Could B.C.'s push to densify housing around transit hubs threaten Chinatown, Gastown heritage buildings?

By John Mackie, Vancouver Sun

Proposal to allow development between eight and 20 storeys high within 800 metres of Skytrain stations could be problem for old buildings.

Provincial legislation aimed at delivering “more homes near transit hubs” could decimate parts of Chinatown and Gastown, Vancouver’s oldest neighbourhoods, some observers worry.

The legislation announced earlier this month calls for eight- to 20-storey buildings within 800 metres of SkyTrain stations. It would require municipalities to “permit housing developments that meet provincial standards for allowable height and density.”

This would mean up to eight storeys for much of Chinatown and Gastown, including the 200-block of Carrall Street in Gastown and the 000- and 100-blocks of East Pender Street in Chinatown, which have numerous buildings from the late 1800s and early 1900s. Both areas have civic, provincial and federal heritage designations.

“The new legislation doesn’t seem to have considered Vancouver’s two heritage areas,” said Andy Yan, director of the City Program at Simon Fraser University.

“You can only speculate (why), but you can have things like project lock, (where) you’re so focused on the project, you don’t really realize the stuff around it.”

Heritage expert Don Luxton said it’s “absolutely ridiculous” to impose artificial targets on areas that have existing zoning and existing neighbourhoods. The top-down approach, he said, recalls controversial planners in the 1950s and ’60s.

“It’s like what Robert Moses did to New York. ‘I have this vision (and) I’m going to ram it through, whether you like it or not.’ It’s all about building things because you think it’s going to solve the problem. Sometimes that works out, but a lot of times it just leads to conflict. And this will lead to conflict.” Read more…

East Pender and Carral Streets as the province has new legislation that could wipe out small buildings in Chinatown and Gastown. Photo by NICK PROCAYLO /10102967A