This article appeared in the Kamloops This Week on December 4th, 2012 and was written by Andrea Klassen.
The clock is ticking down, but director of development services Marvin Kwiatkowski is confident the city’s building-permit numbers for 2012 are going to break the $200-million barrier before the end of December.
With the release of November’s statistics, the city is standing at $167 million in permitted construction, up from last year’s overall total of $157.6 million.
One major project the city has been expecting all year — the $30-million Telus data centre — will apparently finally go through before the calendar rolls over.
“I’d put money on it,” Kwiatkowski said when asked if the city would end the year above the $200-million mark.
It would be only the second time Kamloops has doled out permits at that level.
In 2008, the record year to date, the city ended the year with $207-million in permits.
Overall, the city gave out permits worth more than $10 million for the month of November, compared to more than $11 million in November 2011.
Of that, residential projects totalled $6.6 million, down from $8.4 million in November 2011, while commercial endeavours were worth $3.2 million
November saw the city issue 15 single-family home permits, a higher than average number for 2012.
Kwiatkowski said the sudden rise comes as a new B.C. Building Code is about to go into effect on Dec. 20.
“Whenever you have a change of code, people want to get in the door,” he said.
Those who snap up permits before the 20th have two years to build under the old code, without having to worry about changes found in the new document.
While the city is set to exceed both its initial and revised construction-value estimates for the year, it’s still slightly below projections on residential units.
So far, 341 units have been permitted this year, compared to 383 at this time in 2011.
Development and engineering services had estimated there would be 350 units.
This article appeared in the Kamloops Daily News on September 30, 2012 and was written by Sylvie Paillard.
A new subdivision is being proposed for Westsyde and the City of Kamloops wants to know what locals think.
A proposed six-lot subdivision on nine hectares of land across Westsyde Road from the Dunes Golf Course needs to be rezoned, which means the public gets to have a say during an open hearing.
The current agricultural zoning allows for parcels no smaller than eight hectares. The developer hopes to offer one-hectare parcels, which requires a country residential zoning.
But the change in zoning does not mean fewer agricultural opportunities, according to a staff report. That’s because the property is not in the agricultural land reserve due its steep topography. Limited water kept the land from being considered for development in the past but that situation has recently changed, states the report.
“With completion of upgrades to the Noble Creek water system in 2010, some additional development potential in the area (approximately 19 new service connections) has become possible,” stated Marvin Kwiatkowski, Kamloops development and engineering services director.
The site is not entirely without complications, however.
Potential rockfall at the southwest corner of the lot led to a geotechnical assessment, which determined the hazard to be “very low,” according to the staff report. But some mitigation measures were still recommended, including barring development on the more hazardous portions of the lot.
“Subject to these required measures, staff are if the opinion that the proposed lots can be safely built upon,” states the report.
It remains to be seen, however, whether neighbours agree.
On Tuesday, Kamloops City council will determine whether to allow the issue to go to public hearing.
This article appeared in the Kamloops This Week on August 27th, 2012 and was written by Andrea Klassen.
Complex, big-ticket construction projects are the trend in Kamloops for 2012, according to a mid-year report from the city’s development and engineering services department.
Total construction value for the year is now over the $100-million mark, but director Marvin Kwiatkowski noted many of the city’s application numbers are below the 10-year average through the first half of 2012.
Development variance and rezoning applications are both below average.
Residential-construction numbers are also down this year, with 224 applications worth $44 million compared to 264 worth $56.5 million by this time last year.
What’s pushed the city well ahead of its original $120-million target for construction in 2012 is commercial building, Kwiatkowski said.
While the city has issued 90 permits this year compared to 97 at this time in 2011, the value of this year’s projects is more than double — $54 million compared to $24 million.
Kwiatkowski said the “value of the projects to the community” is increasing, pointing to a rezoning for Hugh Allen Drive that will see a $4-million building replaced with a $25-million hotel.
“It is indicative of the confidence that the development community currently has in Kamloops,” he added in the report.
On the business side, however, Kamloops’ numbers are looking flatter this year.
The total number of business licences in the city is slightly higher than this time last year, but new business starts are below both the city’s five-year average and 2011 numbers.
This year, there were 375 new licences given out, compared to 421 last year.
This article was written by Mike Youds of the Kamloops Daily News on July 24th, 2012.
Did she ever imagine that Sun Rivers would grow to the size that it has?
Why, yes, Leslie Brochu tells people — the resort community’s master plan has pointed the way and ensures a cohesive development.
The vice-president of marketing joined Sun Rivers Development Corporation in 1999, the year the project’s first show home opened, after two decades in the housing industry.
“We didn’t even have a paved road,” she recalled while giving a tour of progress on the multi-faceted resort and residential development.
“It’s been a lot of fun and we’ve had a lot of interesting challenges,” she said.
Sun Rivers has not only grown to be Kamloops largest real estate development, it’s in a league all its own as build-out continues at an impressive pace. There are now 1,200 residents living on the slopes of Mount Paul where California bighorn sheep once grazed in isolation amid the sagebrush, and the resort community is only 40 per cent finished.
“We’ll see build-out over the next eight years, providing we see an uptick in the economy.” By then, the population is expected to reach 4,000 residents.
What’s new on the hill? There is construction activity all over.
The third phase of Talasa, a condominium complex, has just been completed. Ultimately, there will be six residential apartment-style buildings with 450 residences in total.
“We’re selling out very quickly. With all three buildings, we’re about 83 per cent sold out.”
Purchasers have ranged from students to young professionals and young retirees. Some are snowbirds who like the convenience of a lock-and-leave home. They still fit the Sun Rivers demographic — an average age of 48-50.
“These people are making pretty significant lifestyle changes when they decide to buy. It’s not downsizing, necessarily, it’s simple-sizing. On estate lots (for example), they’re building these dream homes.”
The centre of the complex will become the hub of Sun Rivers, the village centre, which will incorporate retail and office space, a café, grocery store, wine and beer store, and pub, as well as an outdoor swimming pool and fitness centre.
New single-family-residence neighbourhoods offer a range of options for prospective buyers.
The Pointe, one- and two-level homes (1,650 square feet) that share some of Talasa’s post-modern/contemporary design, offer a step up in scale with distinctive touches, such as private courtyards, that bring the indoors out and the outdoors. These units start from $491,500. There are about 20 lots left.
Golf Ridge is an executive townhouse development with a West Coast craftsman design. The units are 2,100 square feet, offering a private residence club with a dipping pool and close proximity to the greens. There’s even golf-cart storage. Units start at $442,500.
Then there’s Ironwood, an adult-oriented neighbourhood of homes in the 3,000-square-foot range with base prices of $432,000 (two levels) and $412,000 (one level) on larger lots. These homes, currently selling, bear an Old World or English country design theme.
Visao, another new neighbourhood, lies between the 11th and 12th greens at the eastern end of Sun Rivers. Homes, including this year’s popular Y Dream Home, feature a Tuscan/Mediterranean design motif. Of the 23 lots in the first phase, 10 remain.
“I think people are delighted to have a different architectural style to work with.”
Just west of Visao Court lies the future Belmonte above the 10th green. Construction is getting under way with the first units to hit the market early next year. These will be attached homes, again with private courtyards. Six phases are planned over a six-year period.
Show homes within each neighbourhood are fully decorated and furnished, and there’s a construction showcase in the Irongate show home. Opened in June, the construction showcase goes beneath the finished surfaces to explain construction practices and the advantages of various energy-efficient and water-efficient features.
“This has been a real benefit for us, because the new-construction market has been so tough,” Brochu said, alluding to the impact of the HST. The market was hurt more by perception than reality. They dropped prices two per cent to fight the perception.
“The new-construction industry really stalled because people were afraid. They didn’t understand.”
The PST is an embedded tax in the industry, paid during construction. When it’s re-introduced, prices will go up as a result, taxes will go down, but the overall cost will remain the same.
At the top of the development, construction is underway on a new irrigation reservoir and waterworks, in itself a $2-million construction project. Down slope from the reservoir lies the site of a future resort hotel/clubhouse, immediately above the first green.
Local interest continues to be the prime driver at Sun Rivers. About 70 per cent of buyers are local, with buyers from elsewhere in B.C. and Alberta making up most of the other 30 per cent.
The primary challenge of such a large and protracted development has been the market. Through the peaks and valleys, the partnership — headed by principal investor Martin Zumtobel of Austria — had to pace themselves to ensure they can meet demand without over-extending the inventory and capital costs.
“This is the third economic cycle or softening of the market, since we started,” she noted. In 1999, the year they broke ground, there were only 99 housing starts in all of Kamloops, which was indicative of a lull. “Twenty years was our original build-out goal, so we’ll be off by four years.”
Did she ever imagine that Sun Rivers would grow to the size that it has?