Preliminary Vision Update for 1200 King Rd. Sees Space for Housing, Parks, Recreation & Campus

At our March 19 meeting, Burlington City Council received a vision update for plans to redevelop 1200 King Rd. and approved a staff direction to have Burlington Economic Development report back in Q2 2024 on potential investment opportunities at the site. Read a related news release from Burlington Economic Development here or at the bottom of this post.See the approved full motion from Council, My Take, and the associated staff report and supporting documents below — as well as additional background information further down this post.APPROVED MOTION:

• Direct the City Manager to work with the Executive Director, Burlington Economic Development to report back in Q2 2024 with an update on future investment opportunities on the 1200 King Road site in conjunction with the following:
  1. Detailed public presentation on the proposed 1200 King Road land use development concept from Alinea; and
  2. Letter of Intent (LOI) between the City, landowner and Burlington Economic Development that identifies the next steps and timing for moving forward with the implementation of the 1200 King Road proposed major community facility/future investment opportunities.

MY TAKE:The preliminary vision for 1200 King Road is very exciting! I want to thank everyone working diligently on this, including Burlington Economic Development, our Burlington Lands Partnership and Alinea for being willing to have discussions with us on how we can make this a landmark site for west Burlington and our whole city. This is the template on how we should move forward with big parcels of land to achieve parkland, housing, employment space, and more for the community, all localized. This is also the type of place that lends itself to discussions on how to include affordable housing -- it's a blank slate. There will be a need for community investment, including funding from the City of Burlington. This is a significant opportunity for us to partner, invest and look at different ways at funding -- and tt all starts with partnerships.We need more community facilities in Burlington to keep up with growth. On behalf of Burlington Council, we are thrilled to see this move forward and look forward to the next update.

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To read the staff report and related supporting documents, please click/tap the links below:

• Staff report: ECDEV-02-24 1200 King Road Vision Update.pdf
• Staff presentation: ECDEV-02-24 App A 1200 King Rd vision update.pdf

BACKGROUND:On January 16, 2024, report CS-01-24: Burlington’s Plan from Vision to Focus 2022- 2026 as of December 2023 was endorsed by Council and called for Burlington to design and deliver complete communities by creating all-inclusive, thriving, vibrant, healthy, connected, and safe communities. Also in January, report ECDEV-01-24: Economic Development strategy update provided an update on Burlington Economic Development’s 2023-2026 Strategic Plan. Pillar 1 of the Plan focused on Land Readiness and Activation with tactics for visioning and activation around major employment areas – specifically around Major Transit Station Areas (MTSAs).In support of the above plans, Burlington Economic Development (Burlington EcDev) and Penta Properties (currently Alinea) signed a letter of intent (LOI) on the Proposed Collaboration in the Creation of Proposals for the Development of 1200 King Road and other Lands dated May 18, 2022 to create an economic vision for the 1200 King Road site. Based on the LOI, Burlington EcDev worked closely with Alinea to jointly agree on the scope of the economic vision for the 1200 King Road Site and develop high level complete future development concepts. The economic vision was endorsed in principle by Burlington EcDev’s Board of Directors.Burlington EcDev has also worked together with the Burlington Lands Partnership (BLP) and Alinea to examine and develop potential future public private partnership investment opportunities and options for the 1200 King Road site. Inclusive within the opportunities considered and to be presented at March 4th COW is a preliminary vision for a major investment in a future West Burlington major recreation and culture facility.The preliminary public-private-partnership investment opportunities are detailed in Appendix A: Presentation Deck for ECDEV-02-24: 1200 King Road Vision Update.The presentation at the March 4th COW meeting is a preliminary step and staff recommend further reporting back in Q2 2024 with an update on future investment opportunities on the 1200 King Road site in conjunction with the following:

1. Detailed public presentation on the proposed 1200 King Road land use development concept from Alinea;
2. Letter of intent (LOI) between City, Landowner and Burlington Economic Development that identifies the next steps and timing for moving forward with the implementation of the 1200 King Road proposed major community facility/future investment opportunities.

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Burlington Economic Development News ReleaseBURLINGTON CITY COUNCIL UNANIMOUSLY APPROVES MOTION TO CONTINUE WORK WITH ALINEA PROPERTIES ON ECONOMIC VISION FOR 1200 KING ROAD March 19, 2024 | Burlington, ON  During today’s Regular Meeting of Council, Burlington City Council voted unanimously to support the direction for Burlington Economic Development and the Burlington Lands Partnership to continue working with Alinea Properties on an economic vision for the development site located at 1200 King Road.  At the Committee of the Whole on March 4, 2024, staff from Burlington Economic Development and Burlington Lands Partnership presented in collaboration with a delegation from Alinea Properties a preliminary vision for a major investment in public-private-partnership based West Burlington major community facility investment. The current vision for the site includes mixed-use residential and commercial, a post-secondary satellite campus, and an entertainment district that includes a twin ice rink and hotel concept. One of the rinks would be large enough to accommodate large events with seating for 5,000. Concerts and other events that allow for standing room could accommodate upwards of 7,000. 

"We are thrilled to share this vision with the public as it is the culmination of years of partnership with the landowner and potential investors to envision something that will benefit Burlington for generations to come. There are many variables at play here, including having a landowner that is equally committed to developing the site into a complete community, which means ensuring a mixed tenure housing, mobility and active transportation, employment, retail, and natural heritage and recreation areas.” Cassidy also spoke about the work that still needs to be done. “We have a long way to go on this project, but the preliminary economic vision and investment opportunities we presented on March 4 at Committee of the Whole, and Council’s decision today to support the continuation of this work is a step in the right direction." -- Anita Cassidy, Executive Director of Burlington Economic Development

The 1200 King site is of high strategic importance to the city as one of the last major mixed-use development opportunities for Burlington. The 47-hectare site spans the area immediately south of the QEW between King Road and Waterdown Road at the edge of the Aldershot GO transit station. Its proximity to the station makes it an appealing location for potential investors, and the preliminary vision aims to position the area as a vibrant mix of employment, retail, and leisure amenities to attract companies, jobs, and talent.  Ward 1 Councillor Kelvin Galbraith spoke about the opportunities the site presents around private-public partnerships between the city, landowner, and potential investors.

"The site at 1200 King has the potential to transform a currently underdeveloped area into a vibrant community hub, a place where people can live, work, and raise a family. We really have a blank canvas before us, and we are taking every detail into consideration to make sure we get this right. We’re also looking at public sector ownership and rights to parkland, open space, and community shared use facilities that can be enjoyed for generations to come." -- Ward 1 Councillor Kelvin Galbraith, City of Burlington

The site will need to undergo several independent studies. Details on these studies, opportunities for public engagement, and other updates will be provided as they become available.