You’ve probably seen those postcard pictures of Vancouver, the ones with glassy towers, a pristine shoreline and sublime mountains. But this skyscraper vision of the city represents less than one-fifth of the reality.
The rest? Dominated by houses, houses, houses. As Uytae Lee puts it, “it’s either Super Size or Happy Meal.”
Lee is an urban planning grad and video whiz who’s made explainers for the CBC and his own label, About Here. He teamed up with Vancouver non-profit Urbanarium for his latest production The Missing Middle Mystery.
Tyee writers, me included, have attempted to answer why the planning ethos here is literally go big or go home: huge towers, or single-family housing. But for a comprehensive walkthrough of how Vancouver got to a “Titanic versus rowboats” style of building and design, Lee delivers.
It’s a crash course on zoning, density, racism and the ridiculousness of public hearings. (There’s a clip from 2009 of people protesting laneway housing, crying, “We will run out of food! We will run out of water!”)
Here’s the original video, with three suggested solutions on how to fill in the housing gap.
‘The Missing Middle Mystery’
The problem with parking
The straightjacket of setbacks
The rules of rezoning
Read more: Urban Planning + Architecture
Tyee Commenting Guidelines
Comments that violate guidelines risk being deleted, and violations may result in a temporary or permanent user ban. Maintain the spirit of good conversation to stay in the discussion.
*Please note The Tyee is not a forum for spreading misinformation about COVID-19, denying its existence or minimizing its risk to public health.
Do:
Do not: