Public Hearings – January 17th, 2023 & January 19th, 2023 After the dysfunction demonstrated at public hearings over the last four years, this week should come off as a nice palette cleanser. In fact it’s why Hannah and I felt comfortable combining Tuesday and Thursday night’s meetings into one summary, as it’s hard to imagine... Continue Reading →
July 7th, 2022 Public Hearing – A $26 Million Community Face-lift Helps Calm Vancouver’s Identity Crisis
Public Hearing – July 7th, 2022It’s not as bad as flushing a toilet on a live stream, however our city council must be embarrassed by how Tuesday’s meeting ended. Too many ignored the mayor’s warnings to stay at their computers, with their webcams on to maintain quorum, bringing the night to an immediate end before... Continue Reading →
June 28th-30th & July 14th & 25th, 2022 Public Hearing – Kitsilano Groundhogs Force Supportive Social Homes To A New Low
Public Hearing – June 28th, 2022Update July 14th, 2022 : After spending 22 hours over four days, city council has approved Items 1 & 2, and has heard from 225 speakers on Item 3. This marathon will resume on July 25th, at 3pm, and with at least 60 speakers remaining (estimated at 7 hours), you... Continue Reading →
June 23rd, 2022 Public Hearing – Strathcona Residents Feel The Sting Of “Unjustified” Rental Housing
Public Hearing – June 23rd, 2022Time can be a funny thing, as these last two years have felt like an eternity, which in hindsight have also flown by. Supposedly as you get older this feeling only gets worse; since you’ve experienced more years, minutes, and hours can seem far quicker. Maybe that sense of time... Continue Reading →
May 24th, 2022 Public Hearing – The Heather Lands Shared Vision Renews A Community Relationship
Public Hearing – May, 24th, 2022 With over 130 speakers left to hear from on the Broadway Plan this week, I assume city council are grateful to whoever scheduled the Heather Lands as the lone item for this public hearing. With an election in the fall, they had to be seen as doing something, and... Continue Reading →
Urban Design Panel Support Raises Broadway’s South Granville SkyTrain Station Up To Purr-fection
1477 W BroadwayFrom the moment its development plans were found in a dumpster, the future South Granville SkyTrain station has polarized opinions. In fact, Councillors Bligh, Hardwick and Kirby-Yung, even voted against (pg 8) the Issues Report that let the average person speak their mind on this mix of market and moderate income rental homes,... Continue Reading →
March 1st, 2022 Public Hearing – Vancouver Explores New Heights To Heal The Hole In Its Wooden Heart
Public Hearing – March 1st, 2022If you know the difference between a text amendment that fixes a simple error in a city bylaw vs one that allows for hundreds of rental homes, well then you’ll understand how important this night is. Conversely, if you’ve been doomscrolling the Russian invasion of Ukraine, like a normal person,... Continue Reading →
Middle Class Rental Homes Need Not Fear The Reaper But Rather The Whims Of City Council
3084 W 4th Ave and 2010 Balaclava St (DP-2021-00652)If the Moderate Income Rental Housing Pilot Program managed to demonstrate anything in its short life, it was that our city holds new housing to very different standards based primarily on one factor. It wasn’t height or affordability that was the dividing line, but rather Ontario Street.... Continue Reading →
December 9th, 2021 Public Hearing – Forbidden Renters Find A Way Forward, But Will City Council Bounce Forty Million Dollar Homes?
Public Hearing – December 9th, 2021With the budget set, normally this public hearing would help city council ease into a winter break that lasts until the middle of January. However this year is different, as there’s plenty of unfinished business left to settle, including the fate of the Secured Rental Policy. Ironically, that protocol was... Continue Reading →
Balfour Monster Leaps Forward After Shedding 34 Homes With Parkside Diet
906-982 W 18th Ave and 907-969 W 19th Ave (Balfour Block) - (revised concept)With how poorly this project’s last Urban Design Panel review went, I imagine this applicant team was looking for every advantage they could find in preparation for its requested return. So the sight of Terra Breads' bagged sandwiches in this townhall room... Continue Reading →