City of Vancouver aims for 'iconic' downtown core with Granville plan

Good morning!

I went to the Tremors Festival at Progress Lab 1422 over the weekend, and boy did I not know what I was getting into! I’d gone to see Dear Star Trek, in which the performer and writer Christine Genier, of the Ta’an Kwächän Council, talks about representation and the Chakotay problem in Voyager. And I loved that, but had no idea what any of the other performances would be.

The other performances I saw were Nod, a surreal and hilarious act about dreaming, and Dream Machine, which was a bizarre (and very fun and participatory!) game show. I didn’t do any research on these other two performances, and I was really pleasantly surprised at how fun it all was!

Today, I’m writing this with my fan going full-tilt in the heat, and thinking about gelatos on The Drive — unfortunately, I’m not able to make it down for Italian Day, but I hope the Lookout’s readers are getting down there to have a nice day in the sun!

Today, we’re taking a look at the Granville Street Plan, which aims to shape the downtown core for the next 20 years.

— Dustin Godfrey, freelancer

PS - If you find this newsletter valuable, please consider forwarding it to your friends. New to the Lookout? Sign-up for free. 

WEATHER

Monday: 24 🌡️ 13 | ☀️

Tuesday: 24 🌡️ 12 | 🌤️

Wednesday: 21 🌡️ 13 | 🌤️

THE LOOKOUT RECOMMENDS

Mango on pizza: Maybe you’re a big pineapple-on-pizza person — maybe you’re not. But I went with some friends to Rocky Mountain Flatbread the other day, and we ordered a couple pizzas between the three of us, including their parma pizza. The pizza included ham, mushrooms, arugula, parmesan and mango, which was a great combination. It had a sweet and savoury combo, kind of like Hawaiian, but much more subtle!

Some downtown ice cream: If you missed out on the gelato on Italian Day yesterday, as I did, you can always check out Gelato Express on Robson Street, just across from the VPL. I had a scoop of cookie dough the other day, and sure, it’s more North American ice cream than gelato, but that’s OK — I’m a sucker for cookie dough.

Take yourself out to the ball game: The Vancouver Canadians are playing at home this week, and with the weather as nice as it is (finally!), it’s a great time to check out some baseball! And compared to a Canucks or Lions game, it’s an especially affordable way to watch sports in person with friends or family.

GRANVILLE PLAN

City of Vancouver aims for 'iconic' downtown core with Granville plan

Vancouver city council voted unanimously last week to approve the 20-year plan governing the future growth of Granville Street and its immediate area, with a number of its goals to create an “iconic” centre for the city’s downtown core.

Its directions include an “electronic video sign zone” with aims of “transforming it into a landmark destination like Times Square in NYC and Piccadilly Circus in London,” and the creation of a plaza at Granville and Robson, which the city says will “become an iconic gathering place to connect Robson Square and the Stadium District.”

Background: The city began work on the Granville Street Plan after council gave staff the go-ahead for the street from False Creek to the Burrard Inlet. The terms work is focused on arts and culture, enhancing the public space, protecting jobs, expanding tourism and improving active transportation and transit.

Since the 2010 Olympics, Granville has struggled with “vacant storefronts, lack of daytime activity, and rising health, safety and street disorder concerns, contributing to a negative perception” for the area, according to a staff report presenting the plan to council.

What’s in the plan? The plan focuses on the city centre area, which includes the Robson and Georgia intersections; the entertainment core, which includes the Smithe, Nelson and Helmcken intersections; and the bridgehead area, which runs from the bridge to Davie Street.

That said, the plan aims to make the entire street, including the central business district and waterfront areas, a full-time pedestrian zone. To accommodate that, the city aims to make transit priority improvements to Howe and Seymour to allow the full relocation of bus routes onto those streets.

Out with SROs: Eight single-room occupancy buildings, totalling 600 rooms, populate the area, including both privately-owned buildings and provincial- and city-owned buildings. While existing SROs will be able to continue operating in the entertainment core, the plan aims to bar any residential development in that part of the plan, largely to avoid noise conflicts.

Existing SROs in the entire plan will be replaced over time with self-contained social housing — whereas SROs tend to have shared amenities like kitchen and washrooms, the self-contained units would have those amenities in the units — through collaboration with senior levels of government. SROs in the entertainment district would be replaced in the bridgehead and city centre areas.

In with electronic billboards: The intersection at Granville and Robson streets is being “reimagined as a central public plaza for large public gatherings” — a plan that includes “vibrant” electronic billboards. Those billboards would be up to 50 feet from the Granville-Robson intersection and between one storey and 90 feet above ground level.

The signs could display ads, public information and public art at different times, and the plan suggests they should dedicate some airtime to announcements around concerts, public art and cultural events, and the city expects an annual contribution from the sign owners to support arts and cultural programming in the plan area.

The area around there will be zoned for residential use, with a focus on rental housing, as well as creating new hotel space. To reduce the impact of the billboards on the residents and hotel occupants, the city says it will situate the residential “well above street level” and require “the highest noise mitigation design standards.”

Cultural spaces: The plan sets a baseline for “no net loss” of cultural space in the Granville entertainment district, with a goal of increasing venue space through redevelopment of the area. That includes using rezoning and development applications, as well as public benefit contributions to preserve existing spaces.

Social housing in the Granville area could also be aimed at housing artists, “including  associated production space, in suitable locations” in the bridgehead and city centre areas.

Existing and new venues: The city specifically cites using zoning and other regulatory tools to secure and improve the Dance Centre on Davie, and the Commodore Ballroom, Orpheum Theatre and Vogue Theatre on Granville. Other existing venues, like Gorg-O-Mish, Golden Age Collectibles, Tyrant Studios, the Harbour Dance Centre and The Roxy could be up for cultural heritage designation.

The plan also seeks to use regulatory tools like zoning to encourage new cultural spaces, including live music venues, small- to mid-size performance art spaces, art galleries and exhibits, and all-ages and family-focused venues. That can be achieved by integrating cultural spaces into hotels, restaurants and bars, along with other commercial spaces in the entertainment district.

Activating the streets: On top of electronic billboards, the city suggests encouraging “low-cost activation of the street for live performances, public art and cultural events,” and emphasizes supporting patios, food trucks, art, busking and public seating.

Where the city centre area would be home to daytime events, the entertainment core would be the “heart of the evening and nightlife activity featuring dynamic outdoor performance spaces,” and the bridgehead area is expected to have a “quieter yet lively street experience.”

What the public had to say: Survey data from the city’s public engagement showed variable popularity for the different suggestions. Overall, just over three-quarters of respondents said they support the proposals, including 34% who strongly agreed with the direction. But not all proposals are quite as broadly supported.

The plan’s development and design features enjoy 77% support, while its public space and transportation directions have 70% support, and its land-use and year-round pedestrian zone proposals each have 66% support. Other proposals have only bare majority support — excluding housing in the entertainment area has the support of just 53% of respondents, while the electronic billboards at Robson and Granville scrape by with 50% support.

The phased approach to the plan also wasn’t overly popular — 53% expressed support, while 21% was neutral and 19% opposed it. Common complaints were that the 20-year timeline was too long, with one commenting that “I might be dead in 20 years, so [I’ll] never live to see the final product!”

What speakers said: The plan was presented to the standing committee on policy and strategic priorities last week, and a number of speakers showed up, largely supporting the plan. Most speakers represented either individual businesses or industry associations, such as hospitality industry groups.

While the speakers broadly supported the plan, some did register concerns — in particular, some suggested the entertainment district shouldn’t bar housing if the housing is high enough up to mitigate noise issues from the street below, while others said the pedestrian-only designation could cause issues for some businesses. TransLink also commented that moving the buses over to parallel streets could cause some issues around accessibility.

THE VANCOUVER NUMBER

25

With temperatures anticipated to reach the mid-20s today, Vancouver certainly isn’t the hottest place in the province — Osoyoos is expected to reach 37 C — but it’s still enough to spur a weather warning from Environment Canada. [The Weather Network]

THE AGENDA

🏘️ Vancouverites are increasingly turning to home co-ownership to deal with the affordability crisis. And it isn’t just an affordability benefit — co-owners can look after kids and pets, as well as share responsibilities like maintenance, according to CoHo co-founder Noam Dolgin, whose organization matches potential co-owners. [CityNews]

🚨 When the community takes to the streets in a celebration, how can we ensure it doesn’t end in tragedy, as it did on Lapu Lapu Day? Urban planners, councillors, pedestrian safety advocates and others say part of it is rethinking our relationship with cars, while another part is bollards and barriers — or moving events to parks. [The Tyee]

🏥 Vancouver General Hospital is getting a $60-million donation toward a new health institute to drive innovation and treatment of cardiovascular health. That includes $35 million for the institute and another $25 million for an “innovation fund.”

🏒 A two-time Olympic medalist is coming to Vancouver, as the Toronto Sceptres are set to lose all-star player Sarah Nurse to our forthcoming PWHL team. Nurse signed a one-year contract with the new team after Vancouver hockey fans got a chance to see her play at the Sceptres’ sold-out game against the Montreal Victoire at Rogers Arena in January. [CBC]

EVENT GUIDE

Velopalooza | Various locations | Now until Jun. 30, various times | Bike raves, themed rides & Critical Mass | Most events free

A Night For the Books 2025 | Malone’s Taphouse, 608 West Pender St. | Jun. 10, 7 pm | Trivia fundraiser for children's literacy | Tickets $33

Game On! | Orpheum Theatre | June 11, 7 pm | Ever wanted to hear video game soundtracks played live by an orchestra? | Tickets $63+

Vancouver Vs Valley Roast Battle - Benefit Show | Bully’s Studios, New Westminster | June 10, 7 pm | Vancouver’s and the Fraser Valley’s best comedians square off. | Tickets $23

Michael Cera Palin w/ Tiger Really & Cherry Pick | Rickshaw Theatre | June 11, 7 pm | Emo band Michael Cera Palin is bringing its “We Could Be Brave” tour to Vancouver | Tickets $26

Dancing On The Edge Festival | Firehall Arts Centre and SFU Woodward’s | June 12 to 21 | Dancing On The Edge Festival, Canada’s longest-running contemporary dance festival, returns for its 37th year, featuring 3 world premieres and 2 Canadian premieres | Tickets $25-$50

Vancouver Short Film Festival | SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts, 149 West Hastings St. | Jun. 13–15, various times | 47 bold short films & After Dark block | Tickets various prices

Britannia Village Community Arts Crawl | Britannia & Howe, Ottawa | Jun. 14, all day | Outdoor showcase of local artists and musicians | Free

Strathcona Blocks Party | 800 Blocks of East Hastings & 840 East Hastings Parking Lot | Jun. 14, noon to 5 pm (beer garden until 8 pm) | Music, food trucks, games & beer garden | Free

5X Festival Blockparty | Surrey Civic Plaza, 13450 104th Ave. | Jun. 14, 4 pm | South Asian music, art, food & vendors | Free, RSVP online

Japan Market | Vancouver Art Gallery North Plaza, 750 Hornby St. | Jun. 14–15, various times | Japanese food, vendors & performances | Tickets $5+

An Ideal Husband | Jericho Arts Centre, 1675 Discovery St | Now until June 22, various times | Oscar Wilde play on secrets and morality | Tickets $15–$35

Theatre Under the Stars | Stanley Park's Malkin Bowl | June 27 to August 16, 2025 | Theatre Under the Stars presents its 2025 season of sweet dreams and big schemes with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Legally Blonde | Tickets from $35

Eco-Art Fest | Douglas Fir Teaching Garden (Champlain Heights) | June 28, 10 am–2 pm | More info

GRANVILLE PLAN

Should the city be a for-profit developer?

Amid city council’s deliberation of the Granville Street Plan proposed by staff last week, council broke into considerable debate over the city’s role in housing, with motions by various councillors over what to do about the SROs in the Granville area.

Non-controversial motions: Council unanimously approved two amendments by councillors Peter Meiszner and Sean Orr, respectively, to move as soon as possible to collaborate with senior levels of government on transitioning existing SROs to social housing on city-owned sites, and to do more consultations with the tenants of those SROs about the impacts of development in the area.

On to the controversy: A third amendment from Coun. Rebecca Bligh, calling for the city to use the newly formed Vancouver Housing Development Office and the Vancouver Affordable Housing Endowment Fund (VDHO) to increase social housing to offset losses from the Granville plan, drew considerable debate.

As the mandate of the VHDO is to generate profits for the city, Meiszner moved to scratch that office from the motion, opening a can of worms that Bligh said council hasn’t had the opportunity to discuss among themselves.

• At the centre of the debate was whether the city should build housing with the intention of generating revenue for the city to build infrastructure and public amenities — or, in other words, whether the city should be a for-profit developer.

The case against: Bligh, Orr and others argued it is not the city’s business to enter housing for the sake of generating a profit, but rather the city is a public service. Bligh said she’s heard from the public that they want deeply affordable housing — and the delivery of affordable housing, rather than market housing, is the public amenities the city needs.

• Bligh noted the city has been advocating to the province for deeply affordable housing for years without enough movement, and she said the city needs to use its own levers that it can control to make it happen.

She said people living on service industry wages, such as those working on Granville spend, spend less on housing, which they spend more at local businesses. In Montreal, where housing is much more affordable, she said “all the bars are full” on any given night.

The case for: Members of ABC suggested the city should look at all avenues for generating revenue for the city to afford amenities and infrastructure without raising property taxes for owners of property.

• “I think the comment was made [that] we’re not in the business of generating revenue, we have to provide affordability — so, yes, we have to provide affordability, but we have a half-a-billion-dollar infrastructure deficit,” said Kirby-Yung, noting the city can’t wait for an “ethereal and long-hoped-for” alternative funding model. “We have some very significant needs to invest in our city.”

Kirby-Yung and Coun. Lenny Zhou said it was the wrong time to dive into the mandate of the VHDO, as the conversation that evening was about the Granville plan.

Seeking clarity: Coun. Pete Fry noted, however, that the motion didn’t require council to spend any time during that meeting to discuss the VHDO’s mandate — rather, he said, it was about asking city staff to add more public clarity about how the VHDO can or can’t be used.

“I think that it’s important to have that articulation of whether or not this would work with the VHDO and why,” Fry said. “And I think that’s an opportunity for us to be more transparent with the public — VHDO is not a not-controversial proposal.”

More housing disagreement: Council also voted on a motion by Coun. Lucy Maloney to reinstate the renters office, which had been dismantled by council shortly after the 2022 election. After a series of public speakers who unanimously spoke in favour of the motion, ABC councillors defeated it in a 4-4 vote, with former ABC councillor Rebecca Bligh, who had originally voted alongside ABC to end it, joining the remaining councillors to support it.

ABC councillors suggested the city still has some staff who are capable of enforcing the tenant relocation policy, and additional funding was allocated to tenant assistance organizations, such as the Tenant Resource and Advisory Centre.

NEW VANCOUVER JOBS

Discover your dream job in Vancouver:

• Marketing Coordinator, Fitness World

• Personal Assistant, Canada Cloud Pharmacy

• Policy & Legal Advisor, School District #36 (Surrey)

• Flight Attendant - Vancouver Base, Air Canada Rouge

• Portfolio Assistant, Non-Profit, BC Housing

GOOD NEWS MONDAY

Japanese and Indigenous cultures are woven together in a 40-foot wood sculpture a decade in the making. Squamish artist James Nexw'Kalus-Xwalacktun Harry and Lauren Brevner, of Japanese and Trinidadian heritage, collaborated to create the two-headed serpent Sínulhḵay, a Squamish legend, out of Japanese materials. The sculpture is on display at Granville and West Broadway. [CBC]

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Want that $1.50 hot dog? You’re gonna need a Costco membership. [CityNews]

• Snoop Dogg kicked off the Lions’ season this weekend. [CTV]

• The heat and beefed-up security measures didn’t spoil Italian Day. [Vancouver Sun]

VANCOUVER NEWS QUIZ

PHOTO OF THE DAY

A visitor shared this gorgeous sunset from their time in Vancouver last summer on the Vancouver subreddit.

STORIES THIS WEEK