Vancouver City Council recently made the rare decision to go against the advice of its own staff when it approved a developer\u2019s proposal to build a residential tower on a property zoned for industrial use.<\/p>\n
Strand Development wants to build a 25-storey tower with a six-storey podium at 320-360 West 2nd Avenue between Main and Cambie.<\/p>\n
The lower three levels are for industrial use, with 200 market rental homes on the upper floors.<\/p>\n
City staff had recommended against approval, noting residential use is prohibited on the site and \u201cthe inclusion of housing is incompatible with the goal of preserving industrial and employment land in the city<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n About 90 per cent of Vancouver\u2019s land base is zoned for residential use and only six per cent is zoned for industrial.<\/p>\n Industrial land is concentrated in the city in seven areas, such as Mount Pleasant and South Vancouver.<\/p>\n The new tower will be located in the Mount Pleasant Industrial Area in mid-town Vancouver.<\/a><\/p>\n Retired Vancouver and Metro Vancouver planner Christina DeMarco calls council\u2019s decision \u201ca short-sighted and reckless decision that reverses 30 years of industrial land protection in the city and 15 years of regional regulations put in place to conserve the region\u2019s industrial land base. \u201cCouncil has announced to the development industry that speculation of industrial land for residential uses has a good chance of being rewarded,\u201d says DeMarco.<\/p>\n Most Vancouverites understand a well-functioning city needs locations for activities that do not fit neatly into residential and commercial areas, she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cFor thousands of Vancouverites, this (industrial areas) is their place of work,\u201d says DeMarco. \u201cFor many businesses, such as restaurants and hotels, this is where they get supplies and where their repair services are located. This is where the film industry finds space for studios, set designs and post- production. The construction industry relies on industrial areas for supplies, and for equipment, such as crane storage.\u201d<\/p>\n DeMarco says a diverse urban economy gives a city strength and resilience as well as a range of employment opportunities to suit a variety of skills.<\/p>\n \u201cDo we want to convert the city to a place where one can find work only as a caf\u00e9 barista or in the real estate industry?\u201d she says.<\/p>\n DeMarco says council\u2019s decision is a risky experiment.<\/p>\n \u201cCouncil thinks it can have its cake and eat it too, by combining residential and industrial uses in one building,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n There is no evidence this combination works, however.<\/p>\n \u201cResidential uses in industrial areas drive up land prices and rents, resulting in the loss of jobs and businesses,\u201d says DeMarco.<\/p>\n In an open letter it presented to Vancouver mayor and council before the public hearing that approved the project, 23 members of a group of local urban planners and architects called HousingReset wrote, \u201cThis spot rezoning flies in the face of decades of industrial land protection and stewardship of the precious jobs and services provided by the city\u2019s industrial lands.\u201d<\/p>\n They wrote approval of the development could drive up land and rent prices and force industrial businesses from a location that is relatively inexpensive and is also close to downtown, customers and employees.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Mount Pleasant Industrial Area is one of the city\u2019s vital production,<\/p>\n distribution, service and repair districts and has the highest density of employment of any industrial area in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n