Quote:
Originally Posted by Metro-One
 My goodness, reading that article makes me think they must be DJs, because they sure are good at spinning.
Gastown and Chinatown never were connected to False Creek, the viaducts never divided those neighbourhoods. They were built over industrial land beside them. Does every neighbourhood in this city need unbridled connection to the water? It seems to me Vancouver has more than its fare share of enjoyable public waterfronts.
Also, the funny thing is if I were living in China Town near the ducts would not stop me from walking to False Cree  Again, with their open design I fail to see how they are a true barrier. They are simply one now because our urban design panel has neglected that region entirely throughout the last few decades. I am not going to re-post all that can be built under, around and over top of the viaducts that would create a far more dynamic and interesting urban neighbourhood than yet another Yaletown (again, I love Yaletown, but I am tired of Yaletown being carbon copied everywhere, it is taking away the character of having different neighbourhoods).
And I love how Turner contradicts himself in the same article. Saying how wonderful it would be for Vancouver to remove the ducts, and then saying how doing so would create traffic congestion and slower transit due to the dead ending of Georgia and Dunsmir. Well, which is it? It cant be both!
And honestly, Georgia ending as a cul-d-sac?????? Would that not be the most ridiculous urban design? Having essentially your most important ceremonial / business district east / west road in the downtown core simply ending????
So we are going to limit the already limited accessible downtown core?
Again, these other areas that have torn down ducts did not go this far in nonsense, many of those areas are far better served by at grade road networks (and high capacity roads) than downtown Vancouver is (and by a long shot as well). |
It's always been my feeling that the desire by some to remove the Viaducts is just a land grab disguised as social engineering. People are trying to take land out of the public realm and sell it off for money.
The argument that they want to tear them down because the viaducts are a barrier between False Creek and Chinatown is nonsense. You know what is the barrier... THE ACTUAL BARRIERS!
Concord Pacific has had freaking 10 foot tall fences separating Pacific and False creek for years. There are giant, empty lots filled with garbage that people can't cross. There is an old vat of chemicals under the viaducts with fences around it. Andy Linvingston Park is mostly fenced off, and is takes up much more room the the 'ducts. There has been construction around Abbot for years with fenced off sidewalks, and before that scary, drug dealer hangout parking lots (with fences). I'm pretty sure that under the Viaducts are some of the only lands in all of downtown with permanent fences.
The viaducts are not the barrier, the actual barriers are barriers. Maybe once Concord Pacific is done so you can ACTUALLY get to False Creek from Chinatown/DTES and those pools of rotten chemicals and the garbage is cleaned up, then the viaducts won't seem so bad. At Rogers Arena, the plaza under Dunsmuir is one of the coolest places in the city (now with lights), with the Skytrain, Arena gates, and Costco all hidden under the viaducts. And you barely notice the Georgia Viaduct between BC Place and Rogers Arena because of the landscaping. At the other end, the skate park works brilliantly. Take down the fences, clean up the garbage, and put in a public sculpture park under the viaducts (rebirth of highway 86 anyone?) and it would make one amazing linear public park.
The desire to remove the Viaducts is just a desire to for individuals to own currently public land.
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Nothing like outing an hypocrite.
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