The Vancouver City Council discussed a new push for arts, culture and heritage in the city on Monday, but there were also updates to several issues of note.
Here’s a roundup of other items addressed at the council’s second meeting of 2018:
Request regarding Caples Terrace
The Vancouver Housing Authority is seeking a zone change for two parcels at Skyline Crest, a low-income apartment complex near Mill Plain Boulevard and Andresen Road.
The zone change would permit VHA to build Caples Terrace, a 28-unit apartment building.
The site still requires demolition of a few structures, but the Land Use Hearing Examiner has already approved the site use. Approval was recommended Jan. 4.
Capes Terrace is part of a larger renovation at Skyline Crest that the council approved in 2016. Other projects planned for the site include a Boys and Girls Club facility, a health services clinic and an education and employment resource center.
The council will bring the request back for a first reading at its Feb. 12 meeting and a public hearing Feb. 26.
Columbia Tech Center
The council approved an addendum to its development agreement with the Columbia Tech Center. The addendum enters the city and CTC into a partnership agreement for the construction of improvements on Southeast First Street. Essentially, the city will oversee construction, and the CTC will dedicate 87,000 square feet of right-of-way to realign Southeast First Street. In exchange, the CTC will receive Traffic Impact Fee credits for its expenditures related to the project.
Multifamily Housing Tax Exemption
An amendment to the Multifamily Housing Tax Exemption program is now officially implemented. The amendment gives developers that meet a set of admittedly narrow conditions the ability to extend a project’s required start-by date from 24 months to 36 months.
At this point, the only known project that meets the specific conditions is the fourth tower construction at Vancouvercenter. For example, to qualify for an extension, the project must have changed ownership after abatement was approved and abatement had to be in place prior to February 2015.
The extension gives Vancouvercenter developer Holland Partnership Group an additional year to study a new type of building material, light gauge steel framing, which would allow the fourth tower to reach 10 stories.
