Kelowna’s Mission Group wants to add 34-storey tower to its highrise inventory

There’s no question that the Mission Group is leading the way with highrise development in Kelowna.

Now it’s joining forces with Victor Projects on a new proposal for a 34-storey rental/condo/retail tower at the northeast corner on Lawrence Avenue and Water Street in the city’s downtown core.

Victor Projects is no slouch when it comes to Kelowna development either. Owned by the Bennett family, it recently bought the former Costco site for $30 million and is leasing it to Canadian Tire which plans to build a new 209,000 square foot outlet.

READ MORE: Canadian Tire moving to old Kelowna Costco site

Mission Group and Victor Projects filed a development permit application for the new tower late last week.

The two companies are proposing a highrise that includes 6,695 square feet of retail space, a four-storey parkade, seven storeys with 88 rental suites and another 20 storeys with 173 condo units.

“Along Water Street there is a lack of retail presence, landscaping and consistent building frontages on the east side relative to the consistent retail character on the west all the way to Bernard Avenue,” the applications says. “The street face will be occupied by active programs such as retail and lobbies with the pedestrian sidewalk improved with canopies, lighting, landscaping, and architectural articulations.”

Rental residents will have a landscaped terrace on the sixth floor while condo owners will have a “stunning outdoor pool and terrace facing Lake Okanagan on level 13.”

The land is currently a two-storey commercial building and a parking lot.

City plans identify the site for a maximum of 26 storeys but additional floors could be allowed if it has amenities like rental units.

It’s just down the street from the Mission Group’s 20-storey Ella building, the first highrise in that part of downtown.  It’s only a few blocks away from the Mission Group’s three-tower Bernard Block currently under construction on Bernard Avenue between Bertram and St. Paul streets.

Mission Group also partnered with UBC Okanagan on Doyle Avenue where a 43-storey “vertical campus” will be built for the university while Mission Group plans two residential towers next to it.

The company has a 19-storey tower with rental units proposal further down Bertram Street and it also bought the former B.C. Fruit Packers site next to the former Tolko Industries mill for $24 million in 2021.

READ MORE: $24M sale of Kelowna waterfront property will trigger hundreds of millions in economic impact

It’s also behind the Aqua development next to the Cook Street boat launch that will have three towers up to 17 storeys.

For its part, Victor Projects is more of a commercial developer with the McCurdy Corner shopping centre — the Baron Centre where the Real Canadian Superstore is located — and Guisachan Village the most visible of its properties.

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