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An unremarkable one-storey building just south of Whyte Avenue is next on Beljan Developments' ever-growing list of densification and adaptive reuse appointments. The existing brick-clad structure will be completely transformed by the developer, keeping and renovating the existing ground-level retail units, while topping the structure with three levels of apartments.
Dubbed @81, work on intensifying the site is ostensibly already underway. When completed, the property will include secured underground parking and a 2,500-square-foot amenity space across the second floor patio. Six commercial units on the ground floor will be provided, the largest at the rear of the site and sizing in at 2,729 square feet. The other five units will have frontage on 81 Avenue, with access to landscaped patio spaces.
Renderings for the project show polychromatic splashes applied to the inset walls of the Bennett Architect-designed project, which also appears to be clad in aluminum spandrel and a grey brick treatment.
The development represents a major change for the streetscape, which is now dominated by car-oriented, warehouse-style commercial strips. Beljan's scheme aims to introduce a new typology to a corner two blocks shy of Strathcona's prime shopping corridor, and may potentially serve as an example of the gentle density the City has been pushing through its infill initiatives.
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