Vancouver developer SwissReal Group says it will be following through on commitments to build a large townhouse development along the 5100 Block of McConnell on the bench despite a delay of several months.
Clearing has been done on the 2.7-acre lot for 35 townhouses right across the street from the newly-developed Wirtl single-family home subdivision.
There will be 11 buildings, most of them containing three units, and several of them two units, says SwissReal vice president Jeremy Towning.
“We're just hammering it out with the contractors. We just need to analyze the numbers. We should be breaking ground some time between now and very early fall,” said Towning.
The company had anticipated an early summer construction start for the units which will be sold for just more than $400,000, marginally above first estimates.
“The costs are a little more up North,” said Towning of construction expenses.
The build will happen over a period of 14 months, continued Towning, with the first houses coming online periodically after eight months as they are completed.
Because it is a strata development, there will be a monthly fee for a groundskeeper to maintain landscaping and exteriors, as well well as a centralized park space.
Towning said busy young families and the elderly would benefit from this service which makes the units attractive to a diverse range of buyers, many of whom he says have already signed up for potential purchases.
While there might be the sense that many of the major residential and hotel developments hinge on LNG projects being built in the region, Towning says that isn't the primary driving force behind its Terrace project.
In terms of the financial backing for the bench development in Terrace, Towning said “It's a large fund, a Swiss fund, actually,” though SwissReal owns a large percentage of the project itself.
“Usually we joint venture with partners,” said Towning, referring to a $280 million project in downtown Vancouver and for which the company has found an 80 per cent partner.
SwissReal also wants to build an eight-storey condominium project in Prince Rupert. It would contain 80 units and include a commercial building for medical and business offices.