Is Vancouver's school enrollment projected to decline?

Good morning,

There was a heated debate this week about an opinion piece opposing the Sen̓áḵw development. Suffice it to say the argument probably should’ve stopped at the opening sentence that First Nations have a first to do what they want with their land.

I’ll let you read it and come to your own conclusion, though this Twitter thread from the Globe and Mail’s architecture critic sums it up well.

Let’s get into today’s newsletter:

• What the potential port strike means 🪧

• Is school enrollment declining? 🏫

• The biggest art stories, including an 80s-themed summer 🎭

Onwards

— Geoff Sharpe, Vancity Lookout newsletter writer

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WEATHER

Wednesday: 18 🌡️ 11 | 🌧

Thursday: 21 🌡️ 13 | ⛅

Friday: 18 🌡️ 12 | 🌧

LABOUR

What’s going on at the ports?

What’s happening: Unionized workers at B.C.’s ports have voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike, with 99.24 percent of members casting a vote in support, according to Global News. This does not mean a strike will happen but gives The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada the power to call one if necessary.

• The union represents 7,000 terminal workers, and the port handles around $225 billion worth of cargo per year, according to CNBC.

The earliest a strike could happen would be June 24. There are no negotiations set until June 21 as both sides are in a cooling-off period, according to CTV. The current agreement expired on March 30.

Zoom in: Port workers are a critical part of the economy, unloading containers that include commodities and household goods. Their concerns centre around wages, benefits and concerns around job automation, according to Business in Vancouver.

The impact of a strike: It would be, to put it lightly, a big deal. Disruptions to port shipping would have major ramifications for the economy throughout the entire supply chain. These workers are a critical part of getting us the goods we need, mainly because the Port of Vancouver is the biggest port in the country by a large margin.

Zoom out: Workers at western ports in the U.S. have taken job action, disrupting and shutting down ports as they continue contract negotiations, according to ABC 7. They’re demanding better pay and working conditions, especially as some as their employer, the port operators, experienced a 1,000 percent increase in profits.

Looking ahead: The union has filed a Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service with the federal minister of labour, which may indicate that negotiations are not going well, according to Business in Vancouver. The federal government sees the issue as important, and has already assigned conciliation officers to the file.

VANCOUVER BY THE NUMBERS

$3,666: The average monthly rental price for a two-bedroom Vancouver home in May, up 9.7 percent from last year. [Vancouver Sun]

47,000: The number of square kilometres that have burned so far this year, which the Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair say is the worst fire season of the 21st century. [Global]

9.4 million: The number of vehicles that rode B.C. Ferries last year, a record, and up from 8.4 million the previous year. People love travelling! [Vancouver is Awesome]

EDUCATION

A tale of two school enrollment projections

What’s happening: Critics say Vancouver’s School Board’s (VSB) student enrollment projections are inaccurate, which is a real problem for projecting for the necessary number of schools in communities throughout the city, according to the Vancouver Sun.

The problem: Predictions about enrollment dictate how the VSB allocates funding for schools, including school expansion, closures, and upgrades. VSB estimates that there will be 3,000 fewer students by 2031. But the Ministry of Education estimates there will be an extra 10,000 students by then, according to the Tyee. Talk about a discrepancy…

VSB says census data used by the ministry is inaccurate, and instead, they use proprietary data from a private company and kindergarten enrollment, amongst other metrics. Critics say the board doesn’t account for planned developments that will add tens of thousands of new residents, such as the Sen̓áḵw development.

• For context, kindergarten waitlists are terrible in the city, with 13 out of 89 elementary schools dealing with waitlists.

Closures: Enrollment projections are used to decide school closures. Queen Elizabeth Annex and Guy Carleton Elementary are just two examples of ones that have been shuttered.

Funding problems: One of the key issues facing the district is the lack of funding. VSB is still waiting for money from the provincial government for the desperately needed Olympic Village School, according to the Tyee. It’s been two and a half years since the announcement, with no funding in sight.

What it means: Could this be similar to TransLink’s doom loop, where fewer families move to Vancouver because there aren’t enough schools, which results in fewer schools being available? What’s also not mentioned is the cost of housing’s impact on enrollment. Can a family with two kids really afford a three-bedroom apartment in the city? Solving the housing crisis is directly tied to keeping Vancouver a city where families can live.

DREAM HOME

I’m not an architect, but there’s something about today’s dream home that I just love.

While the outside is gorgeously structured, the inside also really shines. This five-bedroom, six-bathroom home has a kitchen to die for and a sloped garden which you can see from the lower level. Oh and it has an elevator in case you’re tired of stairs

While I love the design, I do not love the price. See how much this one will set you back.

THE AGENDA

🗳 Council approved a $10-million tax deferral on a luxury property development for the developer Anthem. Council approved the deferral unanimously, and Anthem’s CEO said the deferral meant they could begin construction on the project immediately. Anthem will owe interest on the payment, and the project is expected to be done six months sooner. [Vancouver Sun]

❌ The controversial development at 105 Keefer St., which was supposed to be decided on Monday, was postponed until June 26. More than 100 speakers spoke at the recent hearings. Critics oppose it because it doesn’t include any social housing, while supporters say it’s critical to build housing that will revitalize Chinatown. [CityNews]

🌧 Get those umbrellas ready. Thursday onward has much-needed rain in the forecast for Metro Vancouver. Sadly it will also be quite warm out at the same time, which is always unpleasant. [Vancouver is Awesome]

🏥 A Vancouver family is donating $20 million to the recovery centre at St. Paul’s Hospital, in honour of their son who died from a drug overdose while waiting on the waitlist for an additional psychiatrist. [CTV]

🚆 SCREEETCH. That’s my impression of the SkyTrains squeal, which may soon be less frequent. All SkyTrains are undergoing modifications to reduce overall noise. This is in addition to fixing old railway lines that were also causing noise problems. [Urbanized]

❓ With Nordstrom close to finally closing down after their liquidation sale, there are rumours that Ikea, Eataly, Restoration Hardware, Simons and Uniqlo are all potential tenants of the massive space in the Pacific Centre. [CTV]

🏗 A rezoning application was submitted for 5350-5430 Heather St. to build an 18-storey tower within the Oakridge Municipal Town Centre. It would include 344 purpose-built rental homes. [Urbanized]

ARTS

Music

The biggest hit of the Bard on the Beach Festival is returning this year. As You Like It is a Beatles-powered comedy with a live band, featuring 25 of the band’s top hits. [Stir]

Movies

Head back to a simpler time with a Back to the Future screening at VIFF. The event includes an introduction by its director of photography, an 80s cocktail and trivia. [VIFF]

And that’s not all. VIFF is featuring a massive number of 80s movies this summer, including Aliens, Blade Runner, E.T., Ghostbusters and more. If you ever wanted to see that era’s movies on the big screen, now’s the time. [VIFF]

Art

Congrats to Gabrielle L’Hirondelle Hill, who is a finalist for the 2023 Sobey Art Award, for her sculptures that explore “the history of found materials, enquiring into concepts of land, property and economy.” [Vancouver Sun]

An immersive Banksy exhibit is coming to Vancouver from Sept. 29-Oct. 1, but the location won’t be announced until closer to the show. [Vancouver is Awesome]

The City of Vancouver is featuring 21 works of art by local Indigenous artists over the next two years. Check out the locations here. [Vancouver City]

PHOTO OF THE DAY

Here’s a beautiful shot of Stanley Park by Reddit user corruptfyr, because we can always use more Stanley Park in our lives.

Aspiring photographer? Send us your image and we’ll include it in the newsletter.

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Three of the ten hottest days ever recorded in Vancouver were in the last three years… [Daily Hive]

• An anti-graffiti blitz is planned for June 17, to help beautify the city. You can volunteer in your area here. [Eventbrite]

• Some sad news. Popular bookstore Pulp Fiction Books in Kitsilano is closing, due to increased rent payments and more people ordering books online. [CBC]

• You don’t need to visit a fancy hotel to experience a valet. On June 19, the city is launching its first Bike Valet service to securely lock up your bike at Vancouver City Centre SkyTrain. [Vancouver City]

• Congrats to Ruth Inglis, who won a $150,000 lotto prize. She recounted how her son originally thought it was a prank. [Vancouver is Awesome]

GAME TIME

Today’s GeoGuesser is another SkyTrain station. Can you guess this one? The first five people to reply with the correct answer will be featured in the newsletter.