38 — Wednesday. September 17, 1997 —- North Shore News

Open letter to West
Vancouver’s mayor and
council and the Squamish
Indian Band Counce

Re: Expansion o
Royal Shopping Centre.

T have been asked by 2

up of concerned We!
Vancouver citizens to review
and comment, as an informed
former professional, on the
proposed addition ro Park
Royal Centre. Park Royal and
its relationship with our com-
munity is highly important to
us all.

I am a long-time resident
of West Vancouver. } have had
extensive experience with
retail shopping centres.

Prior to my retirement
from my architectural prac-
tice, I was a senior partner of a
firm that was responsible for
approximately four million
square feet of retail space in
projects which included:
Eaton’s Centre at Metrcrown,
Capilano Mall, New
Westminster Mall, = the
Oakridge Centre expansion,
the first Real Canadian
Superstore in Vancouver,

Park

Buy Rite

Serving the North +

305 Lonsdaie
North Vancouver
Mon-Sat 9:30-5:30

0,000 car stalls and over |
million square feet of related
office and allied space

As you may know, the
emergence of mega stores or
‘big box’ retail was a trend of
the ‘industrialization’ of retail
sales and distribution.

Essentially big, box retail is
the blending of the distribu-
tion of goods with the direct
sales to the purchaser.

Originally approved in
declining industria! areas or
failing existing centers, big
box retail outlets and the
related ‘pad’ restaurants and

Lighting

Ware since 1975

Eo

¢ designed to toral-
Wy dominate anv market sector
with vast selection and whole-
sale prices. The primary and
secondary trade areas of this
domination are enormous and
customers are typically drawn

dive

Truiy, one-stop shopping in
their categor

While it is difficult tor me
to make a detailed assessment
of the nature and impact of
this proposed development, I
trust that your planning and
permits staff, as well as the
design panel, have or will
receive full) documentation
and rationale and will carry
out and report on a thorough
review of all aspects of the
scheme.

I believe that there are very
crucial questions that need
answers,

Questions that are perti-
nent for an independent
analysis ar
© Area of the grass floor space
of the existing Park Royal?
¢ Area of net leasable floor
space?

* Number of car parking
spaces?

¢ Namber of ruck docks?

© Detailed traffic movement
pattern

© Detailed traffic impact cal-

terns ?
« Assumptions regarding per
visit purchase averages?
© impact anaiysis of increased
shopping, traffic and potential
displacement of street-orient-
ed retail?
e Why did Park Royal devel-
op the golf range and redevel-
op the theatre and bowling
alley if, a few years later, these
much used amenities are “
longer viable”?
© Implications for the scale,
character and mix of the exist-
ing streetscape?
Pending a detailed under-
nding of the above ques-
tions and impact of this
scheme, I wanted to share

é

with you some personal, very
prelimina reactions based

From a helt
discussion with
Duggan of Larce
stand thar the proposed
eypansion scheme — entails
some 250,000 — additional
square feet of big box retail
space plus some smailer stand
alone ‘pad? stores and restau-
tants together with 1,100
additional car parking spaces
plus truck handling and stag-

1g areas.

Based on these preliminary
numbers it is easy to extrapo-
late thar Park Royal Shopping
Centre

I under.

nately 900,000 square
will be expanded by a fac-
tor of 27%

Assuming that sales of
approximately $400 per
square foot (che range could
actually be berween $300 and
$600 or more ) on an increase
of 256,000 square feet there
will conservatively be around
$100,000,000 in additional
sales annually from the area of
expansion.

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CONDITIONS OF SALE

1. Due to the naturs of this closeout there may be no sales
presentation, Ail products will be tagged with a sale price.
2. All tagged prices are cash & carry- there will be a minimal ch

for delivery.

3. Ail products will carry manufacturers full factory warranty.

4. Quantities and color selection may be limited on soine modeis
and products. First come-first served.

5, Warehousing and storage available.

midlandappliance

307 Lonsdale Ave N. Vain (corner of ard & Lonsdale)

Assuming an ‘average wip
purchase" to be equivalent to
$100 i sales, there will likely
be 1,060,000 additional car
trips per year to this precinct.

Looking at this another

5 Larce’s published

F of an addi-

seven cars per minute,

there will be approximately

3,360 additional cars (perhaps

5.900 people) per day or as

many as 1,209,000 additional
car trips per year.

(Seven cars per minute
times 60 minutes times cight
hours equals 3,360 cars per
day.)

This figure seems to tally
with the estimate of trips
deduced from the sales fig-
ures.

This traffic volume is the
equivalent of eight, 400-car
BC ferries untoading into this
zone every day.

Imagine one ferry unload-
ing every hour! Directly into
the south side of the existing
Park Royal!

It remains to be seen from

See Big Box page 3S

té our prem

jgtisnow eee take its sie