Sophia Living townhomes meld traditional and modern in Port Moody?s heritage district
Michael Bernard
The Province
Sunny Singh says his family-owned company has a golden rule when it comes to building homes for people: “We build homes that we would want to live in.”
The company, Paulsun Holdings, started by his father 30 years ago, also considers places where the members of the extended family would like to be located, and Port Moody qualifies as just such a location. Sophia Living, which carries on the tradition of being named after the grand-daughters, is nestled in an area of Port Moody that the city has designated as heritage zoning. That is why the boutique-style development of 30 two- and three-bedroom townhomes has a traditional design with Craftsman-style features.
The homes, single-level two-bedroom and den units at ground level with two- and three-level townhomes stacked on top, are in four buildings with an attractive courtyard in the middle — complete with a checker board pattern pathway in the centre for kids to use for their games. While the one level units have doors on the outside streets and facing the courtyard, the upper level homes have doors on the courtyard. The site, one corner of which is at Clark and Spring, is laid out to provide higher density levels, which in turn allows Paulsun to offer the homes at more affordable prices, he said.
Why Port Moody? The company has built all over Metro Vancouver but has always been impressed with the Vancouver suburb situated at the eastern end of Burrard Inlet, said Singh. “We’ve built there in the past, and we have always liked that area. Port Moody is a unique kind of city right in the middle of everything but not very many people know about it. Once people go there, they are quite impressed. It is now becoming one of the most popular destinations for people to take their kids, including the great Rocky Point Park. “My wife and I have a new baby girl, so we go down there once a week,” he said, adding that there is a kids’ aquatic park, an ice cream shop and a museum nearby. “When we looked at the site for the first time, we felt like this was a place where we would want to live.”
Singh says the homes are close to the West Coast Express and Skytrain station but not so close that the noise of the trains is an issue. Also nearby are small stores along St. John whose heritage features are protected by zoning.
The garden suites range from 1,000 to 1,100 square feet; the two bedroom plus den range from 1250 to 1350 square feet, while the three bedrooms are 1,350 to 1,431 square feet. While the exteriors of the homes will be heritage styled when completed, the interiors of the 30 homes are completely modern and suited to today’s living. The open-style floor plans are practical and efficient and come in two designer colours. Flooring is modern wood laminate throughout the living areas, bedrooms and stairs. All main levels have nine-foot ceilings and a full fire sprinkler system throughout with smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. There are five-inch baseboards and 3.5-inch flat stock casing on all doors and oversized windows, which come equipped with two-inch faux wood blinds. Every home has a full-size stacked washer and dryer and wood closet organizers to maximize storage.
Kitchens come with a premium stainless steel appliance package. It includes an Energy Star-rated 36” KitchenAid counter-depth French door fridge with bottom freezer, water dispenser, and automatic ice maker. Also included is a 30” KitchenAid Electric Range with self-cleaning convection oven, an Energy Star KitchenAid ultra quiet dishwasher with hidden controls and multiple wash options, a built-in Panasonic Microwave with a stainless steel trim kit and an Energy Star under-cabinet Broan hood fan.
The cabinetry is custom-made solid plywood cabinetry with a soft-close feature and brilliant satin or black hardware and engineered quartz countertops. Most kitchens have islands with a breakfast bar for entertaining and a dual stainless-steel sink with garburator and high-arc Delta faucet. There is an energy efficient hot water system as well.
The bathrooms feature custom-designed cabinetry to maximize storage and a sleek under-mount sinks and quartz countertops. Every bathroom comes with Delta wall and hand showers, high-grade handset porcelain floors and coordinating wall tiles. There are also relaxing soaker tubs to accompany the walk-in shower with tempered-glass enclosures and one-piece low water consumption toilets.
Singh says that Paulsun uses a number of green building techniques including low VOC paints, a recycling program during construction and solid building practices to ensure the homes are Green Gold and Energuide 82 certified. Every resident parking stall in the underground parking is pre-wired for electric car charging.
Sophia Living, Port Moody
Project address: 2301 Clark St., Port Moody
Project scale: Thirty wood-frame boutique garden suites and townhomes with balconies and patios in a traditional design located in Port Moody’s heritage district. Close to Skytrain, West Coast Express, shopping and schools. Two-bedroom and den and three-bedroom homes range in size from 1,027 sq. ft. to 1,430 sq. ft.
Prices: Starting from $729,000
Developer: Paulsun Holdings Ltd.
Architect: Jordan Kutev Architect Inc.
Interior Design: In house
Sales centre: 3032 St. John St., Port Moody
Sales phone: 604-468-0601
Website: www.sophialiving.ca
Completion date: Fall 2021
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