The City of Vancouver is currently engaged in a community planning process for the Grandview-Woodlands neighbourhood, which is commercially dominated by the eclectic mix of coffee shops (at least a dozen), restaurants, and retailers on the appropriately-named Commercial Drive. The process has not been without controversy, however, as planning staff have proposed adding a new form of density to the densely-populated area: high-rise residential towers in the blocks adjacent to the Broadway-Commercial SkyTrain station. Several residents have voiced loud opposition to the concept and height of the proposed towers. While I agree that the proposed height of at least one tower (36 storeys) could be lowered to address community concerns, I think that the neighbourhood would benefit from the construction of several towers near the Skytrain station.
Background
Vancouver is well known in planning circles for "Vancouverism", a paradigm that combines narrow high rise residential towers with 'pedestal' bases of 2-6 storeys. The pedestals typically contain townhouses and other apartments combined with street-level retail along high street frontages. The concept was introduced in the late 1980s to guide the redevelopment of the former industrial lands that make up the Yaletown portion of the downtown peninsula. Towers-with-pedestals proved very popular (many condo developments quickly sold out while the area saw an enormous increase in neighbourhood-and region-serving retail) and the concept was then extended to other redeveloping precincts in the city centre: Coal Harbour, International Village, and Downtown South. It was also incorporated into several new infill projects along the Burrard and Georgia Street edges of the West End.
The success of Vancouverism has resulted in a downtown peninsula population exceeding 100,000 residents, meaning that the urban core is home to about 1 out of every 6 people in this city of just over 600,000 (figures are based on the 2011 Census). By comparison, Chicago- which has the fastest-growing downtown population in the US (based on figures from the 2010 US Census), has a downtown population of 141,000; given that the city is home to 2.7 million residents, just 1 out of every 19 Chicagoans lives in the central city (though this ratio is expected to increase as many neighbourhoods on the south and west sides of Chicago are losing population). If towers and other forms of development succeed in adding another 50,000 residents to Vancouver's current city centre population, the downtown population density will be approximately equal to the overall density of Manhattan: 27,000 per square kilometre or 70,500 per square mile.
Residential towers of 12 or more storeys have been part of the fabric of a few non-downtown Vancouver neighbourhoods dating back to the mid 20th century: Kerrisdale, Kitsilano, and Fairview saw the erection of modernist buildings in the 1950s and 1960s. The newer tower-with-podium style of development has also been replicated outside of downtown proper, most notably in the Renfrew-Collingwood neighbourhood near the Joyce-Collingwood Skytrain station. It has also appeared in Fairview and Southeast False Creek, and developments of this style are under construction or proposed for several other areas.
Advantages of Vancouverism
Vancouver's planners and other advocates of the form have long championed the virtues of tower-and-podium form, and they are worth briefly mentioning here. The slenderness of the towers allows for the protection of water and mountain views while the podiums ensure that the towers are placed far enough apart to ensure residential privacy. The towers themselves feature units with large windows that are designed to maximize natural light, an important consideration in a region not known for its sunniness. Meanwhile, the townhouse components of the podium accommodate residents who prefer ground-oriented housing and are ideal for families with children. The podiums also create a pedestrian-friendly street wall while the rooftops of the podium can provide a variety of resident amenities: private decks, vegetable gardens, or even off-leash dog areas.
Vancouverism Outside Downtown: Motivations and Appropriate Siting
The primary motivations for expanding towers-with-podiums outside of the downtown peninsula are environmental in nature. Various city and regional plans have advocated densification as a means of achieving and reinforcing walkability, transit utilization, and proximity to employment (almost 2/3 of the office space in the region is in downtown Vancouver and the nearby Broadway corridor). Vancouver's population is growing rapidly, and densification eases development pressures on natural and agricultural lands in the city's suburbs.
But as opponents of the Grandview-Woodlands rezoning initiative have noted, densification can encompass many forms. I certainly think that towers-with-podiums are only appropriate for certain non-downtown sites, and I propose that these can easily be identified by two characteristics: proximity to a (current or planned) Skytrain rapid transit station and geographic settings offering water, mountain, and/or skyline views to tower residents. Areas lacking either of these characteristics are inappropriate, and two local examples spring to mind immediately. The Dunbar area on the city's west side would likely offer tower residents spectacular views of downtown, the North Shore Mountains, the Fraser River, and even Vancouver Island (in the distance on clear days). However, the area lacks rapid transit, though the primary bus routes serving the area (#7 and #41) are heavily utilized. Conversely, the area near the Renfrew and Rupert Skytrain stations in the northeast sector is served by the Millennium Line but sits in a valley. Only the highest tower floors would enjoy a view; residents of the first several floors of such a hypothetical tower would look directly onto the detached houses and yards built along the valley slope.
By using these criteria, one can easily conclude that some towers-with-podiums have already been built or are under construction in less than optimal locations in certain Vancouver neighbourhoods.
Towers in Grandview-Woodlands: A Winning Proposition
The City of Vancouver’s initial proposal to add towers adjacent to the Broadway-Commercial Drive Skytrain Station would place thousands of residents next-door to a wealth of transit options. The station itself offers direct access to downtown Vancouver and Surrey, the region’s most populous suburb, via the Expo line. The station also offers access to the Millennium Line, which serves Vancouver Community College, Simon Fraser University, and several retail and residential districts in the suburbs of Burnaby and New Westminster. The Evergreen Line, which is under construction, will provide one-train service from Broadway-Commercial Drive to the northeast suburbs of Port Moody and Coquitlam. The station is also served by two trolley bus lines and the 99-B line, which provides quick access to Vancouver’s west side and UBC.
The area would also offer tower residents spectacular views of the North Shore Mountains, downtown Vancouver, and False Creek. Intercity passenger rail tracks and a significant industrial corridor separate the neighbourhood from the city centre, so it is likely that views of the downtown skyline would be maintained well into the future as opportunities for other high-rise development in the view corridor are limited.
This form of development would give current and future neighbourhood residents a new type of housing option. Current housing stock is primarily limited to detached single-family homes, subdivided rental accommodations, purpose-built condo and apartment buildings of not more than 4 storeys (some with retail space on the first floor), and townhouse developments. All of this existing housing stock is of wood-framed construction, so towers-with-podiums would provide a steel-and-concrete alternative. This type of construction is also well-suited to noise suppression, an important consideration in an area where one of the Skytrain lines runs on elevated tracks. Furthermore, residents would potentially be able to enjoy amenities that are generally not provided in the area’s existing apartment and condo buildings, such as fitness facilities and party/community rooms (these types of amenities generally require a large resident base for economic reasons). Finally, the tower podiums could offer a combination of family-oriented housing and additional retail/restaurant space for the community.
It has been noted that the Commercial-Broadway Skytrain station is the busiest station in the system, while the 99B bus line- which starts and terminates there- is the busiest bus route in North America with approximately 54,000 daily boardings. Capacity issues at the station will be addressed via a planned station expansion: Translink will purchase the adjacent supermarket and demolish it to accommodate an additional platform and a new ground-level concourse. It is also important to note plans to extend the existing Millennium Line to UBC (construction may start upon completion of the Evergreen Line in 2016); this endeavour would replace the 99B bus line and instantly accommodate 250,000 daily boardings, based on ridership projections.
The placement of the towers makes sense from a community context perspective as well. The towers would enhance and enliven the community immediately south of the Millennium Line tracks while leaving intact the vibrant low-rise area just north of the tracks.
In conclusion, I feel that the placement of towers-with-podiums near the Commercial-Broadway Skytrain station will benefit the neighbourhood community and the City of Vancouver while providing environmental benefits- via the placement of new residents in a walkable community well-served by mass transit- to the entire region.
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