[Feathered Friend]

I went down to the Development Permit Board meeting regarding 105 Keefer tonight. There were over 100 speakers registered, though it seemed a good number of them weren't showing up.

Most of the opposition were set up in the lobby of the townhall room, live tweeting away. While some of the opposition came in with legitimate concerns about the project, or touching personal stories of historic racism, more than a few were there to deliberately waste time, with one individual spending the entirety of his 5 minutes reciting a news article about Elm trees on 6th and Commercial. Very few individuals addressed the actual development application's merits under the current zoning. There actually seemed to be a fair balance of support and opposition present. However, looking at some of the live tweets, those opposed seem to be painting a deliberately false narrative, especially with the use of intentionally misleading quotes.

As I left, a man told me I should leave the neighbourhood and that I didn't belong there. After a short back and forth discussing why it's wrong to fence one group of people into one neighbourhood, I informed him that I too come from a group that has been victimized by horrible national policies. I said that I felt it was unfortunate that those against the height of the project ruined the chance of providing social housing, as I would like to anyone be able to live in Vancouver. His response was a simple "fuck you" before walking away. It's a shame that a group that claims Beedie has bullied them are the ones unable to tolerate any opposition to their view point.

Ultimately, I feel the passage is pretty much guaranteed. Though the advisory board left early, they were emphatic in their belief that this project should go ahead and the tone of the board led me to believe the wouldn't make the same choice as council.