Vancouver city council approved phase three of the Cambie Corridor plan on Tuesday, and since then, it’s drawing mixed reaction from residents.
The project will transform single-family neighbourhoods over the next 30 years, with Mayor Gregor Robertson describing it as a step forward in tackling the housing crisis.
The city said it will allow for more home types including new townhouses, rentals, and social housing.
Leonard Schein with the Cambie Village Business Association said he hopes to see more relaxed parking rules, but overall, the organization is happy with the announcement.
“We need more… housing that’s affordable in this city and we need more… people living in this city to support local businesses,” he said.
He also said the plan will make life more affordable in the corridor.
“We already pay property tax on those condos or those rental units that don’t exist, so it’ll actually be cheaper for us once there’s residents there.” Schein said.
Allan Buium is the chair of the Riley Park-South Cambie Community Visions group, and he said they’ve expressed concerns over the lack of elementary schools and he hopes the city will consider that.
He said the shortage of schools mixed with an increase in families moving to the area could mean more young children walking along busy roads.
“I don’t think I would want a kindergarten child to go from, say, 37th Avenue to 49th Avenue, to Jamieson Elementary or to 45th Avenue, west of Oak to Osler Elementary School, I mean that’s a fair distance in crossing some busy streets,” he asid.
Buium is also concerned that the plan could help bring increased traffic.
“I’m looking at a domino effect and car-drivers are very good at finding ways in and around traffic snarls,” he said.
“If you’ve gone down Cambie now, you find out that it’s down to single lane because of the construction. Then, in turn when it gets busier, there’s going to be more traffic.”