The multi-phased, mixed-use Colwood Corners project, underway since 2017, was initially envisioned as a low-rise community featuring buildings of five storeys. Now, a rezoning application has been filed with the City for two towers pushing 33-storey heights, and if built, they could stand as Vancouver Island’s tallest.

 

The proponent has pitched its plans for 1911 and 1921 Jerome Road, at the southern perimeter of the Colwood Corners site that backs onto the Galloping Goose Regional Trail. The proposed density of both buildings would yield approximately 750 units of rental apartments.

 

Although no commercial spaces are expected within the towers, the developer intends to deliver a significant amenity component for residents that includes an outdoor pool and hot tub, a lawn bowling green, a fitness court suitable for basketball, a fitness area with a gym, and interior amenity spaces. The provisions would be situated atop each tower’s fifth level rooftop on the sixth floor.

 

The unit layouts will range from studio apartments to three-bedroom suites in both buildings, according to architectural plans via Ciccozzi Architecture.

 

The 12.5-acre Colwood Corners parcel bordered by Sooke, Jerome and Belmont roads was purchased by Onni in 2014 following the bankruptcy of League Assets Corporation. The defunct Victoria-based developer secured approvals for an ambitious mixed-use community — dubbed Capital City Centre — that included a cluster of condo towers rising as high as 29-storeys, an office building and a large retail component. Construction of Capital City Centre’s first phase had begun in the fall of 2012 only to stall by the following summer.

 

Since resuming construction in 2017, Onni has delivered a five-storey rental block with a Save On Foods grocery store as its anchor tenant, while multiple commercial buildings are expected to complete this year. Two additional rental buildings are currently under construction along Jerome Road.

 

Onni’s new vision follows on the heels of a 25-storey residential tower proposed in Colwood near Colwood Corners, on the Thrifty Foods property at 1860 Island Highway.