Our City- Diverse, Informed, Together
Public Hearing – October 5th, 2021As comedy can help keep powerful institutions humble, I’ve joked that perhaps Vancouver’s new Auditor General should examine if public hearings are held primarily for the taxpayer funded catering. Hannah often notes even bad humour occasionally reflects some truth, and Item #1 demonstrates how enacting wider changes can be more... Continue Reading →
304 East 1st Avenue - DP-2020-00370Darren usually covers the Urban Design Panel, but given the lack of open house events, I thought I should pitch in, especially since this project was across from one that was recently reviewed. I instantly regretted my decision when city staff revealed two versions of it would be presented. To... Continue Reading →
315 - 319 East 2nd Avenue - DP-2020-00305 It’s never a good sign when city staff begin an Urban Design Panel meeting by stating this review wouldn’t normally be needed. The issue isn’t that this project is half an inch over the 100 foot height limit permitted by the False Creek Flats Plan, or its... Continue Reading →
January 23rd, 2020 Public Hearing- Update 01/24/20 – The public hearing has recessed and will resume on January 30th at 3pm. As a result, one can still send in correspondence or sign up to speak on Item 7. To give people enough time to sign-up or write a letter for a public hearing, we try... Continue Reading →
October 22nd, 2019 Public Hearing This will likely become one of the most important public hearings in the history of Vancouver. The actions taken by our city council will have implications for many decades to come, as they will decide the fate of this proposal for a world-leading medical hub in the False Creek Flats.... Continue Reading →
1980 Foley Street - Lululemon Store Support Centre It might be long overdue for some serious reform, but I appreciate the Urban Design Panel as it continues to teach me a lot about our city. For instance, I had no idea the same guidelines that shaped the Emily Carr University of Art and Design were... Continue Reading →
1980 Foley Street - Lululemon Store Support Centre It may sound silly, but I feel a little sad when Hannah and I discuss “splitting up” in order to cover multiple meetings. Simply put, after more than a decade together, I can't imagine my life without her in it. I know that it's dumb to get... Continue Reading →
1002 Station Street and 250-310 Prior Street (New St. Paul's Hospital and Health Campus) Something Darren and I have learned over these last few years is how powerful even one small voice can be in public consultation. For instance, we never expected our recap of the Urban Design Panel's recommendation for resubmission of the new... Continue Reading →
1717 Lorne Street One of the things Hannah and I enjoy about our civic engagement is getting to see the various models of all the buildings proposed in Vancouver. In fact, that's actually why I first started going to the meetings of Vancouver's Urban Design Panel. As development applications usually don't need an open house,... Continue Reading →
1002 Station Street and 250-310 Prior Street (New St. Paul's Hospital and Health Campus) Though I attended the Urban Design Panel's first look at the New St. Paul's Hospital back in January, Neither Hannah nor I could find a way to condense that nearly three hour workshop (pg 13) into a short recap. Now a... Continue Reading →
City Duo 