Vancouver city council’s April 19 decision to allow taller buildings in Chinatown has prompted suggestions that owners of small plots of Chinatown land bind together to create a community development corporation.
Bing Thom Architects principal Bing Thom floated the concept to Business in Vancouver earlier this month after he had been inspired by his firm’s urban planner, Andy Yan.
“You can do more things together than by staying apart,” Yan told BIV April 20. “That’s the key concept.”
The concept is that small landowners who have street frontage of roughly 25 feet would bind together and sell their land into a common entity, in which each would have shares.
The corporation would then have much larger footprints to potentially use for cohesive development.
“These corporations can direct development which is inclusive of the existing community while bringing new people in,” Yan said.
“It also helps manage risk because the corporation could do a bit of a risky deal with one property. Everyone would be part of the rent pool, so they’ll be able to ameliorate the risk of the business not doing well. Then, it won’t be a wash for a single building owner.”
Yan has seen these kinds of corporations in action when he worked in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York.
He said the corporation could also be a clearing-house for rental space that would provide options so start-ups could more easily find additional space, allowing medium-sized businesses to stay in the neighbourhood.
Vancouver city council’s April 19 motion eased height restrictions on buildings in all of Chinatown, except Pender Street, to nine storeys.
Buildings up to 15 storeys will be considered in the Main Street corridor by application.