Login / RegisterVancouver public forum addresses downtown building heights
A West End neighbourhood activist is calling on the public to attend what he calls “an urgent public forum” on Tuesday (January 11) at the Vancouver Public Library’s central branch. Randy Helten, creator of the www.cityhallwatch.ca website, told the Georgia Straight by phone that the forum will focus on building heights, as well as on broader issues around city planning.
“It’s to engage the public in an open, fair, and transparent consultation of all of the key issues and decisions in our city,” Helten said.
On January 20, city council’s planning and environment committee is scheduled to vote on a staff report recommending that allowances be made for taller buildings downtown. Helten said he hopes council will postpone a decision pending further consultation. He also mentioned that he created his website to provoke public discussion about city land-use policies.
“We’ll exist as long as necessary to change the flawed land-use planning and consultation system in Vancouver,” Helten remarked.
The city’s director of planning, Brent Toderian, told the Straight that his staff looks forward to receiving commentary from all stakeholders on how to improve. “[We] have always believed strongly in the value of engagement and consultation,” he said.
Toderian added that there have been misconceptions about the staff’s recommendations regarding higher buildings. He noted that council instructed staff in January 2010 not to allow taller buildings that penetrate view corridors. He also said that the discussion now is about seven specific sites—not seven areas—in the downtown.
On only one of the seven sites will a building be permitted to reach 700 feet, according to Toderian. The current maximum height is 600 feet.
Other sites have varying height increases. Toderian said that some will change from 300 feet to 425 feet.
"All seven are different because they're in existing different zones," he emphasized.
The next highest increase is to 500 feet, he added.
“There is the misconception that we were talking about the whole CBD [central business district] going to 700 feet from 600, or the whole downtown area going to 700,” Toderian said.
Meanwhile, Helten also pointed out that council will vote on January 20 on separate staff recommendations regarding higher buildings in Chinatown and the Downtown Eastside. “It’s extremely significant,” he noted.
Toderian said that these recommendations, which hadn’t been made public by the Straight’s deadline, would implement a policy approved by council in January 2010. At that time, council chose not to change building heights in Gastown, but allowed “special sites” in Chinatown where building heights could reach up to 150 feet.
In addition, Toderian said, council asked staff to recommend additional special sites in Chinatown South to be considered “for purposes of economic revitalization”.
The citizens of Vancouver continue to face an endless onslaught of attempted variances, monstrous buildings slammed into neighbourhoods that don't want them. Hasn't the public repeated over and over that we don't want changes to the view corridors? Only an astonishing level of disrespect for public opinion would lead the city council to even request a study on this.
Urban planning means making a plan and following it. Unless our planning group actually starts generating some comprehensive plans, it is reasonable to wonder why we even bother keeping them on the payroll. Really, we could hire summer students, give them each a CD-1 stamp and turn them lose on a map of the city for a lot less money. That would still keep the developers happy, which seems to be the only guiding principle.
A city growing as fast as ours has changed and will keep changing rapidly. There's no point being all nimby and sticking your head in the sand, the city will continue to grow whether you like it or not. Best to accept this reality and plan accordingly.
This city is behind in services and amenities and until we catch up and have a balance between density and services we need to slow the developers need to make cash with these tall buildings.
Before we move towards the planner's and this councils plan to feed their developer contributors needs we need a city plan and a total engagement of the public before we move forward.
And sadly for Toderain, we are ready for a new director of planning as Brent is played now. We need new blood, and a new planner who is plugged into community values not developer needs.
We also need a means and for communities to veto those things they do not want in their communities
I think Toderian meant to say something different here. Instead of "We", "Others" would make more sense given how anti-democratic this city's government is.
Very strange and a bit suspicious. I would say that Kerrisdale is bang on.
Claiming that tall buildings magically "lower housing costs" is a red herring. ALL tall buildings? Like, for example, Shangri-La perhaps?
Are these proposed new skyscrapers going to offer affordable suites or (hahaha) rental units, or just the usual mix of overpriced shoebox condos and high-end six and seven figure luxury apartments...
http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/planning/capacitystudy/pdf/10dec16councilpr...
To answer the question, if I don't like tall building why do I live in a city? I want to live in a city with decent urban planning, which yes may include tall buildings. But I don't want to live in a city devoid of urban planning that is basically a developer free for all because it will look like Houston, which if you have ever visited is not an appealing place. I don't oppose adding density, but I it should be added through comprehensive urban planning with (real) public input. Urban planning is a GOOD thing and I am truly astonished that there are people who don't seem to agree.
My question for you, if you love to live in an completely unzoned city, crammed with tall bland buildings why don't you move to Houston? Houston actually is proud of the fact that it has no zoning laws. Here's a look, ain't it beautiful?
http://www.plumbingservices.com/images/houston_skyline.jpg
You spend all your time complaining, but I don't see any of you getting off your asses and presenting solutions.
As for takling the time and effort to find solutions, there is actually a group of trained professionals we pay to do this, we call them the city planning department. If someone needs to get off their asses it is our planners who need to put comprehensive plans for neighbourhoods with real and honest public input before the wrecking balls start showing up.
We see endless proposals for towers, where are the schools and amenities to support the growing population? Where is the overall plan?
The West End of course is similarly doomed to becoming a charmless, characterless condo jungle. I'm glad someone's out there fighting the junglefication, but as a West Ender I can see the writing on the cheaply manufactured wall and will hold out until I'm living in a dark shadow world beneath the monoliths and will leave to find a place in the sun again.