Residential up, retail down, Century will insert almost 100 households in district renewal
Christina Symons
Sun
The first Century building will command a block of Fraser Street, retail on the ground floor and residences on the three floors above. The architect is Raymond Letkeman Architects.
Penny-round tile and a Euro-style sink in the Century kitchens signal design thoughtfulness and the new-home project’s ahead-of-the-pack location in Vancouver’s east side. Granite will top the kitchen counters in the Century kitchens. The stainless-clad appliances in the sales centre are an upgrade.
The attention to detail evident in the sales centre kitchen is repeated in the sales centre bathroom. Inset tile in marble will accentuate the bath surround, for example.
CENTURY
Project location: Fraser at East 30th, Vancouver
Project size: Phase 1, 96 residences, 4-storey building
Residences size: 1 bed, 630 sq. ft. – 695 sq. ft.; 1 bed + den, 661 sq. ft. – 811 sq. ft.; 2 bed + den, 826 sq. ft. – 880 sq. ft.; 2 bed corner, 811 sq. ft. – 871 sq. ft.
Prices: $299,900 – $394,900
Developer: Ledingham McAllister
Architect: Raymond Letkeman Architects
Interiors: i3 design
Sales centre: 4305 Fraser, at East 27th
Hours: noon – 6 p.m., Sat – Thur
Telephone: 604-873-4204
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: ledmac.com/century
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In true street style, neighbourhoods come and go, but you can always count on the classics to make a fashionable comeback. Vintage urban enclaves are reinvented or simply rediscovered by an evolving populace on the move, circling the blocks of any urban centre, hungry for the next it address.
The smart buyer discovers it as early as possible, sifting the city’s wheat from the chaff and breaking bread on the new corner before the masses flock to do the same and jack up the prices.
Just over a century ago, the mid-section of Fraser Street was a bustling microcosm of Vancouver, when a Ledingham McAllister predecessor company, then a small excavation company, began operating out of George W. Ledingham’s backyard.
Right off the block, the company rose in stature, responsible for some of Vancouver’s landmark infrastructure, namely Vancouver International Airport, Granville Street Bridge and construction of the downtown Hudson’s Bay store.
The neighbourhood on Fraser prospered for decades and then naturally lost a little lustre as Vancouver’s emphasis shifted west, to the water and downtown.
The company, on the other hand, just kept flourishing.
Fast forward to the corner of Fraser Street and East 30th Avenue today. Here, you’ll find a fresh attraction, a sophisticated residential block under construction, fittingly called Century and brought to Vancouver by Ledingham McAllister — LedMac — now a development company.
The team at LedMac scouted this particular corner four years ago and found an address it couldn’t resist.
Vice-president Manuela Mirecki explains the thinking this way: “It’s a very original neighbourhood on the cusp of resurgence.”
Already quaint and cosmopolitan, it’s a row of blocks strangely (but not for long) lacking in corner coffee shops and the usual slate of branded urban niceties, but sound at the root and enriched by ethnic restaurants and food shops.
“This is a culturally and ethnically diverse community,” Mirecki adds, “attractive to young professionals moving up, to first-time homebuyers, those downsizing and young families.”
What they’re offering here is rare, Mirecki believes: affordable residency in a real neighbourhood.
Century sales manager Lily Liu concurs.
“What really seems to connect people is a shared value structure,” notes Liu. “People who are looking for a true neighbourhood in every sense.”
The polite four-storey building that constitutes phase one of Century runs a full block on Fraser with three storeys designated residential and much needed basic and boutique retail on the ground floor.
No-frills, a Loblaw-based super grocery, will anchor the development, along with Shoppers Drug Mart. Specialty retail and coffee shops, plus office space, complete the block.
Outside, generous overhangs, brick, wood and metal details will add add drama to the elegant, yet traditional expression. Interiors will exude classic old-world elegance executed in a contemporary fashion. The one-bedroom to two-bedroom plus den configurations feature open-concept layouts and balconies for outdoor entertaining.
For a modest-height building, the views are expansive. Set on the natural south Vancouver rise, residences boast sweet downtown and mountain vantages.
But for all its attributes, launching a pre-sale timed as the market was just settling into a new pace was a bold move for LedMac. Century is the company’s first pre-sale launch in 14 months.
By all accounts, the company nailed it.
“People may have thought we were nuts pre-selling this,” says Mirecki. “But we’ve proven them wrong.”
Just a few weeks into sales, more than half the homes have been sold.
For Mirecki, it’s not about a flashy campaign or evidence of rebound investing, just good old-fashioned real estate values in action.
“The days of treating Vancouver real estate like the stock market may be over,” Mirecki notes. “But people are always looking for homes in neighbourhoods with genuine qualities.”
Mirecki clearly has more than a professional interest in the overall concept of this particular development.
“Century is very much a reflection of my personal taste, not just in terms of design sensibility, but also in neighbourhood,” Mirecki notes.
“Our core values as a company are also very much reflected in this project,” Mirecki adds. “For something to resonate so closely to our company is quite extraordinary.”
From the lobby, with its impressive tile work, to the inviting kitchen featuring penny-round tile, every detail has been executed thoughtfully, right down to the Euro-style kitchen sink.
Purchasers have two choices: the crisp traditional black ‘n’ white motif shaker kitchen of the presentation centre, or streamlined flat panel cabinetry and a contemporary colour scheme.
Granite countertops, a fleet of black Whirlpool appliances (with an upgrade available to stainless) and Kohler fixtures complete the scene. Fine detailing continues in the master bath with marble inset tile work accentuating the bath surround.
The overall offering is chic and impressive and has generated a great deal of support from locals, who are justifiably passionate about this particular stretch of Fraser.
“Many people have stopped by just to thank us for what we are adding to the community,” notes Mirecki. “As a developer with both a passion and a heart, this is very gratifying.”
One person singing the praises of LedMac and Century is James Sutton, music director and announcer at The Peak radio. Sutton was the lucky winner of a prized Vespa scooter in the draw for those who pre-registered their interest in Century.
He later purchased a unit with wife Holly Dorie. It’s the first home they will own in Vancouver.
“This area is a great investment,” notes Sutton, who figures that property values will increase as soon as a critical mass of amenities appears to serve the neighbourhood.
The couple did nearly a year’s worth of homework; they perused at least at least a dozen other possibilities and researched the developer via friends who’d bought LedMac properties in Burnaby and Richmond.
With a finish 18 months from now, the timeline fits the couple’s goal to set roots in Vancouver and be closer to friends living in the nearby Main Street community.
Poised between yesterday and tomorrow, Century may be setting the pulse for prosperous things to come.
UNIQUE SHOPS, POLISH CENTRE LOCATED NEAR CENTURY
Fraser Street south of King Edward is a central cornucopia of discoveries.
As any typically famished and caffeine-riddled Vancouverite might, it’s tempting to size up this otherwise sweet enclave of Fraser Street, not by what it offers, but by what we expect: a branded double-shot cappuccino — now.
With nary a Starbucks or Blenz on either horizon, the impulse to flee is fierce. But fortunately, there’s a rather charming little bakery over yonder, announcing itself not by neon, but by an impressive 10 a.m. lineup of municipal workers, mugs in hand.
Turns out the modest European Breads Bakery (4324 Fraser St.) has a cult following. Not only will they make you a killer coffee, Americano-style, they offer a selection of tantalizing poppy seed, apple and cheese pastries, healthy muffins and savoury treats, too.
Hungrier? Grab a bag of traditional homemade perogies to boil up at home.
And be sure to pick up a loaf or two of organic sourdough bread (try the Russian Black) before you go. Vancouver Magazine included said bread on its “101 Things to Taste Before You Die” list in 2008. You’ll soon understand why.
The bakery is just one of many delightful surprises you can find along this six-block stretch of Fraser Street. Located in the literal heart of the city, residents enjoy close proximity to downtown and an easy 20-minute transit commute to the University of B.C. and convenient access to Marine Drive, the airport and beyond.
This community straddles several neighbourhoods by its centrality: Kensington Cedar Cottage (east of Fraser), Mountain View (referring to the natural rise and tranquil green space that constitute historic Mountain View Cemetery, due south) and Riley Park-Little Mountain, not to mention the super cool Main Street neighbourhood exactly six blocks west.
Zgoda, the Polish Friendship Society and Community Centre, anchors the community just north of King Ed, offering a variety of warm community events and gatherings, from dances to a Polish harvest festival.
Across the street, Bodhi Choi Heung Restaurant (3902 Fraser) draws Buddhists and hippies from across the city for its delectable faux meat dishes.
Where’s the beef? At Bee Kim Heng Beef & Pork Jerky (4194 Fraser St.), obviously.
Heading south again, past eclectic boutiques, vintage/thrift stores, antique peddlers and hairdressers, you’ll pass by a multitude of ethnic produce and grocery shops.
Don’t be shy – ask questions of the friendly shopkeepers if you don’t know what you’re looking at. Those amazing hot pink eggs at Baclaran Market (4223 Fraser St.), for example? They’re stunning, salted and ready to eat. Delish.
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