Bye bye bikes on Beach avenue?

Good morning,

There’s something magic about Vancouver. The beaches, the food, the sun…and the mushrooms? According to Axios, yes! A local magic mushroom retreat is gaining the attention of our neighbours to the south.

We’ve got a busy newsletter today, with lots of updates from city hall, with bad news for land owners, good news for transit users and bad news for bikers.

Let’s get to it.

— Geoff Sharpe, Vancity Lookout writer

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WEATHER

Wednesday: 23 🌡️ 14 | 🌤️ 

Thursday: 24 🌡️ 14 | 🌤️

Friday: 23 🌡️ 14 | 🌤️

TRANSIT

Vancouver tops rapid transit recovery

Vancouver loves being number one, so get ready to add another to our list. This time it’s the quickest recovery of rapid transit systems in North America.

What happened: According to data compiled by Urban Institute senior research associate Yonah Freemark, it shows that Vancouver’s rapid transit system has recovered by more than 80 percent since the pandemic, according to Business in Vancouver.

Zoom out: New York was the second-best system at 75 percent recovery, while Baltimore was the worst at 20 percent. It varied widely by city, with San Francisco also down, while Montreal was just above 70 percent.

The cause: Declines in major cities in North America are primarily due to higher commercial vacancy rates in downtown cores, which hasn’t impacted Vancouver as much.

• While rapid transit numbers appear to have recovered, overall TransLink says only 73 percent of total ridership, including all forms of transit, has returned, according to Global. Meanwhile, the southeast region is at 110 percent.

What it means: Luckily Vancouver has been spared the decline seen in other major cities, which is a great sign for the continued expansion of transit in the region.

VANCOUVER NUMBERS

⛽ $2.01: The high that gas prices are expected to reach this weekend in some parts of Metro Vancouver. [CTV]

🚒 $3 million: The amount the city will spend on adding an annex next to the fire hall in the Downtown Eastside, to deal with overcrowding at the building. [Vancouver is Awesome]

❌ 300 percent: The rise in retail theft across Canada since the pandemic. This corresponds to everything costing more, including food which has seen skyrocketing prices well above inflation. [Vancouver Sun]

🧒 $802: The average cost parents paid for full-time childcare under the age of five in 2022, which is above the national average of $649. [Business in Vancouver]

ENVIRONMENT

Water restrictions could get worse

What happened: The province issued an alert about drought conditions worsening across the province and that could mean tougher water rules in Metro Vancouver, according to CTV.

• Currently the water reservoirs are normal. But that’s expected to change due to the summer heat.

In Metro Vancouver, water use is up 21 percent compared to the same period last year. Even more crazy? It’s been higher every day in May and June compared to last year.

The culprit: According to Metro Vancouver’s director of policy planning and analysis in Water Services, the increase may be due to the earlier dry period, resulting in more lawn watering, as reported in the Aldergrove Star.

The stages: A move to Stage Two would mean no lawn watering or use of aesthetic water features. Stage Three would mean no washing vehicles, while Stage Four would add watering trees, shrubs and other plants to the list of banned activities. The full stage breakdown from one to four can be found here.

What it means: It’s bad now, but this is just the beginning…the hot weather in the coming years will get worse. At some point, pleas to citizens will not be enough, and Metro Vancouver may have to act to preserve water supplies. Expect changes in the future.

THE AGENDA

🔥 Police believe a fire that broke out at the First Avenue Plant in False Creek on Tuesday was suspicious. There were no injuries. [CBC]

🧯 Speaking of fire, last night multiple people had to be rescued after a fire broke out in an apartment in on the 400 block of E 10th Avenue in Mount Pleasant. As you can tell from these photos, it appears to be a big one. [CityNews]

💰️ Ambleside Village is one of the wealthiest districts for real estate in Canada. Much like other rich neighbourhoods in Vancouver, local businesses are struggling as they cannot afford to operate. [Vancouver Sun]

🎨 Shame on whoever spray-painted all over the logs and rocks at Kitsilano Beach. [CTV]

🚲️ Another victim of expensive housing costs, Vancouver bike shop Central Valley Flat Fix has had to shut down as it cannot afford to pay workers well and continue to operate. [Vancouver is Awesome]

🎦 It’s not just Hollywood affected by the workers' strike. Vancouver’s thriving film industry is also dealing with the effects. [North Shore News]

CITY HALL

Bye bye bike lanes and trouble in ABC paradise?

Strap in, we’ve got a packed edition of our city hall news.

First, there are rumblings floating around that ABC councillors may be about to axe the popular Beach Avenue bike lane.

What’s happening: At a recent council meeting, ABC Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung brought up bringing back the two-way road, while staff expressed concern about the volume of bikers. Kirby-Yung’s justification? It’s “working against climate because you have all these cars backing up.” Okay then.

Background: While ABC has not expressly come out against them, actions speak louder than words:

• ABC voted to end the Stanley Park bike lane, with no real replacement.

• They also voted against a bike lane on the new Broadway subway road.

What it means: It doesn’t really matter what councillors say, at some point what they do tells you everything you need to know. As pointed out by reporter Justin McElroy, in the past political parties have lost elections running against bike lanes. And ABC is the political offshoot of the former NPA team who opposed them. Patterns may be starting to emerge…

In other news

New funding: A new injection of $49 million from the provincial government will go to five projects in the city, including a turf field at Moberley Park, a spray park at Ross Park, upgrading a protected bike lane, improvements to reduce traffic speed at Cornwall Avenue, an outdoor amphitheatre at the Marpole-Oakridge Community Centre and renovations at a children library. We love new infrastructure! [Vancouver is Awesome]

New staff: The mayor’s communications director Taylor Verrall is no longer working at city hall and will be replaced by someone “more senior,” according to city affairs columnist Francis Bula…

Trouble in paradise? For the first time, ABC councillors were split on voting in multiple instances. In a vote on a motion on whether to use provincial funds for suicide prevention barriers, Meiszner, Kirby-Yung and Montague voted against it while Dominato, Bligh and Zhou aligned with the Greens and OneCity, the two progressive parties on council to pass the motion. Could this be a sign for the future?

Developers get a break: And if you’re a developer, you’ll get some respite. A policy that passed to increase development cost levies by 8.3 percent will not be implemented until next year. Those costs pay for city infrastructure and local amenities like libraries. [Business in Vancouver]

FOOD

Salt Tasting Room, a popular charcuterie and wine bar, is back, but this time they’re opening up at 227 E. Pender St. in Chinatown sometime in September. [Vancouver is Awesome]

Two ice cream spots make this list of the top new restaurants and cafes to check out this summer in Vancouver. [Dished]

You want it all? The Mackenzie Room now has their popular four-person set menu as an option for one person. Yum! [Scout Magazine]

The Watson is a new cocktail bar that’s opening soon on at 3080 Main Street. It’s quite the gorgeous spot. [Scout Magazine]

A new pizza spot for Neopolitan-style pizzas called Nicli Pizzeria & Bar is opening up at Westbrook Village in UBC. [Daily Hive]

Affordable omakase is possible at the new Oshi Nori opening at 1055 Mainland St, which seeks to offer bite-sized Japanese tastes that won’t break your bank account. [Vancouver is Awesome]

Kitsilano is getting a Nordic seafood restaurant called Qube at 1850 W 4th Ave. No timeline on when it’s expected to open. [Daily Hive]

EVENTS

MV Summer Festival | Goldcorp Centre for the Arts | Today to Aug. 5 | Operatic performances, 60 performances from around the globe of opera music | Varied ticket prices

The Great Block Party | Sunday, 1 pm | 1361 41st Ave | Feel the vibes at this community event, with art, food trucks, a dunk tank and lots of fun events for younger, older and kids alike | Free

West End Farmer’s Market | 1100 Comox St | Tomorrow 9 am | 30 farms and producers will be selling their wares | Free

Upcoming

Supernatural TV Show Tour in Vancouver | Waterfront Station | Aug. 1, 7:30 pm | Discover all the places the popular TV series was filmed in this two-hour tour | Tickets $49

CNH x Fresh Roots Summer Market! | Collingwood Neighbourhood House | Aug. 4, 4 pm | Explore locally grown produce, local musicians and build connections with the community | Free

Harmony Arts Fest | Throughout West Vancouver | Aug. 4-13 | A celebration of music and visual arts, with kids' art workshops and family-friendly activities | Free

Vancouver Mural Festival | Throughout Metro Vancouver | Aug. 4-13 | Explore the outdoors with beautiful artistic murals, with artists, performers and tours throughout the city | Free and paid

Live Painting At Vancouver Fine Art Gallery | Vancouver Fine Art Gallery | Aug. 5, 1 pm | Watch professional artists and sculpturists make art in real time | Free

Powell Street Festival | Oppenheimer Park | Aug. 5-6, 11:30 am | One of my favourite events of the summer, come down to the park and celebrate Japanese culture, food, music, art, you name it. It’s worth a visit | Free

Vancouver Pride Festival | Concord Pacific Place | Aug. 5-6 | A two-day outdoor festival with DJs, drag performances and so much more, along with the ever-popular Pride Parade | Free

Powell Street Festival | Oppenheimer Park | Aug. 5-6 | Celebrate Japanese art and culture at the popular festival this summer, with music, food, crafts and more | Free

White Rock Craft Beer Festival | Memorial Park, White Rock | Sept. 23, 1 pm | Details soon

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• It’s back! The popular White Spot Pirate Pak Day returns on Aug. 16. [Daily Hive]

• Popular airline (I know, it’s sort of an oxymoron) Porter Airlines is launching a flight from Vancouver to Ottawa. Be sure to check out our sister publication Capital Eats for any food recommendations. [CTV]

• A 110-year-old schoolhouse has been saved from being torn down, moving from Cornwall and Maple, to the Squamish Nation reserve. [Vancouver is Awesome]

• In 1979 the Whitecaps won the NASL Soccer Bowl, and here’s their victory parade. [Reddit]

• Not a bad showing from Mexico for their turn at the Celebration of Lights. [Reddit]

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Great photo of Yaletown!

GAME TIME

Many people may ride away with today’s Vancouver Wordle. Do you think you can guess it?