Edgemont Village is not a town of its own, and it is not in West Vancouver. It is the shopping village at the centre of the District of North Vancouver’s Upper Capilano neighbourhood. Picture a few blocks of small shops on a curved street grid, with houses on every side and Grouse Mountain behind.
Many people also assume the village will soon fill with towers, like Lonsdale or Lynn Valley. The District’s own plan says the opposite. Buildings in the village core are meant to stay two to three storeys, with a partial fourth storey only case by case.
This guide is for someone deciding whether to buy here, or working out what their place here is worth. It covers the streets, the houses, what the land can do to a house, daily life, schools, buses and what is planned. Every fact comes from the District, TransLink, the school district, Metro Vancouver or another primary source, linked in the text. There are no price figures on this page; the numbers are on my North Shore market stats page.
The short version
- Edgemont Village is run by the District of North Vancouver, not the City. Permits, zoning and hazard maps all go through the District.
- The village is a low-rise shopping area with a grocery store, a public library, cafés, banks and pharmacies. The District’s plan keeps buildings at two to three storeys.
- Most of the surrounding streets are detached houses. Since 2011 the District has added 246 net new homes in the village, mostly apartments and townhouses.
- Two bus routes run through the village: the 246 to downtown Vancouver and the 232 to Lonsdale and Phibbs Exchange.
- Capilano River Regional Park, Cleveland Dam and the Baden-Powell Trail are on the doorstep. Grouse Mountain is at the top of the road.
- Some lots in the wider area sit in the District’s creek, slope or wildfire hazard permit areas. Check the lot on the District’s map before you offer.
- Traffic and parking are the usual complaints. They were a big enough issue that the District commissioned its own traffic and parking studies.
On this page
- Where it is and which city hall
- How Edgemont grew
- The streets and how they differ
- What kind of money it is
- The houses and what goes wrong with them
- The land: creeks, slopes and wildfire
- Daily life in the village
- Parks, trails and recreation
- Schools
- Getting around
- What is planned or being built
- What people like, and what they complain about
- Who it suits, and who it does not
- Questions people ask
Where Edgemont Village is, and which city hall you deal with
Edgemont Village sits on the west side of the District of North Vancouver, between the Capilano River and Lonsdale. The District describes it as being in the Upper Capilano neighbourhood. Its own planning document calls it “a distinctive commercial precinct serving the Upper Capilano neighbourhoods”.
North Vancouver has two separate local governments. The City of North Vancouver covers the Lonsdale corridor near the water. The District of North Vancouver wraps around it and includes Edgemont. Your property tax bill, building permits, zoning and hazard maps all come from the District.
The District can be reached at 604-990-2311 or infoweb@dnv.org, and its hall is at 355 West Queens Road, a short drive east of the village. Anything municipal in this guide can change, so call or email the District before you rely on it.
How Edgemont grew: from post-war streets to a planned village
The Lions Gate Bridge opened to cars on 14 November 1938, according to the North Vancouver Museum and Archives (MONOVA) history timeline. It gave the west side of North Vancouver a direct road link to downtown Vancouver.
The same timeline records that in 1947 “a post-war population boom opens several new residential neighbourhoods, including Norgate, Capilano Highlands and Edgemont Village.”
MONOVA records that Cleveland Dam opened in 1954 at the top of the Capilano River, creating the Capilano Lake reservoir. Metro Vancouver’s dam fact sheet says it was built between 1952 and 1954 and is about 92 metres high from its base.
The village you see now is shaped by two District documents. The 2011 Official Community Plan (OCP), the District’s long-range land-use plan, set up a “network of centres” to manage growth, and Edgemont is one of them. The Edgemont Village Centre: Plan and Design Guidelines, dated 24 March 2014, set the rules for its buildings and streets.
The streets, and how they differ
The plan describes the village as “originally laid out as a unified plan, with a symmetrical street grid that includes a number of crescents.” That crescent grid is why the streets curve, and why the village feels contained rather than strung out along one road.
The village core
The shops cluster along Edgemont Boulevard and Highland Boulevard. The District calls this crossing the “village heart” and plans an enhanced Highland Plaza there for gatherings and community events. Diagonal parking lines the main streets, and the plan says it should generally stay.
The edge of the village
Around the core, the District’s Edgemont page describes a peripheral area where it will “sensitively introduce ground-oriented duplexes and townhouses”.
The streets beyond
Past the plan area, the neighbourhood is mostly detached houses on residential streets. Heading north, Highland Boulevard climbs toward Canyon Heights, where the school district describes Canyon Heights Elementary as sitting “at the foot of Grouse Mountain”. Heading west, Ridgewood Drive meets Capilano Road, with the Capilano River parkland beyond.
Capilano Road carries traffic to Grouse Mountain, the Capilano Suspension Bridge and Highway 1, and Queens Road is a main east-west route. Life on one of those roads is different from life on a quiet crescent two blocks away. Walk the street at rush hour before you decide.
What kind of money Edgemont is
Around the village, most homes are detached houses on single-family lots, so most buyers here are shopping in North Vancouver’s detached-house range, not its condo range. The apartments and townhouses built around the village core since 2011 are the lower-cost way into the area.
I do not print price figures on neighbourhood pages, because they go out of date within weeks. For the latest Greater Vancouver REALTORS® benchmark prices for North Vancouver, see my North Shore market stats page.
What moves the price from one house to the next
- Walking distance to the village. Being able to walk to the grocery store, library and bus is the reason most people choose Edgemont.
- The street. A quiet crescent and a busy through road are different products, even a block apart.
- Lot size and slope. A flat, usable lot is easier to build on, extend or rebuild than a steep one.
- Mountain views. The District’s plan values the village’s views of the North Shore mountains, and some houses have them too.
- Hazard permit areas. A lot inside a creek, slope or wildfire development permit area can cost more to rebuild. See the land section below.
- School catchment. Families often search by school. Catchments change, so confirm them with the school district.
The houses, and what goes wrong with them
The District calls the area “traditionally single-family”. Since the 2011 OCP, it has added 246 net new homes in the village, including apartments, townhouses and a seniors’ assisted living residence.
- Post-war and later detached houses. The neighbourhood opened in the late 1940s, so the older houses on the original streets date from that period onward. Many have been renovated or replaced. Check the year built and the permit history for any address.
- Newer low-rise apartments and townhouses. Most are in and around the village core. The largest is the mixed-use building anchored by Thrifty Foods Edgemont Market at 3210 Edgemont Boulevard.
- Duplexes and townhouses on the edge. The 2014 plan opened the peripheral streets to ground-oriented housing, so expect more of it over time.
What to check in an older house
- A buried oil tank. Many older North Shore houses were heated with oil. The District has a page on removing a residential underground storage tank, and my buried oil tank guide explains how to check.
- Work done without permits. Suites, additions and basement conversions are common in houses this age. How to check a permit history.
- Drainage and retaining walls on sloping lots. Ask when the perimeter drains were last replaced, and look at any retaining wall that holds up the yard or driveway.
- Original plumbing, wiring and windows. My older North Shore home checklist covers what an inspector should look at.
What to check in a newer strata
For an apartment or townhouse, read the strata minutes, the depreciation report and the insurance certificate before you remove subjects. A strata is the shared ownership of a building, run by an elected council. My guide to the strata depreciation report shows what to look for.
The land: creeks, slopes and wildfire
The District says its steep slopes, creeks, ravines, floodplains and forested lands make some areas “susceptible to natural hazards including landslide, debris flow, flood and wildfire”. It manages this through development permit areas (DPAs): mapped zones where extra rules and reports apply before you build.
- Creek Hazard DPA covers lots next to creeks and rivers with a potential risk of debris flow, debris flood and flood.
- Slope Hazard DPA covers steep ground. If your lot is in it, you may need a permit to build or develop.
- Wildfire Hazard DPA covers lots near forest. The District maps it on GEOweb, its public property map.
Debris flows are fast slides of rock, soil and wood down a steep creek. The District’s debris flow profile lists Mackay Creek and Mosquito Creek, which both drain the Grouse Mountain slope, among its creeks of concern. It records that on 23 November 1995 a debris flow on Upper Mackay Creek reached homes on Ranger Avenue, “the first recorded debris flow to affect a developed area of the District.”
None of this means a house is unsafe. It means you should look up the exact lot on GEOweb, ask the District what applies, and budget for a geotechnical report if you plan to rebuild. North Shore Emergency Management publishes plain guides to these risks.
Daily life in the village: a grocery store, a library and small shops
The District lists what is in the village: “coffee shops, restaurants, banks, pharmacies, a grocery store, flower shops, health services, childcare, a dance studio, and a library.” There is no big-box store. Most of what is here is small and local.
- Groceries: Thrifty Foods Edgemont Market, 3210 Edgemont Boulevard, open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day, according to the store’s page.
- Library: the Capilano Library of the North Vancouver District Public Library, 3045 Highland Boulevard (604-987-4471). It has children’s and teen areas, a quiet study room and public computers. It opens 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday to Thursday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. the other days.
- Public art: the District notes murals added as part of Vancouver’s Mural Fest 2021.
- Streets built for walking: the District lists new traffic signals, pedestrian crossings, wider sidewalks and patio spaces added in the village.
Store hours and tenants change, so check before you go.
Parks, trails and recreation: the Capilano River is next door
The biggest outdoor asset is Capilano River Regional Park, run by Metro Vancouver. Its trails follow the Capilano canyon from Cleveland Dam downstream. Distances below are from Metro Vancouver’s January 2025 park brochure.
| Trail or place | Distance | Time | What it is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coho Loop Trail | 1.1 km return | 30 minutes | A short loop from the fish hatchery |
| Second Canyon Viewpoint Trail | 0.6 km return | 20 minutes | An easy walk to a canyon view |
| Capilano Pacific Trail | 5 km | 2 hours | From Cleveland Dam down to Moyne Drive |
| Capilano River Hatchery | – | – | Open year-round, no admission charge |
| Cleveland Dam | – | – | Picnic area, toilets and views of Capilano Lake |
Dogs must be on a leash in the regional park unless signs say otherwise. The park map also shows the Baden-Powell Trail passing through.
Grouse Mountain is at the top of Capilano Road and Nancy Greene Way, and the 232 bus runs there from the village. For indoor recreation, the North Vancouver Recreation and Culture Commission (NVRC) runs Delbrook Community Recreation Centre at 851 West Queens Road (604-983-6530), a short drive east.
Schools near Edgemont Village
The North Vancouver School District (SD44) runs the public schools. Several are close to the village. Nearby does not mean in catchment. Catchment is set by your exact address and can change, so always check it with the SD44 School Locator and call the school.
| School | Grades | Address |
|---|---|---|
| Highlands Elementary | Elementary | 3150 Colwood Drive |
| École Cleveland Elementary | Elementary | 1255 Eldon Road |
| Canyon Heights Elementary | Elementary | 4501 Highland Boulevard |
| École Handsworth Secondary | Secondary | 1033 Handsworth Road |
Ask each school which programs it offers and whether they have space for your child’s grade.
Getting around: two buses through the village, 20 to 30 minutes to downtown
Two TransLink routes run through the village itself, both stopping at Edgemont Boulevard and Ridgewood Drive. The times below are from TransLink’s timetables effective 20 April 2026, for weekday mornings.
| Route | Where it goes | Weekday morning timetable |
|---|---|---|
| 246 Downtown/Highland | Over the Lions Gate Bridge to West Georgia Street, downtown Vancouver | Buses about every 15 minutes; about 20 to 30 minutes from Edgemont to Georgia at Homer, longest at the peak |
| 232 Grouse Mountain/Phibbs Exchange | East along Queens Road to Lonsdale, then to Phibbs Exchange; west and north to Grouse Mountain | Buses about every 30 minutes; about 12 to 16 minutes to Lonsdale at 15th Street and about 25 to 30 minutes to Phibbs Exchange |
Routes 236 and 247 use Capilano Road, a few blocks west, rather than Edgemont Boulevard. The 236 connects Grouse Mountain with Lonsdale Quay and stops at the Capilano Suspension Bridge.
By car, Capilano Road meets Highway 1 at exit 14, and the Lions Gate Bridge is south down Capilano Road and Marine Drive. Both crossings are busy at rush hour. For cycling, the District lists bike routes along Ridgewood Drive, West Queens Road and Highland Boulevard.
What is planned or being built nearby
- The village refresh. The District says the Edgemont Village Centre is “being refreshed to highlight the Village’s distinct identity, enhance its commercial core and improve the surrounding public space”, including future bus stop improvements. Its page also links a weekly-updated map of construction that affects traffic.
- 3150 Edgemont Boulevard. The District lists this address among its significant development applications, an application to redevelop the site. Check the page for its current status before you buy nearby.
- Hollybrook, 600 West Queens Road. On the former Delbrook lands east of the village, 86 affordable homes for seniors and families, according to the Province of BC. The operator, Hollyburn Community Services Society, lists the building as at maximum capacity.
- The height limit stays. The 2014 plan keeps the village low-rise: “heights generally restricted to a mix of 2 and 3 storey buildings.”
Plans change with each council. Before you buy near a vacant or older commercial site, ask the District’s planning department what has been applied for.
What people like, and what they complain about
When the District rewrote the village plan, residents turned up in numbers. Its Edgemont Village page records these turnouts:
- Over 250 residents at the first ideas forums, February 2013
- About 180 at the directions forums, June 2013
- About 110 at the open houses, November 2013, with 163 surveys returned
- About 175 at three workshops, January and February 2014
For a village of a few blocks, that is a large turnout.
The main goals listed on the District’s page show what people asked to keep: “the low-rise scale and eclectic diversity of buildings and small-scale stores, the sense of neighbourliness and community, and the village’s walkability”.
The complaints are traffic and parking. The District commissioned an Edgemont Village Traffic and Parking Technical Report in 2014 and an Edgemont Village Transportation Study in 2015, both on its Edgemont page. Expect busy streets around school drop-off, weekend traffic to Grouse Mountain and the Capilano canyon, and a hunt for a parking spot on a Saturday.
Who Edgemont suits, and who it does not
It suits
- People who want to walk to a grocery store, a library and a bus, but live on a residential street.
- Families who want parks, trails and several schools close by. Confirm the catchment first.
- People who hike, run or ride, with Capilano canyon and Grouse Mountain at the top of the road.
- Downsizers who want to stay in the neighbourhood. The newer apartments and townhouses by the village make that possible.
It may not suit
- Anyone who wants a SkyTrain-style commute. The bus downtown crosses the Lions Gate Bridge, and the bridge sets the pace.
- Buyers on a condo budget who want a large choice of buildings. The village has far fewer apartments than Lonsdale.
- Anyone who wants late-night life. This is a daytime village.
- Buyers who do not want to deal with slope, creek or wildfire rules on a rebuild.
If you are weighing Edgemont against another District neighbourhood, my Lynn Valley guide covers the other big family area. For the tax rules that apply anywhere in BC, see my first-time buyer guide for BC.
Questions people ask about Edgemont Village
Is Edgemont Village in West Vancouver?
No. It is in the District of North Vancouver, in the Upper Capilano neighbourhood. Your permits, zoning and property tax go through the District.
Will Edgemont get high-rise towers?
Not under the current plan. The 2014 Edgemont Village Centre plan keeps the core to two and three storeys, with a partial fourth storey considered case by case. Council can change plans, so check with the District.
Which bus goes from Edgemont to downtown Vancouver?
Route 246. On the April 2026 weekday morning timetable it takes about 20 to 30 minutes from Edgemont Boulevard at Ridgewood Drive to West Georgia at Homer.
Is there a grocery store and a library in the village?
Yes. Thrifty Foods Edgemont Market is at 3210 Edgemont Boulevard, and the Capilano Library is at 3045 Highland Boulevard.
Which school would my child go to?
It depends on the exact address. Nearby schools include Highlands, École Cleveland and Canyon Heights elementary schools and École Handsworth Secondary. Use the SD44 School Locator and confirm with the school.
If you are looking at one specific address
Send it to me. I will pull the sale history, the permit history and what the District shows for that lot, including whether it sits in a creek, slope or wildfire permit area. Then I will tell you what I would want answered before writing an offer.
No charge, no obligation, and I will tell you if I think you should walk away.
Thinking about buying or selling in Edgemont Village?
Leave your name and number and I will come back to you, usually the same day. Tell me the address if you have one and I will pull the sale history and the documents that matter before we talk. No charge, no obligation.
Prefer to talk now? Call or text 778-903-7306.
به فارسی: راهنمای اجمونت ویلج، نورث ونکوور
Read next
- Lynn Valley: the other big District neighbourhood for families
- Deep Cove: the village at the east end of the District
- What to check on an older North Shore home
- Buried oil tanks: the North Shore’s most expensive surprise
- How many homes can be built on one North Vancouver lot
More guides for North Shore buyers and sellers are on the guides page.
Last checked 22 September 2026; last reviewed September 2026. This article is general information, not advice on any specific property, and it is not legal, tax or financial advice. Municipal plans, bylaws and hazard permit areas, development applications, bus routes and timetables, school catchments and store hours all change. Confirm the current position with the authority that owns it: the District of North Vancouver (604-990-2311, infoweb@dnv.org), the North Vancouver School District, TransLink, Metro Vancouver or your strata. Take advice from a lawyer, notary, inspector or engineer before you commit money.
Tom Jahed, REALTOR®
Vanak Realty, North Vancouver. Ten years in North Vancouver real estate and more than 400 transactions closed, including pre-sales. Works in English and Farsi.
Written by Tom Jahed, licensed REALTOR®, Vanak Realty, North Vancouver.