Situated in Vancouver’s premier West Side within one of British Columbia’s most desirable neighborhoods, Phase 1 of Arbutus Residences includes the 8-story Block A and 7-story Block B concrete buildings located in Arbutus Ridge on the corner of Arbutus and Lahb Street. When finished, the project will have four blocks, A, B, C, and D. Designed by Dialog Architecture, this collection of homes offers a rare level of tranquility, surrounded by lushly vegetated streets and parks and offers residents easy access to public transit, shopping, parks, and an abundance of nature. The newly developed Arbutus Shopping Centre is located in the heart of the brand-new Arbutus Residences, boasting a Safeway and Safeway Pharmacy, among other commercial offerings.

“Living at Arbutus Residences means access to more than just a beautiful home. You’ll have access to 2,500+ SF of private amenities from rooftop terraces to fitness facilities. Arbutus Residences represents timeless design and expert craftsmanship. LEED Gold certification provides sustainable building practices, as well as all of the amenities that you would expect from a concrete development at Arbutus Village.” ~ Arbutus Residences

This mixed-use project includes market rental and City of Vancouver rental suites over approximately 100,000 square feet of commercial retail space. Featuring Studio, 1, 2, and 3-bedroom residences and townhomes, Arbutus Residences offers a unique rental opportunity.

“Experience urban boulevards alive with energy, walk quiet tree-lined streets, stroll through lush green parks, spend the day on a pristine golf course, or discover treasures in upscale boutiques and farmers markets. The lifestyle enjoyed by residents of this coveted neighbourhood is unlike anywhere else in the city. Within moments of leaving your home, you can be at the theatre, in an art gallery, strolling Vancouver’s Seawall, or eating at one of Vancouver’s most esteemed restaurants or bistros.” ~ Arbutus Residences

Formerly a 1970s-era indoor mall, the multi-building redevelopment of the shopping centre was developed by Larco Investments. The seven-acre Arbutus Village redevelopment, now known as Arbutus Centre, also has a sizeable below-market affordable housing component.

“Hundreds of residents will live in the complex’s 125 affordable homes in the eight-storey Building A at 4105 Arbutus Street, named xwƛ̓əpicən by the Musqueam First Nation, meaning “the hollow.”” ~ Kenneth Chan, Daily Hive

The Arbutus Residences features 13 distinct green roofs spread over the large multi-residential housing complex with both social and market housing. The Architek Group was challenged to create this series of wildflower meadows as green roofs at the Arbutus Block A & B projects in Vancouver, BC.

In total the green roofs add up to more than an acre in size and include biodiverse plantings that attract bees and other pollinators, insects, birds, and more. Great care was taken to select plants that create a thriving green roof ecosystem. Twenty-five species of wildflowers and grasses were selected that would give the roof an ideal blend of diversity and attraction to urban wildlife populations.

The Arbutus Residences was a collaborative green roof build that took a year and half to complete. The Architek Group installed and maintained the green roof and provided design assistance to the landscape architect, PWL Partnership Landscape Architects. Architek coordinated with the general contractor, other building trades, and their partners in grow media, wildflower seeds, soil excellence, and much more. This project included dozens of people to ensure the build was completed correctly.

The Architek crew teamed up with the group from Evergreen hydroseeding to add the wildflower and grass mix to the green roofs installed at Arbutus Block A and Block B in the summer of 2020.  The grasses started to show in the fall and the balance of the bio-diverse seed mix woke up and flowered in the spring/summer of 2021.

“After the wildflowers were hydroseeded, the maintenance phase became the central focus. It was indeed a new challenge to maintain the Arbutus Residences wildflower meadow but by using old technologies such as the European Scythe and leading biological soil science research we were able to help a game changing green roof look better each day.” ~ Architek Group

Jakob Rope Systems, a leading manufacturer of premium AISI 316 high-grade stainless steel cable and hardware for architecture, support green trellises at the Arbutus Residences. These contain jasmine and chocolate vine, approximately 1,400 square feet in total. Architek installed the living walls and provided design assist.

When fully complete, all four new buildings of 269,000 square feet of commercial space and over 500 homes, including 243 market rental homes within the future Block C and Block D buildings, reaching up to 12 stories in height.

Residents of Arbutus Residences enjoy convenience and comfort with access to outstanding amenities boasting a fitness center, children’s play area, party room, and a beautifully landscaped courtyard with BBQ and seating perfect for intimate dinners and friendly get-togethers. And above the buildings are beautifully naturalized green roof meadows providing ecological cover. An incredible array of pollinator and insect species have been attracted to the pollen and nectar of the lush flower meadows. The spectacular results of the Arbutus Residences roofs speak for themselves.