Plans have changed for large development proposed in west Abbotsford, with the number of homes proposed to be built cut nearly in half.
Three years ago, council approved a 435-unit development at the corner of Livingstone Avenue and Maclure Road. Most of those units were to have been apartment buildings, but plans for the seven-acre site – located just north of Highway 1 near the Mt. Lehman interchange – have now changed significantly.
The developer now aims to build 167 townhouses, while splitting the property into three lots, in part to allow for the construction of 75 apartment units in a second phase of construction. On Monday, the proposed changes came before council, which forwarded the application to a future hearing.
Because the changes require only minor variances and no alteration of the zoning or official community plan status of the land, a full public hearing won’t be required.
The development will still result in upgrades to the nearby intersection of Maclure and Blue Jay Street, along with the installation of a new traffic signal at the entrance of the complex on Livingstone. That signal will also provide better access to the shopping centre across the road, council heard.
The project will see 368 trees cut down on the heavily forested property. The developer has promised to plant 446 new trees on site and provide cash for the planting of 79 elsewhere in the city, as required by Abbotsford’s tree protection bylaw.