The Anvil Centre is being hailed a game-changer for downtown, but another development - just up the road on Columbia Street - could also have a huge impact on the neighbourhood.
The Trapp + Holbrook development is on track to move people into the 196 units, ranging from 500 to 1,261 square feet and in price from $242,900 to $459,900, in the spring, developer Robert Fung, Salient Group president, told The Record.
"We are tracking on schedule and pretty excited about it," he said.
There are still 30 residential units left for sale, including two-bedroom condos with sweeping views of the Fraser River. They intentionally held back on marketing those units, Fung said, to show off the "amazing" views. Smaller condos are also still available, he said.
The Trapp building was one of the most-prominent structures on Columbia Street in the early 1900s. Edwardian architects designed the elaborate exteriors for the Trapp brothers' flagship hardware store.
"It was just a beautiful building with that cream terra cotta and all of the ornamentation," local historian Jim Wolf said.
Known for maintaining historic stock and character with his developments in Gastown, Fung brought the same sensibilities to the Trapp and Holbrook project.
"The reason we are attracted to the area is because of that history, is because of that character, and there was level of artistry originally and workmanship that's really difficult to find these days," he said. "That tactile texture of the materials is very difficult to reproduce, and it's important to keep that character."
The development will also bring 6,000-square feet of commercial space on Columbia Street, which they plan to lease.
The goal is to bring retail services that are "appropriate" for the space, Fung explained.
"We have a number of groups that have approached us - (we are) just working through to make sure that the mix is the best," he said.
More than a year ago, Fung's company conducted an online survey, asking what the community envisioned for the commercial space.
"We got great feedback ... more than 200 responses," Fung said. "Overwhelmingly, people see it as urban neighbourhood with neighbourood-type services."
The respondents want to see restaurants, cafes, bakeries, groceries, neighbourhood retail, butcher shops, etc.
As for the downtown's newest darling, Fung had nothing but praise for the Anvil Centre, a community facility with an office tower, calling it a "bold, strategic move" on behalf of the city to catalyze economic activity in its historic downtown.
"Sometimes the only way to do that is to take the Field of Dreams approach and build it so that people will come," he said.
Fung wouldn't confirm whether his company has any future development plans in New West.
"We hope to be, but nothing that I can talk about at the moment," he said.
But he clearly wants to keep his hands in the city.
"One of the reasons why we want to do more in New West is because it is such a pleasure working there," Fung said. "The municipality has been very open to ideas and how we do things. They are taking a deep interest in the revitalization of Columbia Street and of the downtown."
Fung acknowledged how far the downtown has come since he bought the Trapp and Holbrook buildings in 2005 but said the transformation is still in an early stage of its evolution. He also noted the value in New West, with real-estate pricing that is reasonable compared to neighbouring cities north of the Fraser.
"It's the only other historic downtown in the Lower Mainland, besides Gastown, Yaletown, and there's really no other downtown that's better served by transit," he said.
