Downtown Co-op Homes Celebrate Finally Overcoming Nearly A Decade Of Darkness

1210 Seymour St (DP-2022-00227)To say I was shocked to learn this non-market housing co-op has been in the works since city council created the Vancouver Affordable Housing Agency eight years ago would be an understatement. Hannah suggested my actual reaction might be too colourful for print, yet she wasn’t thrilled to find out the Planning...

November 18th, 2021 Public Hearing – Ashley Marr Housing Co-op Shoots For A Cambie Corridor Hat-trick

Public Hearing – November 18th, 2021(Update – November 19th, 2021 – Despite relatively few speakers, city council only finished Items #1-3, meaning you still have time to comment on Item #4, which will be heard on November 25th, 2021.)Like recent Canuck’s games, it would be tempting to ignore this public hearing. After all, Item #1...

Ashley-Mar Co-op Overcomes A Rough Landing With A Rental Housing Revolution

8460 Ash St and 8495 Cambie St (Ashley Mar Co-op Site)In the time that’s passed since Hannah and I last attended an event about the future of the Ashley Mar Co-op, an adorable newborn would be well into their terrible twos. This vision has grown too, as while the co-op’s future home remains 15 floors...

UDP Hopes To Streamline The Essence Of Vancouver Through Support Of Affordable Mass Timber Homes

1001 Kingsway This Urban Design Panel review embodied a debate Hannah and I often hear from trained urban professionals. Should new growth follow the Yaletown's concept of tall, thin buildings that provide more green space, or does the Olympic Village's bulky, but short, form create better livability. In this case, city staff permitted the former,...

Federal Housing Investments To Boost Provincial Forest Industry With A Hundred Year Shadow Of Affordability

1001 Kingsway Perhaps I was feeling a little sentimental due Hannah's week long absence, but as I made way to this open house I was struck by the beauty of this area of Kingsway. I certainly don't mean the mix of new rental buildings and old, decaying automotive shops, but rather the old pre-war structures...

October 1st, 2019 Public Hearing – Will A Pie Sized Hole Trigger Another Federal Debate? Vancouverites Rejoyce Over The Potential Of New Co-Op Homes

October 1st, 2019 Public Hearing The last time a proposal for new rental homes on Fraser Street went before City Council, it resembled less of a Public Hearing, and more of a Federal Election debate. At that meeting, Don Davies and Tamara Taggart presented a vastly different view of the riding's future. That said, while...

A Holy Trinity – Passive, Modular, Co-op Housing Pushes All The Right Buttons To Win UDP Support

3279-3297 Vanness Avenue Part of the reason I attend the meetings of the Urban Design Panel is to witness the small things that don't make it into the official minutes. That's not because of any secret conspiracy, rather it's the result of a trained professional sifting through what's relevant, and what makes life entertaining. Hannah...