Squamish could soon be home to a new landmark climbing gym at Oceanfront Squamish as developers propose a new plan featuring four mixed-use, five-storey buildings on land originally designated for marine industrial uses.
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The proposal, which involves a rezoning and an amendment to the Official Community Plan (OCP) for the Oceanfront Waterfront Employment area, aims to shift the land use from industrial to mixed-use. The new development would include a childcare centre and an indoor climbing gym. The climbing gym is proposed near Sp’akw’us Feather Park.
The new zoning would accommodate both residential and light industrial uses. The plan includes 207 market rental residential units, 20% of which would be three-bedroom units. A housing agreement would prioritize rentals for residents employed within the District. The proposal also features a mix of retail, office space, and light industrial activities similar to those found in the Squamish Business Park.
The development would consist of five mixed-use buildings, primarily four storeys high, combining residential and light industrial spaces. According to a staff report to the council, the employment spaces would largely cater to light industrial uses, including wholesaling, low-hazard manufacturing, product development, research and development, and similar activities.
The current proposal includes 280 parking stalls, a reduction from the 355 spaces required by local bylaws.
This new plan represents a shift in the vision for ‘Block C’ on the western side of the property. Initially, this area was intended to support marine and industrial uses such as boat building and marine-oriented commercial activities, with the potential to serve as a deep-water port. However, the developer now suggests that these uses are unsuitable due to the lack of deep-water access.
The proposal will be presented to the Council at a Committee of the Whole meeting in November 2024.
Ted prior says
Sounds good . Let’s some what go with the flow and take amenities instead of a costly 5 year process
Chris says
It’s interesting how developers get to decide now what land should be used for in Squamish. That small piece of land was originally set aside for marine industrial use. It must have been tough for the earlier planners to designate any land in THE PORT OF SQUAMISH for any kind of marine activity. The current thinking around Squamish officialdom does not lend itself to having any concern for the future use of waterfront or associated applications. Climbing gyms and mixed use buildings can be built anywhere. Marine industrial needs to have water access …. don’t count on a practical or usable boat launch anytime soon! Deep water access is possible at that location with a bit of dredging and that could enable easy access. ( Tugs used to tow chemical barges a lot farther up that same channel in the past but dredging is another issue that is to be avoided in the current strategy.) I realize that industrial seems to be an unpopular word in Squamish now but it would be reasonable to save that small piece of valuable waterfront land for future MARINE use.