Ware Malcomb has announced that construction is complete on Oxford Properties Group’s multi-storey distribution centre, a multi-storey industrial facility located at 8351 Fraser Reach Court, in Burnaby, British Columbia. The project, the latest addition to Riverbend Business Park, is Canada’s first major multi-storey industrial project. Ware Malcomb served as the Architect of Record for the project. 

With proximity to urban areas of Greater Vancouver, the multi-storey distribution centre provides infrastructure for last-mile delivery in a world where consumers have come to expect next-day and same-day delivery. Located near the intersection of Marine Way and Highway 91A in Burnaby, it is ideally situated for attracting labor and serving Vancouver citizens. Experience a quick tour of the project in this flythrough video.  

“The Greater Vancouver Area is one of the world’s most land-constrained industrial markets, and demand for industrial space outpaces supply, thanks to the rise in e-commerce,” said Frank Di Roma, Principal, Ware Malcomb. “We were pleased to solve considerable logistical and code-related challenges with this new building type and arrive at a design that maximizes industrial floor space. This impressive building is the first large-scale multistory distribution centre concept in Canada.”

The multi-storey distribution centre is located on a 23.45-acre site and has a ground floor of 437,000 square feet with 32-foot clear heights. The second story, accessible to full-size transport trailers via a long service ramp, consists of 270,000 square feet, 28-foot clear heights and a 130-foot truck court where trucks can circulate. The heated exterior ramp allows for 53-foot trailers to make deliveries. Assorted mechanical rooms, a leasing office and storage space are located below the ramp. Loading docks are constructed of precast concrete and the office areas are made of insulated metal panels. 

The building can provide a single tenant with 707,000 square feet of contiguous space. Alternatively, its two floors can be operated and occupied independently and further demised to accommodate multiple tenants as small as 70,000 square feet. Several main entrances allow for flexible demising.

Construction of the building is significant for the 65-acre Riverbend Business Park. The site, which used to be home to a paperboard milling operation and a 14-acre landfill, was purchased by Oxford Properties Group in 2011. Today, buildings on the site comprise more than 1.3 million square feet and are LEED certified. Oxford’s environmentally conscious approach to the redevelopment of the brownfield site earned it the 2019 City of Burnaby Environmental Award.

Christopher Bozyk Architects Ltd. served as the Design Architect and Ledcor Construction Ltd. served as the General Contractor for the project. Oxford Properties Group and its portfolio companies manage approximately $82 billion (Canadian) of commercial real estate across the globe and its portfolio includes industrial, office, multifamily, retail, life sciences, hotels and credit.

Ware Malcomb is an industry leader in multistory industrial design. In 2017, the firm developed a multi-storey design prototype which created a new commercial asset class of building that addresses challenges felt by both everyday consumers and e-commerce industry mavens. The firm’s multi-storey design focuses on facilitating industrial development in highly sought-after/land-constrained locations by building vertically to significantly increase rentable area without expanding the building footprint. Ware Malcomb has over six multi-storey projects under construction, six going through entitlements and has designed over 150 multi-storey sites/test fits in major markets across the Americas. 

About Ware Malcomb (waremalcomb.com)

Established in 1972, Ware Malcomb is a contemporary and expanding full-service design firm providing professional architecture, planning, interior design, civil engineering, branding and building measurement services to corporate, commercial/residential developer and public/institutional clients throughout the world. With office locations throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico and Brazil, the firm specializes in the design of commercial office, corporate, industrial, science & technology, healthcare, retail, auto, public/institutional facilities and renovation projects. Ware Malcomb is recognized as an Inc. 5000 “Fastest Growing Private Company” and a “Hot Firm” by Zweig Group. The firm is also ranked among the top 30 architecture/engineering firms in Engineering News-Record’s “Top 500 Design Firms” and the top 30 interior design firms in Interior Design magazine’s “Top 100 Giants.” For more information, visit and view Ware Malcomb’s Ware Malcomb’s website at http://www.waremalcomb.com/news/ and brand video at https://www.youtube.com/waremalcomb.

*Featured Image Credit: Luke Potter Photography