We’ve been excited to follow the progress of the City of Vancouver’s re:CONNECT ideas competition. The future of the Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts has been a hot topic for the last year or so, and even surfaced a few times during the recent election debates.

Earlier today the City posted the entries that have been received. You can view them online and the vote for your favourites.

The follow is the email that was sent out by the Planning Department on the subject.

Just when you thought your chance to vote in Vancouver had passed, here’s another opportunity to have your say and help inform the future of our city.

The deadline for submissions to the open ideas competition re:CONNECT has come and gone and we’re thrilled by the response. In total we received 104 unique submissions from 13 countries (US, Mexico, UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Poland, Turkey, Slovenia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Australia and Canada). While the international response was wonderful, we were particularly pleased with the number of local entries, showing the great energy and creativity around this key city-building question (60% of the submissions were from Vancouver and 75% from Metro Vancouver).

Our exceptional jury of urban experts led by Great Streets author and urbanist Allan Jacobs, has done their hard work and selected winners and honourable mentions in the 3 categories (connecting the core, visualizing the viaducts, and wildcard), in both the fee and free streams and now it is your turn!

On-line voting is now open and will determine the “peoples choice” winners in each category (voting will run from today until November 25, 2011 (this Friday). If you have an interest in the future of the viaducts and our Eastern Core, we hope that you’ll study the entries on-line and help us select the winners! You can rank each entry out of five and comment on any or all of the submissions. This feedback will be used not only to award winners, but will also provide important feedback for the future of this area of our city.

Submissions range from the beautification of the viaducts, to their re-use as open space or other uses, or their partial or complete removal and replacement. The ideas illustrate development, open space and even naturalized futures. The visions range from the practical and pragmatic, to the futuristic and whimsical. Submitters appeared to be inspired by everything from water and nature, to our urban past and current housing challenges, to volcanoes, horses, corn-dogs, and knitting yarn!

All of the winners will be announced at a public event on December 1, 2011. Stay tuned for more details on this event.

Deadline approaches for ideas competition on future of viaducts and Eastern Core

Only two weeks remain to enter the re:CONNECT ideas competition, which is open to anyone with inspiring and innovative concepts for the future of Vancouver’s viaducts and Eastern Core.

The competition is part of the City of Vancouver’s ongoing review of the Georgia and Dunsmuir Viaducts and strategic planning for the Eastern Core, which stretches from Northeast False Creek to Clark Drive. Registration deadline is November 2, and entries must be received by November 4.

Citizens and design professionals are encouraged to think big and bold about the possibilities, taking inspiration from transformative urban projects such as New York’s High Line, a linear park built on a decommissioned elevated rail track and Seoul’s Cheonggyecheon, where an elevated highway was removed to create an urban recreation space featuring a day-lighted stream. 

The opportunity to offer ideas for shaping Vancouver’s future has sparked interest around the world. Since the launch of re:CONNECT in late September, over 70 registrations from more than a dozen countries have been received.

While no decisions on the future of the viaducts are being made through re:CONNECT, the City welcomes inspiration and fresh views to help inform future planning.

The competition is divided into two entry streams — free and fee. Both streams will accept submissions in three categories: Big Picture, Viaducts, and Wild Card.

The free stream is directed toward people from any background. The fee stream, while open to anyone who wishes to enter, is directed more at design professionals such as architects, engineers and urban planners. This stream requires an entry fee and will include a monetary award for winning entrants.

Winners from both streams will have their ideas presented in post-competition literature that will be made available online and to Vancouver City Council and profiled at a public forum.

An independent design jury, made up of renowned international and local urban experts, will choose the winners in both streams. A People’s Choice Award will also be given in each category with the winning entries decided by public online voting, which will be open from November 21-25.

Winners will be announced at a public forum on December 1.

To enter or for more information: vancouver.ca/reconnect