Vancouver faces “turning point” in future of Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts

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      Vancouver city council will vote Wednesday (June 26) on whether to approve another two years of planning work on the potential removal of the Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts.

      According to city staff, the report before council marks a "turning point" in determining the future of the elevated roadways and the land that surrounds them.

      “This is not just a small step—this is the next step in a process,” Brian Jackson, the city’s general manager of planning and development, told council today (June 25).

      Jerry Dobrovolny, Vancouver’s director of transportation, said if the recommendations are approved by council on Wednesday, work over the next two years will include soil analysis, negotiations with neighbouring property owners, and conceptual designs.

      Dobrovolny noted there are a series of potential challenges that remain during the initial two-year process.

      “There’s many things that could come up—contaminated soil issues, cost issues, it requires a number of deals with neighbouring landowners,” he told the Straight. “They may or may not be willing, because the new road alignment requires the exchange of property.”

      Jackson told council the city will not "be held ransom"  by any developer or agency. 

      “We want to make this work, and we will be reporting out if the negotiations aren’t successful," he said. "But we believe that our partners are true to their word in supporting us in this initiative and we look forward to bringing forward a report within two years to take us to the next step.”

      The report before council outlines what staff say would be the benefits of replacing the viaducts with a new roadway.

      Jackson said the removal of the viaducts could free up almost seven acres of land for development, including ground-floor shops, and residential buildings with a 20 percent affordable housing component. It would also lead to a 13 percent increase in parks and open space.

      Mayor Gregor Robertson described the land the viaducts are located on as “the last, large, underutilized area in the city’s core”. According to Robertson, empty parking lots beneath and to the sides of the elevated roadways only come alive during summer events.

      “There’s nothing else this scale where the city can take what is a dead zone and transform it into a quality of life and economic opportunity as well,” he said.

      Vision Vancouver councillor Geoff Meggs said council has reached the moment at which it needs to "make a turning point".

      "I think staff have made that clear, to decide that we should pursue this opportunity,” he told reporters. “Not at all costs, not blindly and at the expense of being overpowered by somebody who might want to stand in the way, but I don’t think anybody does. My conversations with the communities around there and the landowners are all very positive.”

      Staff estimate removing the viaducts and creating a new street and open-space network will cost between $115 to $132 million over the next five to 10 years. The first two-year phase of study is expected to cost $2.4 million. About $1 million has been spent on planning and engineering work to date. 

      The value of the 10 acres of land that would be freed up if the viaducts are torn down is estimated at $100 million to $110 million.

      "The viaducts and associated land are City-owned assets, and as part of the overall plan would be repurposed for use as public open space, affordable housing or other public use," the staff report reads. "In addition, some of the land can be sold for residential/commercial development."

      If council approves the recommendations, staff will report back within two years. At that point, council will vote on whether to proceed with another two-year phase, featuring detailed engineering work. Construction would take place in a third phase, starting in 2017.

      Council will hear presentations from the public Wednesday (June 26) at 2 p.m. before voting on the recommendations.

      Comments

      19 Comments

      the Pope

      Jun 25, 2013 at 6:40pm

      Let the rat race begin...

      Chinatown

      Jun 25, 2013 at 9:32pm

      I hate it when they call that neighbourhood a "dead zone". I live there!

      Hazlit

      Jun 26, 2013 at 7:53am

      "The value of the 10 acres of land that would be freed up if the viaducts are torn down is estimated at $100 million to $110 million."

      The land perhaps, but this being Vancouver you can expect the developers to offer far more than 100 $1mil. condos on the developed land. A $1m condo is pretty cheap these days.

      Forest

      Jun 26, 2013 at 8:04am

      So this is why Terry Hui and Concord Pacific have been sitting on that huge piece of empty land for the past 3 decades.

      no

      Jun 26, 2013 at 8:41am

      Let's stuff more people into Vancouver and remove more infrastructure, brilliant.

      xnexus

      Jun 26, 2013 at 9:50am

      There is nothing wrong in principle with the removal of the viaducts. However...

      They are planning this without a single new bus, no plan for new rapid transit in the city (the 20 block gap between the Expo and Canada Lines is a disgrace), a brand new street car line rotting from lack of use, and a totally dysfunctional Translink. This will be a disaster.

      xnexus

      Jun 26, 2013 at 9:51am

      Oops, I meant the Millenium Line, not the Expo line.

      Against

      Jun 26, 2013 at 10:26am

      As a cyclist, the viaduct is one of my favourite parts of the city - I can bypass all of the insane drivers (accidents are increased around stoplights) and it allows me to get into the downtown core incredibly quickly - I can see it as being an encouragement for cyclists. I know that it assists with car traffic as well.
      I agree with no's statement. I see a lot of infrastructure being removed and a complete lack of infrastructure being put in. Are there any plans to increase the city's water supply? Where will the extra waste go?
      They've already approved the building of 42-story buildings around Main St. and up by Oakridge.
      And 20% low-income housing - is that truly representative of the number of low-income people in this city? Especially since, where housing is concerned, low-income = 2 teachers' salaries.
      Please.

      Rational

      Jun 26, 2013 at 11:52am

      Considering the value of the land, and that the amount of traffic entering downtown is at 1960s levels and declining (despite massive increases in jobs and residences), I think it would be wise to remove the viaducts and develop the land for public and private use.
      Not to be hyperbolic, but it is currently a waste of some of the most valued real estate in North America.

      Alan Layton

      Jun 26, 2013 at 12:33pm

      It bothers me that regardless of what people think, The Moonbeam party is going to get rid of the viaducts. Why even waste more time and money on studies when we all know they will be ripped down and more condo towers put up - many more than the original plan called for. As for the area being underutilized, when is Concord Pacific going to create the parkland that they promised they would make when the ripped the city off, buying the land? That huge unused parking lot to the east of BC Place should've been converted to a park decades ago. As for the area being the last undeveloped area in the city core, just go a couple of blocks eastward and you have acres of empty, gravel-covered space in False Creek Flats. When is that going to converted to something useful?