Burrard Bridge's Next Skyline: The Molson Site Redesignation Could Fill Kitsilano's Missing Grocery Store Gap

Concord Pacific's decade-long effort to redevelop the former Molson brewery at 1550 Burrard Street has reached a critical milestone. Vancouver City Council voted earlier this month to apply to Metro Vancouver for a regional growth strategy amendment, seeking to redesignate the 2.5-block industrial site to general urban use. The developer acquired the property for a reported $185 million in 2016, but the site has remained constrained by industrial zoning despite Molson relocating to Chilliwack in 2019. City planning staff characterize the central location as presenting a "unique opportunity" for a comprehensive mixed-use development incorporating residential towers, commercial office space, retail, hotels, and public amenities including childcare facilities and grocery stores.

The proposed redevelopment sits immediately south of the Squamish Nation's Sen̓áḵw development, where 52-storey towers are rising and 9,000 new residents will eventually occupy over 6,000 rental homes. Unlike Sen̓áḵw, which operates under federal jurisdiction as reserve land, the Molson site must navigate Vancouver's zoning process and Metro Vancouver's regional growth strategy, which protects scarce industrial land. The area's transformation continues a decades-long evolution from the heavy industry that dominated False Creek through the mid-20th century to the residential and creative commercial uses seen today. Concord has signaled intentions to include technology and science job space alongside housing, potentially addressing the area's current amenity deficit while exceeding the 250 jobs previously supported by the brewery.