Sixty-acre former Nexen Chemical site will likely become residential units, commercial land, hotel and performing arts centre
Fiona Anderson
Sun
The District of Squamish purchased the former Nexen Chemical site (centre) two years ago for $3. It is now looking at a major investment to develop the land as mixed commercial and residential. Photograph by : Vancouver Sun, Courtesy photo
The District of Squamish has selected local developer Qualex-Landmark to plan for construction on what may be the last oceanfront property available for large-scale development in the Lower Mainland.
The district acquired the 60-acre parcel — the former site of the Nexen Chemical plant — from the province for $3 two years ago. Since then, it has been working on developing a comprehensive community vision on how that land should be used, district Mayor Ian Sutherland said in an interview.
That vision includes some residential units, commercial and light industrial property, a hotel, a performing arts centre, and green space, Sutherland said.
“It’s kind of like a wish list,” Sutherland said.
The area also includes 40 acres of fee-simple waterlots that Sutherland would like to see used as a ferry terminal or a marina.
“If we can get a ferry connection from downtown Vancouver to downtown Squamish, that would be huge for us,” Sutherland said. “If we can attract cruise ships, that would be huge. If we can provide marine facilities so that people can bring their yachts up and get them serviced and get fuel, that will certainly bring tourism to the area.
“So it creates all sorts of opportunities,” he said.
To help bring the vision to life, the district, through the Squamish Oceanfront Development Corp., sought a developer as a partner. The district would put up the land, and the developer would have to do the rest.
“We felt we obviously had a great piece of land with great potential for anybody who was involved in it, so we were pretty stubborn about what we wanted back,” Sutherland said. “We were pretty adamant going into the process that we wanted 50 per cent of ownership.”
All of the four developers in the final running were “world-class” and would have been great partners, Sutherland said. But Qualex-Landmark was chosen for “their excitement for this project, [and] their vision for this site,” he said.
The next step is to enter into a memorandum of understanding and then develop a master plan that will set out exactly what will be included in the development, which Sutherland dubs “Granville Island North.”
“This is a marathon, and this is just one more step along the way,” he said. “There is still lots to do; there is still lots of public input, and lots of planning.”
Chris Colbeck, vice-president of sales and marketing for Qualex-Landmark, said his company wanted to be involved because it was a unique piece of land that deserved something unique be done with it.
“The exciting part of it is here is a piece of land that is unique in B.C. that has a chance to be changed from industrial to something absolutely amazing,” Colbeck said.
The development is expected to generate $11 million a year in construction jobs, or more than 3,340 person years of employment over the next 15 years, Larry Murray, the chair of the SODC’s board of directors said.
The district also believes that about $18 million a year in additional local spending will be generated, whereas right now, a “very large portion” of spending by Squamish residents leaves the community, Murray said.
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© The Vancouver Sun 2006