The building design is based on the following principles, which are aligned with the services that the centre will offer:

• Welcoming, calm, and non-institutional
• Honouring the land — its history, present and future — in partnership with First Nations and local residents
• Connecting people to nature
• Accessible and barrier-free
• Virtually connected to all of BC and Yukon.
  

The centre will include several innovative spaces tailored for children with health complexity and their families:

• Three-level accessible ramp and multi-storey atrium 
  
• All Nations Space, Elder’s room and kitchen, and healing garden for Indigenous patients and families
• Welcoming patient and family suites for overnight stays
• Family kitchen and dining areas with access to an outdoor patio
  
• Teaching kitchen
  
• Multi-purpose recreation room
  
• Family resource centre
  
• Sibling support centre
  
• Access to the outdoors from all levels through courtyards and patios.
  

The project incorporates a holistic set of sustainable design measures. These include green mobility and transportation opportunities, water efficiency, energy efficiency, carbon emissions reductions, healthy and sustainable building materials, waste reduction, and a focus on indoor environmental quality. It will aim for a number of certifications.

The centre will aim for a number of certifications and sustainable features:

• Accessibility: The facility will be designed to achieve the Rick Hansen Foundation Gold Standard of Accessibility.
• LEED Gold: The facility is required to achieve Gold Certification under LEED V4 for Healthcare Projects, as well as meet the requirements of the City of Vancouver’s Green Building Policy.
  
• Passive House: The project team is partnering with the City of Vancouver to design the daycare to the Passive House energy performance standard.
  
• Mass timber: The centre will be the first hybrid mass timber health-care facility in British Columbia, incorporating a significant amount of mass timber as structural components. Mass timber is a low-carbon building solution that employs engineered wood products typically made of large, solid wood panels, columns, or beams.

• Wellness path and healing loop:  The proposed landscape design includes fully accessible pathways throughout the site for patients, families, and the community. Path elements will include play areas, seating, and gathering spaces.

• Retaining the grove of mature trees: The site design retains the mature grove of trees to the north of the proposed building.  Children in mobility devices and their families will be able to access the grove through a series of accessible pathways. The existing chain-link fence will be removed to make the space more welcoming for the local community. 
  

• New green space on the south-east corner: The compact footprint of the proposed centre opens up additional green space on the south-east corner of the site at Kaslo Street and 21st Avenue. This area will be landscaped with pollinator planting and will include seating.
  

• Indigenous healing garden: A garden with plants of medicinal and cultural significance will support the Indigenous Health programming at the new centre.
  

• Community garden: A community garden will be located in the north-west corner of the site, adjacent to the daycare. The garden will be run by a qualified third-party operator and will be open to the surrounding community.
  

• Edible landscaping and native planting: The overall landscape plan includes fruit-bearing trees and shrubs, plants native to the Pacific Northwest, and plants that support pollinators and birds.
  

• Entrances and drop-offs: The main entrance to the centre will be from Slocan Street. A wide drop-off area will accommodate families arriving in larger vehicles carrying mobility devices such as wheelchairs. Families arriving at the staying suites will have a drop-off area off 21st Avenue. Service vehicles will have their own separate entrance off Kaslo Street. The daycare pick-up and drop-off will be from the lane in the north-west corner of the site.
  
• Parking moved underground: An underground parking lot at the new centre will serve patients, families, staff, and visitors. The lot includes an increase in the number of accessible stalls for patients and families. Some surface parking will be retained on the Kaslo side of the site.
  
• Cycling and transit options: Excellent transit and cycling networks in the area will make it possible for staff and visitors to choose sustainable transportation options. The site is close to Renfrew and Nanaimo Skytrain stations, and serviced by multiple bus routes. The Slocan Street bikeway connects to the Central Valley Greenway, which leads to downtown. Eighteen bicycle spaces are proposed for the new centre, as well as bike storage facilities and showers.
  

A 74-space daycare will be built on the north-west corner of the site, and will be open to families in the community. The daycare will likely open in 2028.

The daycare will be operated by a third party, which will be selected through a formal Request for Proposal (RFP) process. The drop-off and pick-up will be through the laneway off Slocan Street, and some parking will be included.

If you are looking for information about the daycare located at the BC Children's Hospital Oak Street campus, please contact them directly at 604-879-4159. The Djavad Mowafaghian YMCA Child Care Centre is located at 4698 Oak Street, Vancouver.

The project team has made every effort to preserve the majority of trees on the site. The green space at the north end will be largely left intact. However, 11 trees are too close to the existing building and need to be removed during demolition.

• Trees to be removed: There are 35 trees close to the demolition site; 24 will be retained and 11 will be removed
• Professional assessment: The project team worked with professional arborists at Diamond Head Consulting on a health assessment, wildlife assessment, and retention plan for all trees on site
• Planting new trees: The project team will be planting new trees as part of the redevelopment of the site

The project team has submitted a development permit application to the City of Vancouver in March 2023. The director of planning approved the application on August 14, 2023, subject to conditions. A development permit was issued on June 17, 2024.

The project team submitted a rezoning application to the City of Vancouver, as a requirement to proceed with the redevelopment of the site. This means that a specific CD-1 bylaw will be written for this site to describe its use for health-care purposes. The rezoning application was approved at a public hearing on January 19, 2023.