Abbotsford development touts trails and parks to attract residents
Credit to Author: Glenda Luymes| Date: Fri, 25 Oct 2019 19:56:01 +0000
Proximity to nature has long been used to sell Metro Vancouver real estate, but an Abbotsford development has taken that a step further by preserving 300 acres for outdoor recreation.
A network of trails crisscross land owned by Auguston Town Development, a community near Sumas Mountain that features 500 single-family homes with plans for hundreds, if not thousands, more.
General manager Ian Renton said people are looking for homes where it’s easy to get outdoors and “feel like they’re in the wilderness.”
When the land was first developed in the late 1990s, several parcels were given to the City of Abbotsford to be turned into parks. Ownership of another 300 acres, some of it undevelopable land along streams and ravines, was retained by the developer, but zoned as parkland. Since then, trails have been developed to link homes, parks and the neighbourhood elementary school.
“We’re working hard to establish the trail system in the areas we’ve preserved,” said Renton.
The developer, a Hong Kong-based family, hopes to continue building homes on the land it owns, about 850 acres in total, including some forested areas not included in the 300 acres of preserved parkland. Low-rise apartments and more high-density housing will likely be part of the project’s next phase, said Renton.
Earlier this year the company raised eyebrows when it released an ambitious plan to build a self-contained city including 12 highrises, businesses and a massive farmer’s market on the land. Designed by a Hong Kong-based architectural firm, the “WeTown” plan would bring about 40,000 new residents to the area.
But Renton said WeTown was simply a “vision” it was discussing with the City of Abbotsford.
“We know compact development and density will be important going forward,” he said, adding the second phase of the Auguston development will be more modest than WeTown, but still higher-density than the first single-family homes built in the 1990s.
Recognizing the need for wilderness spaces to accompany any development, the developer has given 25 acres at the top of McKee Peak to the City of Abbotsford.
“Not all parks should be playing fields,” said Renton. “These places don’t cost anything except a little care and attention.”