Vancouver Downtown Eastside Discussion

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

Army & Navy site first.

The current proposal for Army & Navy doesn't include any supportive housing. It's a mix of market and below market rentals.

It's not clear exactly what the mayor's statement means for future development. Can BC Housing still redevelop the site of The Balmoral to replace the SRO units that were there before the building was condemned? If they applied for a building within the DTES Plan acceptable density with a mix of market, below market and welfare-rate units, would they be refused - or does that count as 'no net loss'? Council will presumably have to pass a revised plan for that to be possible.

The Bloom Group social housing tower for Broughton Street is an example of spreading supportive housing outside the DTES. We'll see if there's a reaction locally - it didn't go well when the Arbutus social housing project was submitted.

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by Changing City

The current proposal for Army & Navy doesn't include any supportive housing. It's a mix of market and below market rentals.

It's not clear exactly what the mayor's statement means for future development. Can BC Housing still redevelop the site of The Balmoral to replace the SRO units that were there before the building was condemned? If they applied for a building within the DTES Plan acceptable density with a mix of market, below market and welfare-rate units, would they be refused - or does that count as 'no net loss'? Council will presumably have to pass a revised plan for that to be possible.

The Bloom Group social housing tower for Broughton Street is an example of spreading supportive housing outside the DTES. We'll see if there's a reaction locally - it didn't go well when the Arbutus social housing project was submitted.

That was more of a reference to the statement focusing on non-social housing in the DTES. I assume it will be given more leeway even if it is non-conforming because of issues with the heritage buildings underneath it.

https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/mayor-ann...vitalize-the-dtes-at-save-our-street.pdf

I think Sims wants to pause supportive housing throughout Vancouver and not just the DTES.

DH article says the location of the new community policing centre was unannounced but VIA says it is opening in a Woodward's retail CRU

https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/local...ommunity-policing-centre-ken-sim-9723208

[GenWhy?]

The release says the hold is exclusively on supportive housing, not social housing in general.

[logan5]

In order to have the right proportion of people that will revitalize the area, you need to allow maximum density on every site that is available. There isn’t a lot of large sites to build on, so build big. I hope Sim is thinking the same thing.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

Sounds like a lot of market redevelopment coming to the DTES. Guess who owns a lot of property down there?

But who would want to buy a condo down there?
I thought I read a story a while back that the redeveloped Paris Block was considering dissolving the strata to sell the whole building for redevelopment because they couldn't sell the units individually.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Changing City

The current proposal for Army & Navy doesn't include any supportive housing. It's a mix of market and below market rentals. ..

Good. As the CityNews article points out:
….. A statement from the city says Vancouver currently houses 77 per cent of the region’s supportive housing, despite comprising only 25 per cent of the region’s population….

Now that the NDP lost two Richmond seats maybe Eby will stop kowtowing to the hysterics in that community and make them take their share of supportive housing. Same with the other suburbs.

[jollyburger]

City just released an update on their social housing initiative

The report to City Council, originally scheduled for end of Q2 2025, has been postponed to Q4 2025 to accommodate further technical work and analysis. A second round of public engagement will be held in June to present and receive comments on the refined proposal.

https://www.shapeyourcity.ca/social-housing

[NewfBC]

Must be an election coming.... oh wait, there are 2 empty seats!

Ron.

[jollyburger]

Surprise announcement for everyone

ABC Vancouver Coun. Rebecca Bligh, who has known Sim for decades and ran alongside him with the NPA in 2018 and with ABC in 2022, and introduced a motion last year directing council to explore options to update the zoning in the DTES, said she was “taken aback” and “confused” by the mayor’s announcement.

“I agree with the broader context of a better vision for the Downtown Eastside that was outlined in (Sim’s) speech,” said Bligh, who attended the forum. “But we need to be very clear about what this means, no net new supportive housing units. What this is saying is that we want to reject money from the province to get people in to housing across the city …

“It makes no sense. I don’t want the province to get the impression that the City of Vancouver is not a good partner in solving our homelessness crisis.”

https://vancouversun.com/news/vancouver-mayor-ken-sim-pause-housing-cruel-says-critic

Fry said he would like so see an end to gang violence in the neighbourhood, but he doesn't think Sim's approach is appropriate.

"We don't want violent predators on our streets, ... [but] those are issues that involve, you know, the criminal justice system, prosecution, policing and stuff, but none of which is really the purview of the mayor and council."

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-c...side-supportive-housing-freeze-1.7440144

Vancouver Police Board...

[Sheba]

“For too long, multiple levels of government have been able and encouraged the concentration of supportive housing, shelter spaces and dozens of social service nonprofit organizations in this small, four-square-kilometre neighbourhood. The results have been the Downtown Eastside becoming the epicentre of intersecting proceeds, mental health, poverty, and homelessness, not just for Vancouver, but for the entire region and the province,” said Sim.

That pretty much sums up a main issue I've had with the DTES - that it's become concentrated poverty in one tiny area. I really hope that we can come up with something better.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

Surprise announcement for everyone



https://vancouversun.com/news/vancouver-mayor-ken-sim-pause-housing-cruel-says-critic



https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-c...side-supportive-housing-freeze-1.7440144

Vancouver Police Board...

Why do Bligh and Fry think the City of Vancouver should be responsible for housing all those people? Maybe now that Bligh is in provincial government she can add in 20 years of funding to police these areas in addition to to the one time funding to build housing.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by officedweller

But who would want to buy a condo down there?
I thought I read a story a while back that the redeveloped Paris Block was considering dissolving the strata to sell the whole building for redevelopment because they couldn't sell the units individually.

What, are you saying all the people who jumped in to buy in Woodwards are suckers?

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Why do Bligh and Fry think the City of Vancouver should be responsible for housing all those people? Maybe now that Bligh is in provincial government she can add in 20 years of funding to police these areas in addition to to the one time funding to build housing.

OneCity's Boyle is leaving to become an MLA.

[MIPS]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

What, are you saying all the people who jumped in to buy in Woodwards are suckers?

It easily took ten years to gentrify everything from Cambie to Abbott. I remember when that stretch of Main was just as run down.

[jollyburger]

Sims can't do anything without support from council etc so it seems a bit premature to think any of this will happen. It seems to be more the start of a discussion about something everyone is concerned about.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by MIPS

It easily took ten years to gentrify everything from Cambie to Abbott. I remember when that stretch of Main was just as run down.

The DTES has been "2 years away from being cleaned up" for my entire life.

I'd argue that stretch still isn't gentrified.

[chowhou]

Originally Posted by WarrenC12

The DTES has been "2 years away from being cleaned up" for my entire life.

I'd argue that stretch still isn't gentrified.

From a purely Google Maps based approach, I think I can say that the 100 block of W Hastings in 2007 (pre-Woodwards) was quite a bit shabbier than it is today.

[WarrenC12]

Originally Posted by chowhou

From a purely Google Maps based approach, I think I can say that the 100 block of W Hastings in 2007 (pre-Woodwards) was quite a bit shabbier than it is today.

Nah, take a walk down there. It's no different IMO.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

OneCity's Boyle is leaving to become an MLA.

Yes, so why doesn’t she throw in some NDP money for policing instead of just moaning that Vancouver might turn away the housing money? Turn it away and let the rest of Metro take the money and build the housing!

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by chowhou

From a purely Google Maps based approach, I think I can say that the 100 block of W Hastings in 2007 (pre-Woodwards) was quite a bit shabbier than it is today.

I think it has more to do with the increased density of social housing in the area that just caused any remaining "regular" retail in the area to call it quits. And the overflow of people just drifting over into Railtown/Chinatown/Downtown.

East Hastings was still walkable and there were some shops here and there 10-15 years ago. Now they are just new buildings with empty storefronts or just boarded up.