Water drew Shahira Sakiyama to a City of Vancouver open house Wednesday afternoon, an event which launched the planning process for False Creek Flats. And not the water you get from a tap or a bottle.
“This is the historic site of the old False Creek, so I just wanted to see as this development takes place how they’re incorporating, honouring the historical site of the creek into the development that will be taking place, be it in green infrastructure or historical markers,” she said. “You know, there’s reference here to climate change and so in aiming to be the greenest city, how are they embracing how we’re going to be the bluest city?”
Sakiyama was one of dozens of people who flowed into the three-hour long open house as soon as it opened at 4:30 p.m. Visitors wanted to find out about the city’s plans and pitch their own ideas about what they’d like to see happen in an area that encompasses more than 450 acres.
About 8,000 people work in approximately 600 businesses in the flats, which are bounded by Main Street to the west, Prior and Venables streets to the north, Clark Drive to the east, and Great Northern Way to the south.
Rita Wong, who’s been working with Sakiyama on the St. George Rainway project, is equally interested in the future of the land. Wong noted there are about 50 different buried streams in Vancouver and St. George is one that flowed down into the False Creek Flats area.
“I would love to see reconstructed wetlands, daylighted creeks — you know to be working with water. Shahira talked about climate change and if we’re going to think ahead, we need to have resilient design that works with nature and not against it and is prepared for lots of water, as well as little water. This is a real opportunity. I hope it is a good process,” she said.
Rob Veerman stopped by to check out plans for things like the future hospital, greenways and bicycle routes, as well as how the area will be connected.
Veerman said many Vancouverites don’t know much about the flats because the area is not very accessible.
“Right now, the way I see it, the neighbourhood is really separated by the train tracks and if you, say, want to get from the Great Northern Way campus, the Emily Carr campus, to Strathcona Park, it’s very hard to get there,” he said. “You have to go all the way around Main Street or to Clark Drive just to get around the entire neighbourhood. There’s no way to cross the rail lines right now. So I’m interested in how the city is going to make the neighbourhood into more of a neighbourhood — make it more accessible to people: bikers, walkers, even cars.”
Sarb Mund, who owns Commissary Connect, a commercial kitchen located in the flats, said he’d like to see a central food hub with recycling alternatives.
Other open house visitors posted their thoughts on an 'I wish my flats had' board. Remarks included:
- famers market with commercial processing and eateries
- had a 'special innovation One' where regular zoning and bylaws did not apply — test new venture models/industry
- overpass from SkyTrain
- were more business friendly
- acknowledged revived indigenous cultures and practices.
Brian Jackson, the city’s head planner, said there’s a lot of interest in the business community about False Creek Flats.
“They want to see it maintained for jobs. They’re interested in the kinds of jobs we’re trying to attract here, the type of density that we’re going to try to build into the new plan,” he said. “This is 450 acres of prime job space for the City of Vancouver for people who don’t want to be downtown but want to be close to downtown, and who like funky spaces and places that are still in the heart of downtown.”
Jackson said the city doesn’t want to put a strict timeframe on the plan, but it would like to move it forward in about a year. At this point, he said staff are listening to people, trying to understand what the issues with redevelopment are, and what the transportation requirements for the area are.
“We want to connect this area to the rest of the city,” he said.
The biggest challenge, according to Jackson, is keeping people focused on the fact this is a non-residential opportunity to provide job space.
“This is not about more condominiums. This is about the type of jobs that aren’t located in a downtown and looking at green jobs and high-tech jobs, and how we can bring more of those to the city,” he said.
Workshops on various aspects of the plan for False Creek Flats are scheduled for June. See vancouver.ca/falsecreekflats for for dates and more information.
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