extended online question and answer (Q&A) period through a virtual open house platform was held from November 23 - 29, 2020. Questions presented by public during the virtual open house have now been addressed and answers are posted under the Q&A tab, below. The materials presented on this webpage are consistent with that which was displayed at the previous in-person open community open house, held on February 18, 2020.  

Cadillac Fairview Corp. Ltd. has applied to the City of Vancouver for permission to redevelop the existing surface parking area, immediately east of the Waterfront Station Building, consisting of:

  • A 26-storey office building
  • Maximum building height of approximately 376 ft. (114.7 m)
  • A public plaza at grade
  • A public viewing terrace on Level 4
  • Bicycle storage, end of trip facilities, service rooms and loading space below grade

Under the site’s existing DD zoning, the application is “conditional” so it may be permitted. However, it requires the decision of the Development Permit Board.

Upon the applicants request, the Development Permit Board and related advisory panel meetings have been postponed until further notice. For updates and more information please visit this webpage or contact the Project Facilitator directly.

In response to COVID-19 (Coronavirus), an extended online question and answer (Q&A) period through a virtual open house platform was held from November 23 - 29, 2020. Questions presented by public during the virtual open house have now been addressed and answers are posted under the Q&A tab, below. The materials presented on this webpage are consistent with that which was displayed at the previous in-person open community open house, held on February 18, 2020.  

The Director of Planning has requested you be advised that this development application was cancelled on February 3, 2022.


Q&A is available from November 23 to 29, 2020.

Q & A replaces in-person open houses, which are on hold due to COVID-19 (Coronavirus). 

We post all questions as-is and reply here within two business days. To find out when we reply to your questions, sign in or register.

To make a comment instead, use the comment form.

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    How many people are expected to be employed in this building? Also, what is its economic value to our city? and how many jobs will its construction create?

    Tavia asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question. The response below is provided by the applicant team.

    It is estimated that 2,000-2,500 workers would be housed in the tower, depending on which type of industries lease space in the building (the higher number would correlate more to technology or accounting services, while the lower number would be more legal services or banking). We expect roughly 400-450 construction jobs to be created by this project. 

     -Cadillac Fairview

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    Is this the same proposal that was originally rejected by the city planning dept.? It doesn't seem to have changed.

    Mayor of Gastown asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question.

    The current proposal is consistent with that which was presented to the public at the community open house on February 18, 2020. 

    A development application was made in 2014 on the subject site to develop an office building, however, that proposal was ultimately withdrawn by the applicant at that time before a decision was made by City staff.

    The current development application is being assessed on its own merit, without consideration of previous proposals.

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    Is there a shortage of office space in the Downtown? Are there other available locations for this building?

    Cory asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question.

    The landowner, Cadillac Fairview, has applied to the City of Vancouver to propose a development on the subject site referred to as 555 West Cordova St., pursuant to the existing Downtown District (DD) zoning. All Development Permit Applications are site specific. City staff will be assessing the proposal based on applicable zoning bylaws, policies and guidelines adopted by Council as they pertain to this location. 

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    How did Cadillac Fairview come to own a transit station? Is it the only privately owned station in the region? Is this development on the same property as the station? What if the Station needed this area to expand with growing transit riders?

    Cory asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question.

    The subject site, which includes the Waterfront Station building, is under the ownership of Ontrea Inc. and  Vancordova Property Ltd., collectively referred to as Cadillac Fairview. There are a number of Statutory Right of Ways on this property for the use and benefit of transit, rail facilities, etc. to enable access and maintenance of various transportation related infrastructure.

    As part of the development review process, City staff have engaged with stakeholders in the vicinity, including TransLink, to collect their feedback on the proposed development.

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    I enjoy visiting this space after work and I often try to find a place in the sun. Can you please show shadow diagrams for say 7 pm In June. Will the building cause shadows in the bar and restaurant patios in Gastown on summer evenings?

    Cory asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question.

    A shadow study was provided as part of the development permit application documents, please refer to the application documents to view the shadow analysis.

    The development permit submission requirements stipulates certain dates and times of day based on typical shadow impact time limits. 7:00 pm in June is currently outside the time scale for shadow casting studies requested.

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    Hi, I just noticed that the text above says "Under the site’s existing DD zoning(External link), the application is “conditional”. Conditional on what? Can you please explain for us. Thank you.

    Cory asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your email.

    The development site is zoned as Downtown District (DD) and captured by the Downtown Official Development Plan (DODP). This development permit application is seeking Development Permit Board approval, where consideration by the Board will be based upon the regulations and requirements of the Official Development Plan and all applicable policies and guidelines adopted by Council as well as input from the community and advisory bodies.

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    What changes have been made since the in-person open house that was held earlier this year? As a follow up, if there haven't been any, why is this event being held, and is it appropriate to submit one’s comments a second time?

    Silent_Echo asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question.

    The proposed development is consistent with that which was presented at the in-person community open house, held on February 18, 2020.  

    The review of this development project was placed on pause, upon request by the developer due to uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 and was formally restarted recently. As a result, staff have resumed their comprehensive analysis of this proposal, including engagement with the public. All feedback received from interested parties through the current virtual open house as well as those documented through the previous engagement process will be accounted for as part of the development review process.

    If you wish to share further comments on this proposal, please feel free to complete the comment section found on the bottom of the development webpage or email your comments and/or questions to the Project Facilitator, kaveh.imani@vancoucer.ca 

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    I’ve noticed the Downtown Waterfront Working Group is opposed to this proposal, are they an official City of Vancouver civic advisory body? Furthermore, is there a city policy that requires the views from their offices at SFU Continuing Studies be preserved?

    Tavia asked over 3 years ago

    Thank you for your question.

    While the Downtown Waterfront Working Group is not recognized by Council as an advisory body, we have an will continue to seek their valuable feedback throughout this process, as we do for other committed community groups across the city in our planning and development processes. For a complete list of agencies, boards, and committees that advise Council and/or City staff, please refer to the following link: https://vancouver.ca/your-government/find-an-advisory-board-or-committee.aspx

    The City of Vancouver has established view protection guidelines to help protect Vancouver's ocean and mountain views while promoting density in the downtown area. The subject site is impacted by the following view corridors:

    View Cone (3.2.3) from Queen Elizabeth Park to the North Shore
    View Cone (9.1 and 9.2.2) from Cambie St. at 10th/11th to the North Shore
    View Cone (E1) from Cambie Bridge to Crown/Grouse

    For reference, a view analysis is included in the virtual open house presentation boards, which lists each of these view cones and overlays the proposed development.