The city has offered Delta-owned space for lease at the Royal Oaks in Tsawwassen.
Comprising over 4,200-square-feet, the main floor of the building in the 1100-block of 56 Street is available for office or retail purposes. There is also an option to lease the basement separately.
Last year, the city had to offer concerned residents an assurance that it was not planning to redevelop the building into a six-storey residential complex.
Council had approved an Official Community Plan (OCP) amendment and rezoning to allow commercial uses in the complex, which had been zoned for public uses.
A staff report noted that the property was given to the City of Delta for community purposes in 1991 when the adjacent Royal Oaks multi-unit residential complex was developed.
The existing Tsawwassen building on the site was constructed in 1992 and was used as a community police office until 2017, when that office moved into the Town Centre Mall.
Since then, the building has been mostly vacant, except for Delta Archives material, which was stored within the basement.
Staff brought forward a proposal to change the zoning to lease out to a commercial business.
At an earlier meeting, councillors discussed letters of opposition to a previous OCP amendment application.
Council members said they wanted the city to clarify what was proposed and assure the public the city did not plan to build a six-storey building at the site, contrary to rumours that had been circulating.
In addition to letters of concern, the city received a petition containing 217 signatures from 155 households.
The staff report noted, “Redevelopment of the site is not proposed at this time.”
The report also noted that staff originally proposed to amend the OCP designation from multi-unit residential to town centre, and from medium-density residential to mixed-use.
“However, given concerns and opposition from residents regarding the proposed OCP designation, the OCP amendment proposal has been revised to include designations focused exclusively on commercial use,” the report added.
The planning department also noted the proposed amendments would match the current land use designations on similar commercial-only properties along 12 Avenue adjacent to the Tsawwassen Town Centre.
The current zoning now allows for a variety of neighbourhood commercial uses including office, fitness, retail and café.
Council this spring gave preliminary approval for an updated OCP. The proposed changes proposed in Tsawwassen include increased residential opportunities fronting 56 Street.
