Anthem Properties and Beedie Development Group last Friday marked the topping out of the first tower in its Station Square development and broke ground on the Burnaby project’s second phase. About 850 of the 1,000 units brought to market have been sold to date at Station Square. It's appeal: Location and transit, Anthem VP Greg Zayadi tells us. Metrotown has shopping galore and the SkyTrain running through it. The condo towers are also situated at Burnaby’s highest point, he notes, meaning “amazing views.”

That's Greg speaking at the groundbreaking, with Anthem CEO Eric Carlson, Beedie CEO Keith Beedie and president Ryan Beedie, and Burnaby mayor Derek Corrigan far right. Phase 2 of Station Square in Metrotown will include two more residential towers (48 and 38 storeys, with 767 units) built atop a podium dubbed Restaurant Row. There will also be office space. Phase 1 of Station Square (the first tower, 4688 Kingsway, is one pic up) will bring a new Save On Foods, Caffè Artigiano, TD Bank, and Rexall. It also involves redevelopment of an old mall: “We tore it down to basically nothing,” Greg tells us, noting new tenants include Bed Bath & Beyond and Future Shop.