Millennium Line - Broadway Extension: Planning & Pre-Construction

[WBC]

Originally Posted by misher

And if those trees are in your plan you’ll need to replant them to get permits going forward. Your very lucky they were removed before the envelope was damaged. The must have been small trees since 15k sounds way too cheap unless you mean 15k an Owner.

We are a bit off topic here but:

1) No, 15K is total...Strata work depends on who you hire. I've seen bids range in 1 to 5 ratio for various projects...The trees were big - 45 feet. They were able to cut them and then lover them in pieces by rope to the outdoor parking as our 3rd floor patio is above the garage that we share with commercial section...Then just wood chipped them on-site....So the advice is - shop around

2) We asked City of Burnaby whether we need permits or to replace them and they said no...So we replaced them with shrubs...The other complication is that after 20 years the tree have virtually "eaten" about a foot of dirt...So to plant new trees you would have to haul about 1 foot of fresh dirt up to the 3rd floor to re-fill the area that is probably 60x90 feet.

3) The building next door has a similar patio on the 4th floor but they have planted a flower and spice garden...Which in my mind is much better idea then planting trees on roofs...First of all it looks nicer and second of all it's way less hassle...

As for that one tree being replaced for 500K that is just crazy vanity project by people who have money to burn (one can buy a car for 20K or 500K or anywhere in between...all of them do the same thing...) If they wanted to do it for less I am sure they could have...But it's their money to burn...

[misher]

Originally Posted by WBC

We are a bit off topic here but:

1) No, 15K is total...Strata work depends on who you hire. I've seen bids range in 1 to 5 ratio for various projects...The trees were big - 45 feet. They were able to cut them and then lover them in pieces by rope to the outdoor parking as our 3rd floor patio is above the garage that we share with commercial section...Then just wood chipped them on-site....So the advice is - shop around

2) We asked City of Burnaby whether we need permits or to replace them and they said no...So we replaced them with shrubs...The other complication is that after 20 years the tree have virtually "eaten" about a foot of dirt...So to plant new trees you would have to haul about 1 foot of fresh dirt up to the 3rd floor to re-fill the area that is probably 60x90 feet.

3) The building next door has a similar patio on the 4th floor but they have planted a flower and spice garden...Which in my mind is much better idea then planting trees on roofs...First of all it looks nicer and second of all it's way less hassle...

As for that one tree being replaced for 500K that is just crazy vanity project by people who have money to burn (one can buy a car for 20K or 500K or anywhere in between...all of them do the same thing...) If they wanted to do it for less I am sure they could have...But it's their money to burn...

Ah this was burnaby no wonder you got off cheap.

[Alex Mackinnon]

Eric Chris from Rail for the Valley got nailed by a $50K fine from EGBC in October. Interesting read.

[waves]

Yikes, from reading it, the guy sounds totally bonkers.

[s211]

Originally Posted by scryer

That has always been a question at the back of my mind. Do you think certain types of trees should be planted then?

Yes. Imaginary ones, or holograms at best. And I wish I was joking, but I'm not.

ANYTHING is better than real trees on a high-rise project.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by Alex Mackinnon

Eric Chris from Rail for the Valley got nailed by a $50K fine from EGBC in October. Interesting read.

Disciplinary Notice

On March 12, 2018, the Panel issued a decision with regards to the allegations set out in the Notice of Inquiry. The Panel found that the content of Mr. Chrysanthous’ communications included threats of violence, allegations of dishonesty, and professional impropriety that are a significant departure from the standard of professional conduct. The Panel found that the threatening tone of the communications caused harm to the individuals named in the communications, and caused harm to the integrity of the profession.

[nname]

Originally Posted by Alex Mackinnon

Eric Chris from Rail for the Valley got nailed by a $50K fine from EGBC in October. Interesting read.

Well, and he lost his PEng title too, and can no longer call himself a "professional engineer". I wonder what would his employer think of that...

[Mac Write]

I hope mainstream media picks this up. Then he will be finished and Rail for the Valley will be viewed as mad mans plan.

[Rico]

Originally Posted by Mac Write

I hope mainstream media picks this up. Then he will be finished and Rail for the Valley will be viewed as mad mans plan.

Why would they? He is just one of many unpleasant people online and I don't think he was part of Rail for the Valley, he just wrote anti translink letters to RfV, which they published because Zwei always wants to believe the worst about Translink.

[Mac Write]

I thought the fine would get the media's interest.

[fredinno]

Originally Posted by Mac Write

I hope mainstream media picks this up. Then he will be finished and Rail for the Valley will be viewed as mad mans plan.

Off topic here, but:

I thought RFTV was for a WCE on the SRY old Interurban Line? Why and how did they devolve into an anti-Translink circlejerk?

I mean, wouldn't that hinder their primary goal? Gee, I wonder why Translink doesn't like the idea... (it's actually not a bad idea, to be fair, and could be a supplement to the buses to densify Langley City before a Skytrain, like WCE did for Coquitlam)

[Metro-One]

They were once for a commuter rail south of the Fraser many many years ago, but they devolved into the street grade LRT solves all cool aid.

[Alex Mackinnon]

Originally Posted by fredinno

Off topic here, but:

I thought RFTV was for a WCE on the SRY old Interurban Line? Why and how did they devolve into an anti-Translink circlejerk?

I mean, wouldn't that hinder their primary goal? Gee, I wonder why Translink doesn't like the idea... (it's actually not a bad idea, to be fair, and could be a supplement to the buses to densify Langley City before a Skytrain, like WCE did for Coquitlam)

They were for a diesel powered interurban streetcar "tram train" with minimal upgrade to the infrastructure. Their corridor of choice is the BC Hydro rail corridor.

Their system they keep talking about would take something like 2 hours to get to Chilliwack from Surrey and go on a milk run which avoids many of the population centres.

Proper WCE style commuter rail service is hard to do without redoing the Fraser River rail bridge in New Westminster.

[fredinno]

Originally Posted by Alex Mackinnon

They were for a diesel powered interurban streetcar "tram train" with minimal upgrade to the infrastructure. Their corridor of choice is the BC Hydro rail corridor.

Their system they keep talking about would take something like 2 hours to get to Chilliwack from Surrey and go on a milk run which avoids many of the population centres.

Proper WCE style commuter rail service is hard to do without redoing the Fraser River rail bridge in New Westminster.

Oh.

And yeah, replacing the New West Bridge is something that would benefit VIA/AMTRAK, along with cargo shipping in the area in general. Maybe one day.

[deasine]

Just as a reminder to use appropriate image citations and refrain from using GIFs.

[aberdeen5698]

Originally Posted by deasine

Just as a reminder to use appropriate image citations and refrain from using GIFs.

I know the citations rule but what is the issue with GIFs that I'm missing?

[Metro-One]

Any idea when we will see the next real announcement on this thread?

As in some real movement on the project?

[misher]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Any idea when we will see the next real announcement on this thread?

As in some real movement on the project?

They did move from stage 1 to stage 2 😂

[Sheba]

With SkyTrain on track, Mount Pleasant businesses worry

The SkyTrain doesn't run through the heart of Vancouver's Mount Pleasant neighbourhood yet, but Sarah Savoy is already seeing changes.

She blames the planned extension of the Millennium Line along Broadway, in part, for increasing speculation in the neighbourhood, which has led to the rent for her clothing store doubling.

"I'm already feeling it," said Savoy, owner of Much & Little. "I'm just worried if it's at a tipping point where small businesses like mine are going to be out of the picture."

...

Alyssa Myshok has lived in Mount Pleasant for 11 years and co-founded the Mount Pleasant Heritage Group. She too has concerns about the SkyTrain line changing the community's character.

"We really want to see the vibrancy and street life and all those wonderful little small businesses continue to exist," Myshok said. "It's going to take some real out-of-the-box thinking … and, quite honestly, guts at city hall to find ways that things can be maintained."

The city could look at how the neighbourhood is zoned, she said, to find ways to add "gentle density," she suggested. She said other cities have preserved distinct neighbourhoods by limiting upzoning, limiting rent increases or exploring other supports for small businesses.

...

A spokesperson with the City of Vancouver says it is taking action to prevent excessive speculation in the neighbourhood in advance of the SkyTrain extension.

Those actions include compelling developers to pay extra money when increasing density and not considering most rezoning applications along Broadway for the next two years while a more complete plan for the corridor is developed.

Public engagement on a comprehensive Broadway plan will begin in February 2019, the spokesperson wrote.

But is it realistic to expect a community to see such a big improvement in transit without changing its character in some way?

City planning consultant Brent Toderian says no.

"If your definition of character is 'nothing in the neighbourhood changes,' that's not the kind of direction a planning exercise can take," said Toderian, a former Vancouver city planner.

The addition of the SkyTrain, he argues, will improve the quality of life for people as a whole in the neighbourhood. But he concedes it will likely result in some businesses not being able to survive gentrification.

He said a similar situation plays out with bike lanes. While most businesses benefit from increased traffic from bike lanes, wedding dress shops, notably, do not.

"[Transit] is not going to help every retailer and often retail change occurs as a result of this kind of change," Toderian said. "But overall, the net benefit is obviously positive from this type of transit."

He believes if consultation is done right, the city can mitigate, to some extent, negative implications for existing businesses.

[misher]

Originally Posted by Sheba

The city could look at how the neighbourhood is zoned, she said, to find ways to add "gentle density," she suggested. She said other cities have preserved distinct neighbourhoods by limiting upzoning, limiting rent increases or exploring other supports for small businesses.

Density does not mean businesses fail. I don't know how that insane notion gets into peoples heads. The city could easily require that the first few floors of all high density projects be commercial. Sure the old business would have to move out but the city could require they be allowed to return under the same lease rate once the development is finished (with a ton of other conditions to protect the business). If major density increases do not occur around Broadway stations then the city will have failed everyone's expectations.

As a solution to keeping commercial nearby I totally support commercial/residential buildings. There the future and are basically everywhere for a reason. Visitor parking+elevators+the lobby is used by customers during the day then residents at night. Residents can live upstairs and go downstairs to work which reduces traffic on roads.


There are of course businesses that have to go. But in the end, thrift shops, used clothing stores, hipster places, etc. are much like rug stores...they choose the cheapest lease areas to be in and are generally not meant to be there permanently. Landlords only allow them in when they are desperate for tenants and are waiting for a better one.