Quote:
Originally Posted by scryer
To find some more common ground: yes, I agree that all of the projects are indeed cut + paste; and I would even go as far to say that their concepts are now outdated since the pandemic happened. My criticisms with these developments (outside of the fact that they all sold to China before Canadians) is that they do not include spaces for small businesses which I think bring real soul into a neighbourhood. Southern parts of Main Street are very lively and one of those reasons is because it has a bustling small business scene where human creativity can really shine as a way to make a living. A lot of these bigger neighbourhood projects also don't include a higher percentage of rental opportunities either.
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The copy paste thing is a major problem at street level. The retail units leave no opportunity for creativity. The facades are so restrictive that no small business wants to be in them, which equates to dead sidewalks. Part of what makes using public transit so use-able in the City of Vancouver is that it is combined with good retail streets.
The Marine Drive developments once again proves that it is imperative that these developments include retail units that allow for visual variation. Have a look at the businesses it has attracted. There's 4 banks, nail salons, mattress store, insurance offices, and of course a Shoppers Drug Mart. For restaurant options you have 6 or 7 chain fast food places, and a couple real restaurants.
Not a real exciting place.
https://www.google.ca/maps/@49.21060...4!8i8192?hl=en