Dale Bass – Kamloops This Week
Thompson Rivers University has taken the first step in $1-billion project to create a village on campus.
The concept, called The Reach, will combine office, retail and residential space, creating a “vibrant neighbourhood where you can live, work, study and play 24/7,” said TRU president Alan Shaver.
The first request for proposals has been sent to 35 developers in the province and about a dozen have already replied, expressing interest in the first phase.
That would see an estimated 90,000 square feet of residential and market condominium housing built on land on University Drive on the north side of the Old Main Building.
The project is being done through the university’s community trust. The land will be leased to developers and the revenue generated will go into providing student assistance and funding research, said Christopher Seguin, the university’s vice-president advancement.
Frank Quinn, chair of the community trust board, said the dollar value of the project is based on the cost to build, a figure he pegged at $300 per square foot. Once complete, The Reach will add three-million square feet of residential living space, 40,000 square feet of new office space and 78,000 square feet of new retail space. The university has about 90 acres on which the village can be built.
