GOING PLACES
Walkability key to the appeal of Belle Isle
In a growing region like Metro Vancouver, getting around can be a challenge, and for many people, it makes sense to leave the car at home whenever possible.
The District of North Vancouver has heard this message loud and clear. As a result, its official community plan envisages a network of connected town and village centres where residents will be able to walk, ride a bike or take transit to get to pretty much anywhere.
One of these centres is Lions Gate Village, a master-planned community at the corner of Marine Drive and Capilano Road that will eventually include about 1,800 homes, retail outlets, a new community centre, daycare and parks.
Belle Isle is a collection of stacked townhomes from developer Citimark at Lions Gate Village. The benefits of its location are not lost on Emily Kaplun, who bought one of the homes with her fiancé.
“It was really important to us for our next home to be close to transit because we don’t want to be in our car the whole time,” Kaplun said. “When we stumbled across Belle Isle, the stars just aligned. We’ll be super close to the bridge so we can just hop on the bus and be downtown for work super quick.”
Kaplun is typical of the type of move-up buyers who have been showing interest in Belle Isle. This is according to Lisa McDonald, the sales director at Pacesetter Marketing, which is organizing the sales at Belle Isle on behalf of the developer.
“The location of Lions Gate Village helps them in a lot of ways,” McDonald said. “Not only do we have really incredible schools in the area, we’re also close to all the fun stuff on the North Shore — biking paths like the Spirit Trail, the mountains and the beach. Then there’s the shopping and dining within walking distance, as well as the ability to get to Stanley Park or downtown in a really short period.”
All homes at Belle Isle, scheduled for completion by late 2020, will have private outdoor space in a variety of different configurations. The new Belle Isle Park is set to feature a children’s play area, a sports court and a dog playpark.
Belle Isle will have open-concept, entertainment-style kitchens, most including large islands. There’s Italian-made flatpanel cabinets, pantry storage in most homes, built-in recycling centres and under-cabinet lighting.
You’ll also get a quartz composite countertop, a polished quartz backsplash and a stainless-steel sink with a chrome faucet by Grohe.
Bathrooms have ‘floating’, Italian-made laminate vanities with polished quartz composite countertops, undermount sinks with chrome Grohe faucets, porcelain tile flooring and deep soaker tubs.
The powder rooms on the main levels of Belle Isle units include porcelain tile flooring, tiled walls and floating vanities.