Response to Staff Report regarding Prior-Venables (GWAC letter to City Council)

September 30th, 2019

Attention: Mayor Stewart and Council,

The Grandview Woodland Area Council would like to convey our deep disappointment at City staff’s abandonment of the recommendation of the Flats Arterial Community Panel to use National-Charles as the route for the new arterial road.

Dozens of people gave hundreds of hours of their time to the Community Panel process, only to see their sincere consideration tossed aside, their time and effort wasted. Staff’s disregard for genuine consultation will undoubtedly leave a distaste in the community toward future engagement efforts by the City.

If Council truly intends to abandon the community consultation process regarding alternatives to Prior-Venables and disregard the many previous commitments made by the City to downgrade Prior-Venables to a local serving street, then strong and clear commitments must be made to reconnect Strathcona residents with their Park through a prompt and effective traffic calming process.

The only way to genuinely reconnect Strathcona with their Park is to proceed in the very near term with the following actions:
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1. Prior-Venables must be downgraded to a neighbourhood collector with clear commitments to one traffic lane in each direction through the immediate restoration of all-day parking with supporting curb bulges to narrow the crossings; 

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May 6th meeting: What is the Plan When the Viaducts Are Gone?

GWAC Meeting:  Monday, May 6. 2019 7pm
Learning Resource Centre, (LRC), 1661 Napier Street
Under the Britannia Library

What is  the Plan When the Viaducts Are Gone?
The City intends to develop a new route across the False Creek Flats once the Viaducts come down.  A community panel was convened and recently recommended crossing on National Street  to Charles and emptying out on Clark as the preferred route.  This has now gone to the City’s Engineering department for review. 

Lon LeClair, director of Transportation with the City of Vancouver has been invited to speak to the  priorities of the City on May 6th, which will be followed by a panel discussion with representatives of the Strathcona Residents’ Association, Produce Row, Commercial Drive BIA along with Maria Stanborough of GWACouncil.

They will discuss that which they think is important for you to know and want to hear from you, so plan to attend.

Park Board Meeting

April 30th: A presentation about the False Creek Flats Arterial by the Community Panel at Park Board is set for Tuesday night (6:30pm). Details: https://parkboardmeetings.vancouver.ca/2019/20190430/index.htm …

Background
City of Vancouver: https://vancouver.ca/home-property-development/false-creek-flats-arterial-consultation-process-and-documents.aspx
CBC: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/false-creek-flats-arterial-road-prior-venables-train-overpass-1.5088409
The Breaker: twitter.com/theBreakerNews/status/1119271959999598592
​The Straight: https://www.straight.com/news/1224881/community-panel-recommends-new-east-west-arterial-road-route-through-false-creek-flats

Nov 5th meeting Guest Speaker: Patrick Condon, Professor UBC Architecture and Landscape Architecture, on Transportation Options and Affordable Housing

Professor Patrick Condon will be a guest speaker at the November 5th monthly GWAC meeting.

Date: Monday, November 5th, 7pm – 9pm
Location: Learning Resource Centre, (LRC), Under the Britannia Library, 1661 Napier Street

​​The topic is transportation options along the Broadway corridor, funding models for development along the corridor, and options for affordable housing within those models. There will be an opportunity for questions and general discussion after Patrick Condon’s presentation.

Professor Condon has researched and has written extensively about transit and affordable housing. A number of his articles are available on The Tyee. Please see the links below for additional details.

thetyee.ca/Bios/Patrick_Condon/
​https://sala.ubc.ca/people/faculty/patrick-condon

Synopsis of FortisBC Open House (East 1st Avenue temporary closure)

FortisBC held an Open House on Tuesday, May 29th and provided additional details about the temporary closure of East 1st Avenue. GWAC was in attendance. For members of the public who were not able to attend the meeting, we’ve provided a synopsis of the meeting below.

Community Meeting – engagement from Fortis about the upcoming traffic concerns (temporary 1st Avenue closure)

Fortis BC is organizing a community meeting related to the closure of 1st Avenue over the summer months. Find out about traffic concerns and traffic calming measures.
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Tuesday May 29th
Croatian Cultural Centre
3250 Commercial Drive
Room 4
5-7pm

If you are not able to attend this information session, then please visit Fortis at gaslineupgrades@fortisbc.com or 604.592.7494, or visit https://talkingenergy.ca/upgradeproject  ​

Background
www.fortisbc.com/MediaCentre/NewsReleases/2018/Pages/20180405-Construction-of-FortisBC-Gas-Line-Upgrade-set-to-start-in-spring-2018.aspx
www.news1130.com/2018/04/05/roadwork-vancouver/

GWAC Traffic-Calming Information Kit

Hello Grandview Woodland Resident(s)
Grandview Woodland Area Council (GWAC) understands residents’ concerns about increasing traffic volumes in neighbourhoods across Grandview Woodland. To help you deal with cut-through traffic and unsafe neighbourhood streets, we have compiled a resource sheet to provide information about what you can do to calm residential streets, to take them back for people and pets, not cars.
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The first thing you need to do is figure out what traffic-calming is. You will find the resources from Better Environmentally Sound Transportation (BEST) very helpful as you begin to set up your traffic-calming group:

http://best.bc.ca/
 http://best.bc.ca/reclaim-your-street/

You can get more information from the  at http://vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/driving-and-traffic.aspx, and for specific help or to report your traffic concerns to the City’s representative on the Grandview Woodland Traffic & Parking Advisory Committee, Cara Fisher, at www.cara.fisher@vancouver.ca

Another valuable resource is The Grandview Woodland Neighbourhood Transportation and Parking Committee, in particular the Stakeholders Advisory Group (SAG), on which a GWAC Board member sits. The City of Vancouver contact person is Cara Fisher on 604-326-4830 or cara.fisher@vancouver.ca 

Below is the committee’s most recent report site:

http://vancouver.ca/files/cov/grandview-woodland-neighbourhood-transportation-and-parking.pdf

It is advisable to check with the City about the traffic-calming process and available traffic-calming measures, for both have under gone changes over the past few years. 

Grandview-Woodland Project Update – 10th Avenue Corridor Public Open Houses

Reproduced below is a notice from the City concerning upgrades for the 10th Avenue Corridor. Of particular interest is the Open House at the Croatian Cultural Centre (3250 Commercial Drive) on Tuesday, November 29th (4-7pm). There’s also an option to email the City with comments until December 12, 2016.

The City of Vancouver is improving the 10th Avenue Corridor to better accommodate people of all ages and abilities who walk, cycle, and drive.  Over the past year, the City has built on public and stakeholder feedback to develop a recommended design for the Health Precinct between Oak and Cambie Streets and will present their findings at the South Granville Seniors Centre on December 1st at 12:30 – 1:30 PM.  For more information about the upcoming open houses and the potential designs for the two other segments along the corridor, please see the information below.
 
We want to hear from you!
Over the last year, we have built on public and stakeholder feedback to develop a recommended design for the Health Precinct between Oak and Cambie Streets, and to advance potential designs for segments from Quebec Street to Guelph Street and from Commercial Drive to Victoria Drive.
 
Public Open Houses
Join us at a public open house to review recommended designs as part of our third phase of consultation. Meetings will be drop-in open house format. City staff will be available to discuss the project, answer questions, and gather your feedback.
 
Saturday, November 26, 2016, 11 AM – 3 PM
Blusson Spinal Cord Centre, 818 W 10th Avenue
 
Tuesday, November 29, 2016, 4 PM – 7 PM
Croatian Cultural Centre, 3250 Commercial Drive
 
View display materials and complete a feedback form online at vancouver.ca/10th-avenue or click on the links below. The online feedback form will be available November 22nd.
 
·         Welcome, Supporting Policy, Why 10th Ave?, 3 Segments
·         Health Precinct: Introduction 
·         Health Precinct: Recommended Design
·         Quebec St to Guelph St, Proposed Design
·         Commercial Dr to Victoria Dr, Proposed Design
·         Timeline, Future improvements, Next steps 
 
Please submit your comments by December 12, 2016. Email: 10th Avenue Corridor Project Team
10thavenue@vancouver.ca

False Creek Flats Proposal & Adanac/Union Bike Route (Dec 5/16)

Last meeting of the year!
False Creek Flats Proposal:
Cory Dobson, False Creek Planning, City of Vancouver, will  present the Draft Plan Directions.  These have been developed on public input, stakeholder meetings, open houses and internal research and analysis. At this meeting he will walk us through the proposed directions outlined in the draft plan and  provide an opportunity for your feedback. 

Of particular  concern to Grandview Woodland will be transportation corridor planning given the proposal to remove the viaducts and close Prior/Venables Streets.

Adanac / Union Bike Route Consultation: The Transportation Planning Branch | City of Vancouver wants to hear from residents about what is and isn’t working along this bike route.  The City of Vancouver is planning a series of spot improvements along the Union-Adanac Corridor between Gore Avenue and Kamloops Street to make it safer and more comfortable for people of all ages and abilities to walk and cycle.

Public consultation on both initiatives is planned  for January 2017,
so this is a chance for local residents to inform that consultation.
December 5th, 7-9pm
Learning Resource Centre,beneath the Library
Britannia Community Centre

In Review: Transportation Changes in Grandview-Woodland (May 2)

Guest speaker Lon LaClaire from the City of Vancouver provided many updates to upcoming transportation changes in and around Grandview-Woodland at the GWAC meeting on Monday, May 2nd, 2016. Mr. LaClaire was also able to answer many questions from the audience during a wide-ranging question and answer session. Detailed minutes of the meeting are posted below for future reference. Thanks to all who attended and joined the discussion!

Notes from GWAC Public Meeting on May 2, 2016

Transportation in Grandview Woodland

Presentation by Lon LaClaire:  Director of Transportation, City of Vancouver

A lot is going on in transportation at the City, and a lot that potentially affects GW.  Some projects, are in the implementation phase; on others, the City is still developing plans. 

The Transportation 2040 plan (http://vancouver.ca/streets-transportation/transportation-2040.aspxis) is linked to the Healthy City Strategy, Economic Action Plan, and Greenest City Action Plan.  Transportation is a big part of achieving those other objectives.  Transportation 2040 targets include having 1/2 of all trips be by foot, bike, or transit by 2020. By 2040, 2/3 of all trips will be by bike, transit, or on foot.  The City needs to reduce the proportion and total number of motor vehicle trips, and has to accommodate more trips every single year as more people move here.  Our road network is largely built out, so we cannot double or really increase at all the number of car trips.  Therefore we need to move people by other modes, and to reduce the number of vehicles in total by 2040.  We need to reallocate a bit of the road space toward walking, cycling and transit. 

Our roads are generally becoming safer.  We want to make sure this continues and have a zero fatality safety target.

May 2nd: Bike Lanes + More. Transportation Changes in Grandview

Come join the discussion with City representatives on proposed changes to transportation in Grandview-Woodland. Bike lanes, the removal of the viaducts, traffic calming and more.

A presentation by Lon LaClaire, Manager – Strategic Transportation Planning at the City of Vancouver will be followed by a discussion of proposed changes for the neighbourhood. All are welcome

Monday, May 2nd at 7pm
Canuck Family Education Centre at Britannia
1655 William Street (north side of Grandview Park, half a block off Commercial Drive)