Occupants of Westbank?s Horseshoe Bay West Vancouver will reside in a prime waterfront location
MICHAEL BERNARD
The Vancouver Sun
Horseshoe Bay, West Vancouver
Project Address: 6409 Bay Street, West Vancouver
Project Scope: 158 condominiums and townhomes in six buildings on the waterfront at Horseshoe Bay. The one-to-three-bedroom-and-den homes range from 1,084 to 6,405 square feet, including up to 2,844 square feet of outdoor space. The amenities include a boathouse with a dedicated 24-foot Chris Craft boat and a captain available to homeowners for outings
Prices: From $950,000
Developer: Westbank
Architect: Merrick Architecture
Interior Designer: Merrick Architecture
Sales centre: 1502 Marine Dr., West Vancouver
Centre hours: noon — 5 p.m., Sat. — Thurs.
Sales phone: 604-925-9331
Website: horseshoebaywestvancouver.com
Occupancy: 2019
While most Metro Vancouver residents likely see Horseshoe Bay and its ferry terminal as just a stop on their way to other places, West Vancouverites know it as a village with a distinct history and personality.
That made it especially important for the developer and architect behind the Horseshoe Bay West Vancouver project to consult with the community before it developed plans for what was formerly a parking lot that serviced a marina run by four generations of the Sewell family, says Michael Braun, marketing director for Westbank Corp.
Braun says the visioning process began in 2009 when family patriarch Dan Sewell asked renowned Vancouver architect Paul Merrick to come up with a plan to start consulting with the community.
“It is such a beautiful location,” Braun said. “To have a true oceanfront site in Greater Vancouver is amazing, let alone in West Vancouver is amazing. We looked at it as a once-in-a-generation project that you will never be able to do again.”
The project features six buildings and 11 separate levels, which rise in elevation as one moves back from the waterfront. The homes, with their floor-to-ceiling glass exposure and outdoor space, have north and west views looking up Howe Sound.
“In terms of view impacts, because Horseshoe Bay is small scale with lots of small homes and duplexes,” Merrick said in an interview. “You could put more on the project site without necessarily having a negative impact. Particularly if you started at the street and relatively low at a townhouse scale and then built up away from that and behind it. “
Merrick said the consultations went well, with community leaders readily understanding that the project could even rise higher than originally anticipated without causing problems for other homes. He also indicated that the Sewell family’s history in the village fostered trust among other residents and businesses.
“It was a way to get quite a bit of stuff on there without feeling there was a monster invaded the fine grain of the existing community,” he said.
A boathouse, which Braun described as the “architectural jewel box” with dramatic parabolic arches on the waterfront, was the idea of Westbank founder and CEO Ian Gillespie.
“He (Gillespie) brought forward and fostered that “West Coast mentality,” said Merrick. “He is always interested in a better idea and he will support it if it comes forward.”
He said residents saw new development as a way to revitalizing local businesses, many of which had closed as more and more land was given up to parking for the B.C. Ferry terminal. At the council meeting where the zoning was approved last October, those speaking in favour outnumbered those opposed by a margin of six to one, a North Shore News story noted.
The buildings of reinforced concrete construction allow home access through covered external walkways and have views of the waterfront, mountain, forest and park. The design meets LEED standards with heating and cooling provided through an outside geothermal ocean loop, allowing a reduction of up to 70 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. An on-site cistern was built to capture storm water run-off and recycle it for irrigation, thereby reducing fresh water use.
Each building will have a private lobby with vaulted ceilings and an architectural fireplace. Each home has overheight ceilings and wideplanked wood flooring in all living areas, porcelain limestone-look tile in the bathrooms and designer wool carpet in the bedrooms.
Kitchens are equipped with European matte lacquer cabinetry with under-cabinet lighting and feature polished granite slab, white corian or glass-fused countertops. In the master ensuite and second bedroom bathrooms feature polished quartz countertops are used. Fixtures are by Grohe and Duravit.
Teak cabinetry is used in the bathrooms, and most homes have a 30-inch or 36-inch gas fireplace covered in travertine stone.
The appliances by Miele include a 30-inch or 48-inch dual fuel range, with the latter including a speed oven, (a combination convection-microwave appliance), a dishwasher, 30- or 36-inch refrigerator, 36-inch hood fan, a wine fridge and a stackable wash and dryer. Kitchens come with a double sink and garburator.
“We seem to have two types of buyers,” Braun said. “We have a lot of folks who own a house but want to downsize and live in West Vancouver. And then we have a group that would like to be in West Vancouver, but can’t buy a house there because of what housing prices have gone to, but can afford a condo.”
Both Braun and Merrick point out that travel time to downtown Vancouver would surprise most people, with Highway 99 making it faster to drive to the Lions Gate Bridge than for other residents in Dundarave.
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