CP Rail’s June 30 announcement that it will start using its Arbutus Corridor railway line to store and move railcars is drawing opposition based on safety concerns and fears that it will make living next to the tracks less pleasant – something that could impact adjacent property values in Vancouver’s posh west side.
The national railway (TSX:CP) has already faced residents’ anger as it sent workers to remove community gardens along its many kilometres of track that it has not used in 15 years.
It then sent a letter to residents in the area telling them to expect trains in the coming weeks and warning them that “it is illegal to walk, drive or cycle on or alongside the railway line.”
Realtors were quick to say that the decision could impact home values in the corridor.
“I don’t think that if you have young children, you’ll be interested [in living in properties adjoining the railway tracks,]” Sutton West Coast Realty broker Mario Felicella told Business in Vancouver.
“It will be a detriment. I don’t think being next to a railway track is something you would highlight in a feature sheet,” said Felicella, who grew up on Vancouver’s West Side and has listings in the area.
Other realtors BIV spoke with agreed.
“CP using its tracks could definitely affect property values along the rail line,” said MacDonald Realty senior property advisor Neil Hamilton.
“I wouldn’t think that a lot of people would want to buy around the rail line. The other thing it will do is set off a mass phone and email campaign to the mayor to try to get it to stop.”
Mayor Gregor Robertson was quick to weigh in with a late afternoon statement to underscore his opposition to the reactivation of the lines on land that CP Rail has owned for 130 years, primarily for safety reasons.
“The population density along the track is significant,” he said. “There is a lack of upgraded crossing infrastructure on a short corridor with nearly fifty level crossings that include every major east-west arterial in Vancouver. The grade on the corridor is some of the steepest of any rail line in all of B.C. and the City of Vancouver has not been permitted to accompany officials for their safety inspection of the track.”
The City of Vancouver had been in talks with CP Rail to buy the land underneath the tracks but negotiations broke down with the two sides far apart on the value of the land.
