Transforming Vancouver's most prominent street

Transformation: Taking something familiar and turning into something completely new and unique to its original form.

What does a great street look like to you?
What sets it apart from other streets?
Which street stands out from the rest in Vancouver?

These are a great questions that the city of Vancouver and the Vancouver Public Space Network (VPSN) all wanted to find out in order to transform Broadway, the longest street in Vancouver.

Broadway goes from UBC, located on the breath-taking cliffs and ocean views to Commercial Drive, the spunky industrial turned artist community.

Broadway is currently the busiest street in Vancouver moving goods and services, people and providing commercial, residential and other services along each side of its concrete expanse.

But what if we could make it work better for us?

Well, that's why the city of Vancouver and more importantly the Vancouver Public Space Network (VPSN) set to find out. They invited several members of the community (including me) to partake in a workshop focused around bringing new ideas to how we can make Broadway a better street.

This workshop was great because we were told to dream big and hold no ideas back. The city wants to collect these ideas and actually consider making them a reality for Vancouvrites. Vancouver also has an ambitious goal of being the "Greenest city" in the world by 2020, so they wanted sustainability to be a top priority.

My group first pointed out what makes a good street, here are our observations.

A good street:
-Stands out as a cultural focal point of the city
-a passage/portal to other places through transportation (accessibility)
-brings community together
-meets your commercial business needs
-makes you feel safe
-entices you to walk along it (upkeep and scenery make it a nice place to hang out)


Then we narrowed down our priorities for what we think Broadway should be. Here were our conclusions in order of importance:

1) Transportation hub for non-cars: Broadway moves a lot of people east/west and west/east everyday but many complain that due to the buses sharing the road with cars, its too hard to get to a specific destination on time. By promoting more transit along Broadway and less cars rapid transit or even a skytrain option would make Broadway a more accessible option for transportation. Also, making room for bikes along Broadway will send a message out to cars that they are not particularly wanted here. This does not mean hate cars but in keeping with the sustainability theme we feel that cars have been a priority for city-planning for way too long. We need to use the streets more efficiently and making public transportation and bicycle transportation more accessible the street will maximize its potential.

2) Providing public space for everyone: Broadway has a lot of people on it all the time, there is no denying this. Nevertheless, it does not have nearly enough public space to accommodate its patrons. Cambie and Broadway is a great example of providing public space while also being a transportation hub. The wide side walks, benches strewn about and small green patches provide Vancouverites with more than just a street to walk on. They become places for relaxation, education and hopefully transformation.

3) Providing diverse business opportunities: Currently residential real estate is more profitable along Broadway than commercial space but in the midst of over-inflated housing prices, this does not seem like a sustainable option. Most people are driven out to Broadway for many of their commercial needs whether its going to the post office, picking up groceries, eating out or even going to the hospital. One of our priorities was making sure that Broadway is not just full of empty condos and high rises and retains its commercial appeal.


The best part about Vancouver right now is that they are open to hearing what we want. Vancouver city planners have made many mistakes in the past by implementing things they didn't really think about (like not connecting the sky train on Granville) but this time they have organized enough time to hear what its citizens want.

This is the kind of city I want to be a part of. One that asks for your opinions before going to the drawing board. Vancouver might not be the best, but right now I think they are doing better than all the rest.