February 27, 2022
by Carol Volkart
A 39-storey tower proposed for Broadway and Granville is over-height and over-dense, and creates minimal affordable housing while making no provision for the additional schools, parks and other amenities its residents will need, says a group that has done a deep dive into the latest staff report on the project.
The 1477 project is one of a number of examples behind TEAM’s policy that residents should have a voice in what happens in the community around them.
In this case, the Fairview/South Granville Action Committee has proof that a massive tower was being planned for the site early in the Broadway Plan process and years before staff brought it to Council's attention. Subsequent consultations with the community were limited and had little impact on what had apparently already been decided behind closed doors.
They say the report, which goes to Vancouver City Council on Tuesday, March 1, shows, among many other things:
Staff’s basis for approving a tower of this height and density is questionable, given that it cites alignment with the Broadway Plan, which has not been finished or approved by Council.
The developer won’t be helping pay for the costs to the community of its project, as it has applied for a $3.3-million Development Cost Levy waiver and won’t make any financial Community Amenity Contributions.
While the rental building is being planned for all family types, the staff report does not detail the building’s amenities, access to parks, or space in nearby schools, which are full.
If Council approves the report in principle, it will then go to public hearing. The Fairview/South Granville Action Committee is asking concerned citizens to write Council before March 1 to oppose its proceeding to public hearing.
On a TEAM-controlled City Council, only Vancouver residents, business owners, and property owners would have a say in this important issue.
Read the Fairview/South Granville Action Committee's critique of the plan from July 2021, and their recent analysis of errors and omissions in City staff's referral report.
We recommend TEAM housing policy chair Brian Palmquist's commentary on the 1477 West Broadway project. In it, he points out that the building's shadows will reach into False Creek for at least four months of the year, "obliterating any ray of sunshine that would be appreciated by those walking or cycling along the seawall."
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