22-07-2025
Coquitlam residents upset about proposed redevelopment with no public hearing
Residents of a Coquitlam, B.C., neighbourhood say they are upset about a proposed redevelopment.
The area, near Roy Stibbs Elementary School, currently has single-family homes, but it is within walking distance to the Lougheed SkyTrain Station and is being developed under B.C.'s new Transit-Oriented Development Area rules.
The proposed redevelopment by Anthem Properties calls for the construction of three six-storey towers, demolishing the single-family homes.
Resident Janet Krgovich said neighbours have been trying to help each other understand this development proposal, but it is complicated.
'(Council) took what was said to be – this was gonna be townhouses – and made them medium density,' she explained.
'And we had a Burquitlam Lougheed Neighborhood Plan that said that we knew that there was gonna be growth in the transit areas and that they would be offering a stepped approach as they, you know, got closer and closer to single-family residents. And what we're seeing now is that in through the back door, this land-use designation was changed and now it leaves us all open to not being able to have a say.'
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Final approval on the project is going before Coquitlam city council on Monday, July 29.
'In the past, we would get a report, we would read it, we would learn about it and give it first reading and refer it to a public hearing, where we would send out notifications. And then the public could come into City Hall at a public hearing and share their concerns, share any questions they have, any issues they want addressed if it goes forward and then we give it final approval down the road,' Coun. Teri Towner told Global News.
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However, provincial legislation brought in during the COVID-19 pandemic prohibits councils from having public hearings.
Towner said first, second and third readings for the project will happen on the same night, and then the fourth and final reading will happen when different permits have been looked after.
'We read it and digest it and give it first, second and third reading all in one night with no input from the residents,' she added.
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In a statement to Global News, Andrew Merrill, general manager of planning and development at the City of Coquitlam, said they understand there are concerns about the project.
'The developer has had several conversations with this group to help mitigate their concerns,' he said.
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'However, many of their concerns are the unintended consequences of new provincial legislation – concerns that Coquitlam has been raising since this legislation was passed without municipal consultation in 2023.'
Merrill said the properties were designated medium density apartments, which can be up to eight storeys high, as part of the Official Community Plan update in 2022, which went through extensive community consultation.
'The proposed development – a mostly six-storey apartment providing 446 units of dedicated rental housing – is in line with the city's current Official Community Plan land use designation and related policy,' he added.
'As a result, the city is prohibited from holding a public hearing due to the provisions outlined in the Province's Bill 44.'
Merrill clarified that Anthem Properties is not seeking more density, which it could be under Provincial Bill 47, but it is proposing lower heights and density in line with the city's current zoning bylaw and Official Community Plan.
Neighbours say this is not the right plan for the neighbourhood.
'I would ask them to really consider some of the asks,' Krgovich said. 'We don't really feel that is something that's impossible to achieve. I mean, all we're asking for is family-sized homes, so that a family with two children can live comfortably and have the space that they need to grow.
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'And we also want a place that a senior could approach their home at a grade-level entry and not have to worry about navigating through elevators and things like that. We want them to try and keep this area as livable as they can.'
