Public Hearing – June 15th, 2023 Whether you’re a morning person like Hannah, or a night owl like me, there’s never really a good time to sit down for a public hearing, especially when they often drag on late into the night. City council’s recent decision to move the start time for these meetings from... Continue Reading →
End The Madness – Urban Design Panel Supports Long Overdue Change To Vancouver’s West Side
3701-3743 West Broadway A lot has happened since this Urban Design Panel review, but I still remember my surprise when city staff revealed a petition against these homes had already received 1,250 signatures. As Hannah recently noted, that number has grown to over 2,000, partially spurred by a mistaken belief that this is a strata... Continue Reading →
Protests Over West Side “Prison” Leaves Vancouver Renters Singing The Blues
3701 - 3743 West Broadway It seems like whenever St. James Community Square hosts an open house, it is either packed with people, filled with angry voices, or often both. Still, Darren and I tried to keep an open mind, but before we left this event history had repeated itself, as over 220 individuals had... Continue Reading →
Colourful Skies To Bridge Broadway Divide As Mount Pleasant’s Office Building Boom Continues
8 East Broadway (24 East Broadway and 2520 Ontario Street) Though they can be a little quirky, Darren and I really appreciate the members of the SkyScraperPage Forum. These individuals have taught us a lot, and we continue to benefit from their insight, humour, and the occasional rumour they share about an upcoming open house.... Continue Reading →
SkyTrain Focused South Granville Office Building Wins UDP Support For Moderate Income Aspirations
1465 - 1489 W Broadway - DP-2019-00704 Perhaps the most interesting secret in our city is the identity of the civic employee who's leaking information about projects in the Moderate Income Rental Hosing Pilot Program. Once may be a coincidence, but it's hard to explain how confidential details from three applications (1, 2) could fall... Continue Reading →
Kitsilano Neighbourhood Activists Invade Fairview To Fight Off 28 Floor Fascist Threat
2538 Birch Street (formerly 1296 West Broadway) It was hardly a secret that this open house was going to be contentious, and not only because of what Darren and I witnessed at the pre-application open house. Even when it was proposed under the existing, decades old, C-3A zoning, some felt a 16 floor building was... Continue Reading →
28 Floors Judged Appropriate For West Broadway – Urban Design Panel Expresses Strong Support
2538 Birch Street (formerly 1296 West Broadway) Like the City of Vancouver, Hannah and I try to recap our experiences at a project's open house before we cover its Urban Design Panel review. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to write up that episode yet. So, you'll have to take my word that, while many Fairview residents... Continue Reading →
Conflicting Visions of Central Broadway – Affordable Rental Housing or a Precedent Setting Threat
2538 Birch Street (Formerly 1296 West Broadway) Adding Rental Housing to Central Broadway, home to Vancouver General Hospital and our province's second largest business centre, may not seem that controversial. The neighbourhood is well served by transit, and the Downtown core is easily reached, no matter how you travel. So, even before it was confirmed the Broadway... Continue Reading →
After a Grand Slam Public Hearing, New Plans may Turn a Former Denny’s Into Broadway’s Tallest Building
2538 Birch Street (Formerly 1296 West Broadway) It doesn't seem that long ago, but almost a year has passed since a rezoning proposal, which allowed for a 16 floor rental building, was approved for the former Denny's at West Broadway and Birch. Eight months before that, Hannah and I attended the proposal's open house and... Continue Reading →
UDP Splits in a Narrow Vote – Are Badly Needed Hotel Rooms Justified or Too Much of A Good Thing?
878-898 West Broadway Though I would never claim to be an expert in planning or architecture, there's occasions when I feel the time I've spent at the UDP has given me an insight into that world. As a result, sometimes I'm even able to correctly guess what the panel may recommend. Perhaps it was due... Continue Reading →