1. Partner with local Nations – xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam Indian Band), Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) – to weave their histories, culture, uses and aspirations into Gastown.
2. Enhance Gastown’s public space network, including key Gateways and Maple Tree Square, to center daily public life and support vibrant local businesses, gatherings, and celebrations
3. Make Water Street a people-first, safe, multi-modal retail corridor with a flexible design that can enable events and pedestrian zones
4. Make Cordova Street two-way to improve its overall experience and improve the transportation network for Gastown and beyond
5. Strengthen Gastown’s streetscape character with resilient, accessible and high quality materials.
6. Continue to enhance neighbourhood experience, safety, and operations through City and partner services.

We’ll have more to say on this shortly, but for the moment it’s worth noting that the City is stepping away from one of the real design and programming opportunities for the area: a permanent pedestrianization of Water Street and Maple Tree Square. Instead, car traffic will continue to bisect these important spaces – except during special events. There’s a further bit of uncertainty to note as well: the Plan only proposes to upgrade Maple Tree Square in the near-term, but leaves the actual upgrades to Water Street for a future date.

:: Read the plan: https://council.vancouver.ca/20260422/documents/cfsc2.pdf

Cities across Canada (and around the world) are testing new approaches to people-friendly streets. Last year, Montreal alone rolled out 12 large-scale pedestrian transformations across its boroughs. Here in Vancouver, we’ve seen smaller-scale pilots on Granville Street, along with a roster of single-day events in other neighbourhoods. The Water Street pilot is an overdue step in creating livelier, more people-friendly streets.

The VPSN wrote to Council and offered our support for the pilot project, along with five suggestions which we felt would strengthen the pilot.

1. Increase the duration of the pilot project

Culture change, particularly when related to transportation and business practices, takes time to ‘filter outward’ to the broader public, tourists, and specific user groups. For those engaged in programming the space, the opportunity for small-scale testing, learning and adjustment also takes time. Good quality “tactical” interventions are iterative in nature. A key challenge in this regard: the current pilot is only six weeks in length, and any construction-related delays will further constrain an already-narrow window of opportunity.

Recommendation: We suggest extending the pilot through to the end of September, and ideally to Thanksgiving (mid-October).

2. Undertake public life studies before, during, and after the pilot.

Public life studies assess both the volume of people in a space, but more importantly what they’re doing and how they are spending time. More detailed analysis can also explore key demographic considerations, people’s motivations for coming to a public space, their sentiments about the space, and other considerations. Undertaking these studies at key milestones can provide a much clearer picture about the efficacy of a placemaking project. The current pilot only outlines a plan to undertake vehicle and pedestrian counts (p.5).

Recommendation: Direct staff to undertake more detailed public life studies at key project milestones. Provide additional funding to support this work.

3. Prepare for uncertainty – particularly with automobile and tour bus routing.

We have long stated that the Gastown transportation network is a ‘sticky problem.’ The existing block and alley configuration, and mix of uses (residential, commercial, tourist, etc.) makes the situation complex. We confess an uncertainty about the ‘dumbbell’ approach outlined by staff: two car-free “gateways” (Cordova to Cambie and a portion of Maple Tree Square), and two interior car-light blocks. This limits some of the larger programming opportunities that might otherwise be available, and also poses a challenge about the legibility of the changes to both car drivers and pedestrians alike. We recognize that different ideas will need to be tested to determine the best long-term solution.

Recommendation: Ensure that traffic monitoring methodologies test for pedestrian/automobile conflict. We further suggest detailed monitoring at Maple Tree Square and Blood Alley, as the diversions proposed in this area could pose challenges for the use of these public spaces.

4. Create opportunities for community-led interventions.

As presently drafted, the Gastown Pilot report focuses mainly on the enabling conditions for late summer activation, and a series of initiatives to test changes to permitting (e.g., for larger patios, sidewalk merchandise, etc.). These are important, but we suggest that you should also be looking to enable opportunities for other types of placemaking – in particular, community-led activations. Having organized several events in Gastown over the years and can speak to the popularity of these events. They don’t cost a lot, can engage the community and volunteers, and will create a more inclusive and interesting public space.

Recommendation: As part of the summertime pilot budget, create a small stream for community-led placemaking projects that could be integrated into the overall programming framework. Ensure that these are included in any monitoring and evaluation processes.

5. Don’t lose sight of other opportunities.

In our May 9, 2023 letter to Council, we noted that there are a number of opportunities to enhance Gastown public spaces. We recognize that there is only so much you can do in one pilot project, but we would be remiss if we didn’t use this opportunity to say don’t forget about the following opportunities:

• Using street-end segments of Cambie, Abbott, and Carrall (north of Water) for gathering areas
• Re-opening the CPR right-of-way that runs diagonally between Columbia and Pender
• Placemaking in commercial laneways (e.g. Homer-Cambie-Cordova Alley, Harbour Light Alley)
• Introducing a linkage to connect CRAB Park with Gastown
• Integrating public space network connections to Granville Street and the Waterfront Hub

This is an ambitious project, and we are excited to see where the discussion goes at Council. With any luck, we’ll all be able to enjoy a stroll down the middle of the street come July of this year!

There are other ways to strengthen the network of public spaces in the area that also need to be included in the discussion – including a consideration of street-end plazas, attention to alleys, and re-opening the currently privatized CPR right-of-way. In fact, integrating the many different considerations around gathering and mobility (and doing so in a inclusive fashion) make this a more complicated process than one might think. (For more on these and other Gastown possibilities, check out this article from earlier in 2023). For that reason alone, it’s great to see this process move forward. This is an chance for bold improvements to the area, not half measures.

To that end, we encourage you to take part in the process and share your perspective on how the public spaces in the area can be improved. As part of the present engagement process, a survey has been created. There are also several pop-up engagement events scheduled. Details on these opportunities can be found in the City’s October 12 media release, reproduced below.

Share your thoughts on the future of public space in Gastown

The City is taking steps to make Gastown’s unique streets, laneways and public spaces more people-friendly. In response to Council direction, staff are launching a public engagement process on the Gastown Public Spaces Plan to establish a shared vision for a vibrant destination with more seating, patios, live music, events, festivals and active transportation options. The plan will also explore transforming Water Street into a pedestrian zone, either seasonally or year-round.

Residents, local businesses and local organizations are invited to get involved through a city-wide survey and in-person pop-up events later this month.

“I’m really excited that we are starting this very important conversation with Vancouver on the future of public space in Gastown, including restoring its streets and sidewalks and making Water Street a pedestrian zone,” says Mayor Ken Sim. “We want to hear from area residents, businesses and all of Vancouver to ensure that the changes Gastown needs work for everyone. I want to thank the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and the səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations for their partnership on this project as we work together to ensure their visibility is part of Gastown’s future public spaces.”

The new Gastown Public Spaces Plan will serve as a guide to:

• Establish a vibrant, people-focused Gastown with enhanced gathering places, streets and laneways to support a range of activities.
• Explore how to pedestrianize Water Street, seasonally or year-round, starting with a pilot in summer 2024.
• Improve the street network, including walking, cycling, transit and vehicle connections and consideration of Cordova as a two-way street.
• Advance Reconciliation with the local Nations and support their visibility on their lands.
• Evolve and deepen the unique heritage feel of the area, including improved street materials and amenities.
• Identify phased project timing and funding.

Some of the streets and sidewalks in Gastown are in poor condition and repairs and maintenance will continue alongside the development of the Gastown Public Spaces Plan.

Gastown is situated on the unceded traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam Indian Band), the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish Nation), and the səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) Nations, however, its streets and public spaces do not currently reflect the histories, culture and visibility of the local Nations. The Gastown Public Spaces Plan is an opportunity to advance the City’s Reconciliation efforts and work with the Nations to support their visibility on their lands.

“This initiative by the City of Vancouver is an important step forward in sharing our deep history and connection with the area now known as Vancouver,” says Sxwixwtn, Wilson Williams, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw Spokesperson and Council Member. “We look forward to seeing our history and our culture reflected in these shared public spaces, for all to enjoy.”

“I am pleased to see the progress of this important work of increasing visibility of səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation) alongside our relatives xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam Indian Band) and the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish Nation) in Gastown,” says Chief Jen Thomas, səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation). “This good work led by the City of Vancouver helps put the face of səlilwətaɬ back on our shared traditional territory, and I am looking forward to seeing this vibrant space reflect our Indigenous cultures and communities.”

Share your thoughts

There are many ways to get involved:

• Complete an online survey (translations in Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese available by request).
• Visit us at an upcoming pop-up information event:
  • 131 Water Street
    • October 19, 11 am to 6 pm
    • October 20, 11:30 am to 7 pm
    • October 21, 2 pm to 6 pm
    • November 16, 11 am to 6 pm
    • November 17, 11:30 am to 7 pm
    • November 18, 2 pm to 6 pm
  • ​333 Abbott Street
    • November 9, 2 pm to 6:30 pm
    • November 10, 8:30 am to 1 pm

Public feedback will be shared in an engagement summary and presented to Council in early 2024. Input from businesses, including their loading and access needs, will play an integral role in shaping the Water Street pilot in summer 2024.

More information on the Gastown Public Spaces Plan is available at vancouver.ca/gastown

By way of background, the VPSN has long advocated for improvements to Gastown public spaces. We have programmed several events in the neighourhood, provided input to previous planning and design efforts, and, most recently, participated in a Council walking tour of Gastown that took place late last year.

Based on our work in the area, we offered four key suggestions:

(1) Recognize that the issues facing Gastown public spaces are complex.

There is not going to be an easy solution to the challenges facing Gastown. The area in question has a complex transportation network, a number of overlapping uses (commercial, residential, office, social service, etc.) and also represents a meeting point between a number of different communities, each with varying needs. Work on this important initiative needs to be undertaken with care and consideration. Please resource it appropriately (beyond the current capital budget allocations). Be wary of anyone promising an easy fix.

(2) Go bold. Enhance a mix of spaces and places through placemaking & programming.

Maple Tree Square and Water Street are central to the renewal of Gastown public spaces, but a comprehensive effort should also give consideration to other critical public space and placemaking opportunities within the neighbourhood, including:

• Utilizing street-end segments of Cambie, Abbott, and Carrall (i.e. north of Carrall) for supplemental gathering areas
• Re-opening the CPR right-of-way that runs diagonally between Columbia and Pender
• Considering new opportunities in commercial laneways, including Homer-Cambie-Cordova Alley and segments of Harbour Light Alley
• Ensuring a clear integration with Trounce/Blood Alley which has been undergoing a concurrent redesign process

(3) Go bolder still. Use the opportunity to establish strong public realm connections to adjacent areas.

Similar to the previous point, the present work presents an opportunity to strengthen the broader downtown public space network, by connecting Gastown to other nearby areas, including, but not limited to:

• CRAB Park – Through a potential connection to/from Carrall Street across the railway tracks
• Granville Street – Ensuring linkages to an enhanced study area for the Granville Street planning currently underway
• Waterfront Hub – future-proofing the Gastown work so that there can be appropriate tie-ins to the anticipated Hub project

(4) Work with Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh Nations (MST) and urban Indigenous peoples and other cultural communities to ensure the public realm tells a broader and more equitable story.

The motion references local First Nations in the preamble, but not in the actual recommended directions. We feel this is an oversight, and encourage you to incorporate language that explicitly directs staff to work with the local Nations and urban Indigenous people when planning for the future of Gastown.

Further more, the area has served as a meeting point for a number of cultural/demographic communities – in particular through its connection to Luk’Luk’l, Chinatown, Paueru Gai (Powell Street), and the Downtown Eastside. Ensuring that staff bring a cultural (and broader) equity lens to this work will help to ensure that the resulting improvements are more inclusive and accessible.

VPSN ACTIVITIES

Annual General Meeting & Collingwood Park Walk 
Tuesday, May 9

The VPSN Annual General Meeting is coming up next week! This year’s event takes at the amazing Collingwood Neighbourhood House (5288 Joyce Street, walking distance from Joyce Collingwood Station). Since the late 1980’s, CNH has been providing a safe space and an array of services to the surrounding Renfrew-Collingwood neighbourhood. We’re honoured to be able to hold our annual meeting in this important non-profit operated public space.

Our AGM agenda will include recap of our advocacy and project work over the past year, and provide a preview of our work ahead. As part of the activities, we will also provide an update on our finances and elect a new board of directors for the upcoming year.

Before getting down to business, we will also be taking a short walk through nearby Collingwood Park (5275 McKinnon Street), which is currently undergoing an important redesign process. Weather permitting, the walk will last approximately 1 hr, at which point we will head to Collingwood Neighbourhood House for the AGM.

• 6pm: Walking Tour – Meet at the corner of Euclid and McKinnon
• 7pm: Annual General Meeting – Program Room (2nd Floor), Collingwood Neighbourhood House
• Please register and read more details here. Both the walk and the AGM are free to attend and everyone is welcome.

VPSN Volunteer Meeting
Tuesday, May 16 @ 7pm

Our first volunteer orientation in some time, for new and returning volunteers. We’ve got some great projects in the hopper right now, and we’re excited to be hosting this upcoming orientation session (held online via Zoom). If you’d like to learn more about the Vancouver Public Space Network, or find out how you can lend a hand with our placemaking, research, and advocacy work, sign up for this.

• Follow this link to register for the volunteer orientation

Hold the Date – Placemaking Canada Gathering (Toronto ON)
June 11-12, 2023

Exciting public space events are taking place in Toronto this coming June, including the International Public Markets Conference (June 8-10), and the annual Park People Conference (June 21-23). In between these two events, is the fourth Placemaking Canada Gathering. The VPSN is proud to support this grassroots initiative linking together placemakers and public space advocates across the country. The 2023 gathering will include walking/biking tours, ‘open mic’ sessions, workshops, and networking sessions. The ultimate aim – building the Canadian placemaking movement!

Registration will be open in the next few days. Please mark your calendar and share the news with any placemaking contacts who might be interested in joining!

• More information via Placemaking Canada Facebook – placemaking-canada.ca

PUBLIC SPACE NEWS & ENGAGEMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Two New Greenways! Enhancing and Expanding the Greenway Network

In 1995, Vancouver approved it’s Greenways Plan – and with it, a series of designated car-free or car-light pathways that are intended to provide park-like connections for walking, rolling and cycling. Greenways also include improvements like expanded parks, increased landscaping, public art, and drinking fountains.

The network is slowly being built out and now includes popular routes such as the Central Valley Greenway, Comox-Helmcken Greenway, and the Seaside Greenway (along Pt. Grey Rd). In 2022, Council approved the Vancouver Plan, and a proposed “expansion and enhancement” of the existing greenways network.

Two new greenways processes are underway, both of which will provide critical improvements in the overall network. The proposed Bute Street Greenway will run from Sunset Beach Park (False Creek) to Harbour Green Park (Burrard Inlet), and includes a permanent design for Bute-Robson Plaza. At the same time, the City is also looking to design the Portside Greenway, a 7 km route following the city’s northern edge, spanning between Gastown, and running through Grandview-Woodland and Hastings-Sunrise to the city’s eastern boundary. You can learn more about these public space improvements and engagement opportunities by following the links below.

• Bute Street Greenway
• Portside Greenway

Coming up at Council next week – A People Focused Gastown

City Council will be discussing the future of Gastown at its next meeting. This is good news on the public space front, as both Maple Tree Square and Water Street represent important areas for improvement, and there are a number of other interventions which could enhance public life in the area.

The motion being deliberated calls for a “streets and public realm planning and design process for Gastown that brings in an external urban place-making lens and expertise …toward a bold vision to pedestrianize Water Street and make it carfree or car-light.” With further language referencing “an overarching goal being a more vibrant, people-friendly destination and the enabling of ongoing activations including patios, music, events, festivals and active transportation opportunities.”

• The Gastown discussion will take place on May 9-10. You can view the full text of the proposed Council motion here. To share your thoughts with Council, you sign up to share your thoughts in person or via phone, or fill out this online form to do so in writing.

West End Waterfront – Preliminary Designs

The City of Vancouver and Vancouver Park Board have been working on a plan for the West End waterfront (roughly between Stanley Park and the Burrard Bridge). The Imagine West End Waterfront second round of engagement is now live on Shape Your City. Three preliminary design approaches have been developed to help guide the long-term plan. Each approach emphasizes and celebrates a different quality of the West End waterfront.

• Follow this link for more information or to take the survey (deadline May 21). Let the City know what you think of the preliminary design approaches and ideas for the 30-year plan.
• You may also want to check out a related page on West End commercial streets – which showcases some of the proposed improvements to Davie, Denman, and Robson Streets

OTHER EVENTS

Jane’s Walk
May 4-7

Inspired by author and urbanist Jane Jacobs, Jane’s Walks is an annual event that encourages people “to share stories about their neighbourhoods, discover unseen aspects of their communities, and use walking as a way to connect with their neighbours.” Dozens of tours have been set up, including walks in Queen Elizabeth, sθәqәlxenәm ts’exwts’áxwi7 (Rainbow), Hastings, and New Brighton Parks, strolls along the proposed Portside Greenway, and wanderings in several neighbourhoods, including Norquay, the West End, Main Street, Renfrew-Collingwood, and Mt. Pleasant.

• Jane’s Walk events are free, but registration is required. For more info, visit Jane’s Walk Vancouver.