Civic Planning: The Heatley Block
Live In Strathcona
The City of Vancouver purchased the Heatley Block building on the corner of Heatley and Hastings. The long-term plan is to demolish the block and erect a new multi-use structure that contains a newly upgraded library branch for the Strathcona neighborhood, with housing added above in the upper floors of the building structure.
At the September 5th, 2007 Strathcona Residents Association meeting, valid desires from both sides of the fence spoke about the issue. On the one hand, this property is a fantastic heritage building. The host of the SRA meeting, Gabe of the Gaff Gallery, wishes that it could remain and that the city might instead find a way to refurbish the existing structure rather than demolish and rebuild. He and other retail operators on Hastings wish to see the existing retail space kept intact, or at the very least for space to be made for retail presence that will continue to serve the neighborhood.
On the other side of the issue, the idea of a new library branch is supremely attractive for the residents of Strathcona, and upgrading the neighborhood facilities and structures can have a positive longer term impact for the community.
Also learned at the SRA meeting was the fact that the City of Vancouver has purchased a large number of DTES area single-resident-occupancy (SRO) hotels to further improve the housing and social issues of the area. Plans for action are on hold until after the 2010 Olympics according to one attendee who has lived and operated a corner store in the neighborhood for the last 18 years.
Heritage Vancouver, a volunteer advocacy organization, was also in attendance to observe and comment on the Heatley block issue. Informal after-meeting conversations stimulated other options to consider such as saving the face of the building and incorporating the heritage look and feel into the new structure, much like is being done with the Woodwards site.
As Karen Lutz, of Heritage Vancouver says however, "that Heritage Vancouver does not, in any way, promote the practice of facadism. To preservationists this is thought of to be extremely poor practice"
She goes on to explain, "It is true that if the city were to adapt the building for library use, it would require making numerous changes to the interior, but the intention should always be to retain as much as possible of the original structure."
There is still lots of time to have an impact with the city decision for this block of property. Allow your voice and opinion to contribute to the overall discussion with other residents in the Live In Strathcona discussion forum. Together we can reach a consensus and see the community evolve with our needs and desires in mind.