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Entries from January 2016

One small site at a time, a different kind of developer brings change to the Downtown Eastside, Chinatown, Strathcona

March 27th, 2013 · 20 Comments

I had noticed a few months ago that I was starting to see a different kind of development pop up on the city’s rezoning and development-permit lists: small buildings, slivers almost, carefully shoehorned into the streetscapes of Chinatown and the Downtown Eastside. Kerry Gold wrote about one of them for the Globe back in February, […]

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Going after the biggest contributors to greenhouse-gas emissions: buildings

March 27th, 2013 · 48 Comments

Being as that we in the media now have such restricted access to city staff in Vancouver, who used to be free to tell us about interesting things they were up to that we should keep an eye on, I have now started trying to scrounge news about the city from BCBid. This was one […]

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The city of empty condos: New census number-crunching shows high numbers of condos are empty or occupied only by temporary visitors

March 21st, 2013 · 117 Comments

Here’s another can of gas on the debate that’s been bubbling in Vancouver ever since the first condo building on the old Expo grounds got marketed first in Hong Kong, rather than to locals as everyone debates: Are we selling off our city to global real-estate speculators and vacationers? I’m hoping to get permission from […]

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Vancouver looks to transform old police station at Main and Hastings to technology/innovation hub

March 21st, 2013 · 16 Comments

My story on same is here. I should add that, after my deadline to file had passed, I heard from Jim Fletcher, a partner at B.C. Social Ventures Partners and someone taking a keen interest in the new centre. He said what is the best aspect of the proposed new hub is that it combines […]

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An idea for an art gallery plaza grows in Brooklyn

March 21st, 2013 · 8 Comments

Frank Ducote spotted this on a recent Brooklyn trip — a plaza so very much like our art gallery — and asked me to use my vast technical skills to post the picture. Oh Lord, here goes. He also wishes to say: A few years ago the Brooklyn Museum undertook a major renovation, including a […]

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Do you want to know what’s going to happen with the Vancouver Art Gallery’s pitch to move to a new site? Read this for some clues

March 14th, 2013 · 115 Comments

When VAG director Kathleen Bartels made her pitch in late January to an international and local panel assessing whether the City of Vancouver should give the gallery the right to build on the last open block in downtown — a piece of city land — I was there. Sort of. (No, not right in the […]

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City and developer negotiate unusual deal to replace social-housing building, add market rentals in Downtown South

March 14th, 2013 · 34 Comments

It’s all here. FRANCES BULA Published Wednesday, Mar. 13, 2013 09:54PM EDT Last updated Wednesday, Mar. 13, 2013 10:04PM EDT A developer has negotiated an unusual partnership with the city to swap lots in return for building social housing downtown. In a pitch that neither side has rushed out to advertise widely, Brenhill Development proposed […]

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Vision mayor and councillor go to Kitsilano to test the waters for a Broadway subway

March 10th, 2013 · 278 Comments

A running tweetstream from the Vision Vancouver forum today on the Broadway subway line

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Vancouver mayor gets on board a campaign to push for Broadway subway line, with public meeting (rally?) scheduled for Sunday

March 9th, 2013 · 52 Comments

Suddenly, the Broadway line is front and centre. After several years of not saying too much, Vancouver has really built up a head of steam the last couple of months (sorry for that bad pun and more to come) championing a Broadway subway line. Here’s my story from last week with the mayor and the […]

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A federal experiment proves that providing housing and services helps the most marginalized of the homeless stay housed. Now what?

March 1st, 2013 · 13 Comments

The Bosman Hotel has, for the last three years, essentially provided a mini-Riverview ward for those who need it in the middle of the downtown. It worked so well that even downtown business groups are worried about what will happen if it is simply shut down with no reasonable alternative for the most troubled of […]

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