Image Credit: Bianca Amor's Liquidation Supercentre)

By Victor Kaisar

New Rental Development

Kamloops council to consider new six-storey rental development on Notre Dame Drive

Jan 24, 2025 | 10:33 AM

KAMLOOPS — Kamloops City Councillors are being asked to support a development permit for a six-storey, 128-unit rental apartment building at 925 Notre Dame Drive, the property that currently houses Bianca Amor’s Liquidation Supercentre.

A report going before Tuesday’s (Jan. 28) council meeting says the owner/applicant, listed in the report as ND (925) Properties Ltd., is proposing to construct a new building which is expected to consist of 47 studio, 60 one- and 21 two-bedroom units. If approved, it’ll be the first housing development in that part of Kamloops, surrounded by a number of businesses, including Walmart, and the Summit Shopping Centre.

Also included in the report is a diagram showing the neighbouring Petland building, at 905 Notre Dame Drive earmarked for “future development”, though no details were included.

City staff say the new development at the site of Bianca Amor’s “will help to diversify the neighbourhood’s housing stock.” The 5,573 square metre property is currently zoned C6 (Arterial Commercial).

“As multi-unit residential dwelling units are a permitted use under the current C6 zone, the applicant has applied for a development permit in accordance with the Multi-Family Residential Development Permit Area Guidelines,” the staff report said.

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Included in the development permit application going before council is a variance to increase the maximum allowable building height from four storeys to six storeys.

“Staff have no concerns with the variance request to increase as there are currently no other lower-density, residential-zoned properties in the direct vicinity that would cause concern for the increased height,” the report said. “The additional two storeys allow the developer to maximize the number of rental units they develop for much-needed housing.”

The new development will be eligible for a 10-year Revitalization Tax Exemption for purpose-built rental buildings in Kamloops. That tax exemption was adopted in early November, and it applies to the North Shore, Downtown, Sagebrush, and Lower Sahali as well as pockets of Brocklehurst, Valleyview, Westsyde, and Aberdeen.

“Since the site of the proposed development is within the new Purpose-Built Rental Revitalization Tax Exemption Area, the owner/applicant wishes to enter into a housing agreement to receive the tax exemption,” the report said.

The Revitalization Tax Exemption program aims to incentivize development by offering a break on the increase in municipal property taxes for a period of 10 years.

You can read the entire staff report here.

A rendering of the proposed development at 925 Notre Dame Drive in Kamloops. (Image Credit: Station One Architects/City of Kamloops)