Granville Island: a principles-first approach to the future of Vancouver’s public market

Granville Island has been in the news a lot this year. Back in February, an article by Daphne Brahman at the Vancouver Sun pondered a ‘re-imagining’ of Granville – one spurred by the impending 2016 move of Emily Carr University. Follow-up articles and responses in April, May and June of this year, furthered what was proving to be an interesting debate on the great market.

(You can read Brahman’s initial articles here and here, and a response by the Vancouver Courier’s Geoff Olsen here. The VPSN also weighed in with a blog article of ‘big ideas’ we published, many of which were then included an interview we did with Georgia Straight journalist Stephen Hui.)

Our position at the time (and now) is that this internationally recognized public space does need to think proactively about its future. Markets and public spaces evolve, and it’s important that Granville Island continue to remain the vibrant space that it is today. That doesn’t mean a wholesale reinvention of the space; rather, it implies an important conversation about how the market, its streets, plazas, and its intense mixture of different uses, should function over the next few decades.

As fate would have it, the same day that our team was interviewed by Mr. Hui, the news broke that the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) (a federal entitiy) was in negotiations to transfer control of Granville Island to Port Metro Vancouver (another federal entity). CMHC has been the governing agency of Granville Island (along with a locally appointed Board), for the 35 years of the Island’s existence as a public market.

This spurred a quick response from some corners (including Ms. Brahman’s column, as well as the Mayor’s office). In particular, concerns were expressed that the Port lacks the ability to manage such an intricate and eclectic market space. Other comments noted that the market ought to be under local control. Still other concerns surrounded the Port’s relative lack of local accountability. In sum, the debate shifted quickly from one of ideas, to a question of who gets to be in charge.

Fast forward to late July. On the 22nd of the month, Vancouver City Council debated and passed a motion that will:

• Ask the Mayor, on behalf of the City, “state Vancouver’s opposition to the Federal Government of Port Metro Vancouver taking control of Granville Island” and noting that “that the City’s position is that it should remain under local control.”
• Direct City staff report back on options for the City buying or leasing it to retain local control.

The VPSN wrote a letter to Council with regard to this motion. Our position is that there are important “what” questions that need to be answered first, before the question of “who” is tackled… and before any funding is allocated for the purchase or leasing of the site. The advocacy that the City should be doing, first and foremost, is to encourage all of the public entities involved (federal or otherwise) to take the time to get it right.

After all, what’s the rush? Let’s sit down and figure out what is needed for the future of the space. Start with some key principles. Then let’s figure out who can best deliver on these principles.

Here’s an excerpt from our letter:

We are supportive of the City working to identify options around the future operation of the Granville Island site – particularly in light of the unanticipated nature of discussions around the potential transfer of the facility from CMHC to Port Metro Vancouver.

That being said, we feel that good management can come from a variety of avenues, and that the best interests of this important public space are served by first understanding the type of characteristics that ought to be associated with the management of the site. To this end, we feel that the City, through its discussions with the Federal Government and CMHC, should advance the idea of a collective discussion to identify the type of first principles that should define the work of whatever entity manages the Granville Island site (locally-based or otherwise).

There are various ways of looking at how Granville Island can be managed, and a set of guiding principles will provide a clear framework for evaluating all possibilities in this regard (federal agencies, local government, non-profit, etc.).

What sort of key principles could be included? Without preempting a proper discussion, we offer these as examples: having a custodian that is accountable and transparent, strong connection to local community, attentive to the diverse array of uses present on the site (including cultural, artisan, industrial, food-related, educational, etc), experience in public space programming, and financially responsible. Significantly, the entity endowed with management of the island should, we feel, be capable of upholding the original mandate, which is to provide a self-sustaining environment that fosters diverse cultural, educational and commercial enterprises while maintaining the Island’s historic and industrial character.

There are likely other values and principles that need to be identified as well, and a collective discussion of these features, with ample room for community input, is critical in this regard. We should not be precluding options – or naming solutions – until it is clear what the proper criteria for making decisions are. Similarly, this is not the sort of thing that ought to be rushed, so we encourage the City to work with these other levels of government and advance the idea that it is important to take the time to get it right.

Now that the motion has been passed, we will continue to advance the idea of a ‘go slow/principles first’ approach, and will be advocating for this with City staff and the federal government. We believe this is the best path forward for one of Vancouver’s most important public spaces.

What sorts of values and principles do you think are key to the future of Granville Island? Add your comments here, or drop us a line and let us know at info [at] vancouverpublicspace <dot> ca

Main image courtesy of Rebecca Bolwitt (Miss604). Licensed through Creative Commons.