Right out of the gate for the New Year, Vancouver City Council will be tasked with deciding whether to accept or reject the long-awaited Draft Policy Statement for the Jericho Lands.

Plans for the 90-acre project — a joint real estate venture partnership between the MST Development Corporation (Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh) and Canada Lands Company (a federal crown corporation (CLC) ) — have been in the making for years, involving scores of experts in land use, architecture, design, environmental science, real estate, and engineering. Phase 4 of the plan was announced in June 2023, and on Wednesday, January 24, the draft statement will go before the Mayor and Council.

A local community group, however, says the meeting should be delayed until a critical hydrogeological analysis determines the condition of the groundwater and if it can support the huge network of towers planned for the site. 

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a member of the Jericho Coalition said it would be a “huge danger” to begin drilling for a densely-packed development without first clarifying what can be built on the site. “What additional costs are we willing to pay for if something goes wrong with adding high-rise concrete towers and a subway to the site?”

When Phase 4 of the project was announced last June, many West Point Grey neighbours were shocked to learn the revised number of homes had increased to 13,000 from 9,000 units in Phase 3. Sixty towers, including three 49-storey “sentinels,” are planned for at least 24,000 residents, which is more than the Oakridge and Senakw projects combined, both in terms of number of homes and land area.

An outspoken critic of the development, the Jericho Coalition posted the following on its website: “Jericho is particularly sensitive as previous groundwater drillers reported that the groundwater aquifer under at least part of the site is confined and under pressure. Digging into a confined aquifer for the foundation of even one of the 60 high-rise towers could cause a major release of the artesian groundwater, which could, in turn, result in erosion, sinkholes, and ground subsidence [sinking].”

Coalition member Murray Hendren, a retired environmental engineer, notes the City has acknowledged that groundwater conditions will be crucial to the development of the site. It  assured that “Substantive hydrogeological and groundwater technical studies for the entire site will be undertaken and are required prior to the first rezoning application and approval will be contingent on the appropriate mitigation of groundwater-related risks as per normal City practice,” the City wrote in an email to Global News.

Calling the City’s response an “odd way to do planning,” Hendren contends that “Without the critical hydrogeological study that covers the potentially serious groundwater issues, the draft policy statement is woefully incomplete because the whole Jericho Lands project could have to be changed entirely.”

ABC Mayor Ken Sim has said publicly that he supports MST’s plan to heavily densify the large parcel of land it, together with the CLC, acquired from the government in 2014. The federal government sold 52 acres for $237 million, with MST and CLC splitting ownership 50/50. In April 2016, the Province sold the remaining 38 acres it owned to MST for $480 million.

According to the City, public engagement for Phase 4 found mixed opinions about the increased density and heights of towers. Overall, 38 percent of respondents said they “liked” or “really liked” most aspects of the revised site plan concept, while 48 percent “disliked” or “really disliked” the concept.

The Jericho Coalition supports a small to mid-rise “human scale” development rather than skyscrapers. The group hired its own experts to design an alternative plan to the one being proposed that envisions 7,200 units for 16,000 people. (Click on the Jericho Coalition link provided above to read the plan).

MST says that least 30 per cent of the total residential building floor area will be affordable housing, including 20 per cent social housing and 10 per cent secured rental housing for those with moderate incomes. And while many residents welcome a denser community for Jericho, the Coalition and many people living in surrounding neighbourhoods don’t want to see the Jericho Lands become an upscale fortress with luxury condos that has little to do with the stated goal of reconciliation with First Nations.

Last September, the Coalition hired Forum Research to conduct a poll of 400 residents across the city regarding density, height of towers, and the environmental impacts of the development. The results showed 72% of participants agreed the development as proposed was too dense and that the City should reject it on this basis.

The Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods has said it opposes construction of multiple luxury properties and is concerned that many could be bought up by domestic and off-shore investors.

If approved by Council on the 24^th, the landowners will be required to submit rezoning, development, and building permit applications to the City. It is anticipated that MST will submit multiple phased applications over the coming months and years. Complete build-out is expected to take between 25 and 30 years.

Artist rendering – view from internal street looking west towards East Plaza and 6th Avenue Greenway. From the draft policy of the Jericho Lands.