Heritage: Cedar Cottage / Kensington

A retrospective on the Cedar Cottage / Kensington neighbourhoods in Vancouver, BC.

Cedar Cottage is the district centred on Victoria Drive north of Kingsway, and Kensington is the district centred on Knight Street south of Kingsway. Cedar Cottage has always been proud to be the only neighborhood in Vancouver to have a lake. The words "East Vancouver" are not often associated with the word "beach," let alone a place to tan and swim in the summer or sometimes skate in the winter. Trout Lake's brief shoreline is a delight for the stroller and the home of unusual sights for Vancouver: a living peat bog, stunted pine trees, migrating ducks and a variety of other interesting birds.

Until the 1860s Trout Lake was a natural home to families of beaver and huge flocks of waterfowl. In 1863 John Hall hiked down the old Indian trail from New Westminster to stake out the lake and its surrounding acreage for himself. In 1867 he sold it to Walter Blackie and for a time it was referred to as "Blackie's Lake." The first industry built in Vancouver, the Hastings Sawmill, arranged for the water rights to the lake and built a flume from the lake to its sawmill to sustain its steam-driven machinery. In 1878 the owners of the mill bought the land, but in 1884 innocently sold it to Israel Powell, a government insider who knew about the coming of the transcontinental railway. Later it became the property of Aldene Hamber, the daughter of Hastings Sawmill owner John Hendry, and her husband Eric Hamber, a future lieutenant- governor of British Columbia. In 1926 they donated the lake and surrounding land to the city on the condition it be named after John Hendry.

The district's first substantial building was the Gladstone Inn, a stagecoach stop built for Gastown pioneer Joe Mannion in 1871 at the corner of what is now Gladstone Street and Kingsway. This stop on the dirt road from Gastown to New Westminster was operated by Thomas Deighton, the brother of Gastown's earliest pioneer, John "Gassyjack" Deighton. In the 1870s Mannion acquired 65 hectares centred on Kingsway as did another Gastown pioneer immediately to the west, postmaster Jonathan Miller (Miller Street bears his name). When local loggers and Fraser River farmers assembled to form a municipality in 1891, they met at the Gladstone Inn and picked the name "South Vancouver." In 1886 Jonathan Miller sold 14 hectares of his land to Arthur Wilson, the present southeast corner of Knight and Kingsway. Here Wilson built a cottage amid a grove of cedar trees and started the Cedar Cottage Nursery.

Cedar Cottage as a district began in 1891 as a remote stop on the new interurban line to New Westminster and took its name from the Cedar Cottage Nursery. The original owners of the site where the village began to grow were L.A. Agassiz, of Agassiz, B.C., and William Brewer, after whom nearby Brewer's Park is named. In 1892 Brewer was elected the first reeve of South Vancouver. Cedar Cottage was located outside what was then Vancouver's southern border at 16th Avenue.

By 1910 Cedar Cottage was a small rural town five kilometres from Vancouver. Most residents had apple or cherry trees in their yards and many kept a few cows, goats or chickens. The town centre boasted Marfew Hall, "the largest hall in South Vancouver," a new movie theatre showing silent films, a Bank of Hamilton and a small roller coaster. Cedar Cottage's existence as an independent rural village was not unlike the story of its roller coaster--new and exciting but rather short-lived.

The coaster disappeared before the depression of 1913, and the population dropped as men went off to fight in the Great War, leaving the main street half deserted. By the 1920s automobiles began to erode the monopoly on pedestrian traffic resulting from the tram stop, favoring the evolution of Kingsway as the main shopping area. Small industries began to replace the stores on Cedar Cottage's main street as the urban sprawl of Vancouver overran the area and dissolved its formerly distinct boundaries. In 1929 Cedar Cottage literally became part of Vancouver when South Vancouver was absorbed by its larger neighbor.

The pre-war boom also saw house construction spill over Kingsway southwards to the hillside above 33rd Avenue. Here grew Kensington Heights, commanding a broad view northward to the city skyline, the harbor and the North Shore mountains. The surrounding district of Kensington didn't fill up until after the World War II.

In Cedar Cottage and Kensington one important constant has been Trout Lake. Area residents continue to picnic there, swim and enjoy walking around it.

February 2, 2005 in Location, Location | Permalink

Heritage: Kerrisdale

A retrospective on the Kerrisdale neighbourhood in Vancouver, BC.

Comfortable, historic westside neighborhood stretching from Blenheim to Granville Street and Angus Drive, and from 41st Avenue to the North Arm of the Fraser River, Kerrisdale is among the most stable communities in Canada. At most social events, chances are you'll meet several residents who were born, educated and married in Kerrisdale and who until a few years ago might reasonably have planned to retire there. Families scattered when soaring real estate prices spurred the sale and demolition of older houses once passed from generation to generation. Gone were the days when parents knew the name of every child on the street, and children might expect to be students in the same schools their grandparents had attended. Growing up in Kerrisdale had a magical, storybook quality about it, said a district businessman. "I've lived here all my life and my wife and I were childhood sweethearts. All our friends seemed to expect we'd get married when we finished school and that's exactly what we did."

While talk of redevelopment is standard at social gatherings, the continuous change seems to have had little impact on Kerrisdale's affluence or stability. Statistics Canada ranks the neighborhood as one of the most affluent in North America. In 1986, average household income was $59,474, almost twice as high as the $32,403 average for Vancouver city. Of the slightly more than 5,000 dwelling units, more than 60 per cent are owner occupied. Among the 12,000- plus community inhabitants, there are fewer low-income households (10 per cent compared to 26 per cent city wide) and single parent families (10.5 per cent compared to 15.6 per cent).

However, Kerrisdale has changed considerably through extensive redevelopment. In 1988-89, amid considerable controversy, approximately 500 permanent residents were dispersed when a number of low-rise rental apartments were demolished to make way for intended condominium developments. Today, some of the sites still remain vacant.

Kerrisdale can be seen as a village with almost every service, supply outlet and recreational facility a community needs: a broad range of restaurants and shops; equipment rental; recreational and cultural facilities; elementary secondary and private schools; daycare centres; health and fitness centres. There is a major public library; a seniors' centre; two swimming pools; two major golf courses; a skating rink, an arena and a bowling club. Various service organizations and services promote social welfare and business opportunities. A society devoted to historical research and preservation of historic buildings has attracted more than 150 members.

There are more than 20 financial institutions on West 41st Avenue, the main business strip which, in some residents' view, has a tad more banks than the community actually needs. On the same street is a unique green grocer, J.B. Hoy Produce, a family-operated store where operators wear white smocks to set out the veggies. The Koo family first set up the shop in 1925, and eventually assured themselves a permanent spot by buying the building. On the same street, among cafes ranging from fast to fancy, is a burger-and-miIkshake joint, The Red Onion, that belongs in an old-fashioned village.

Kerrisdale began taking shape more than 130 years ago, five years before Confederation and more than nine years before British Columbia became a Canadian province. In the 1860s the Magees, Moles, Shannons and McCleerys were neighbors whose names are interwoven with Kerrisdale's history. Hugh Magee, known as "the pig-headed Irishman," started a farm just below Marine Drive at Balaclava. Henry Mole, known for his forthright nature, homesteaded on land where the Point Grey Golf Club now is located; William Shannon, a former Cariboo freight hauler, farmed on land adjacent to West 57th Avenue, close to the present Shannon Park. Irish immigrant brothers Sam and Fitzgerald McCleery made their way here via the Fraser after failing to hit pay dirt in Cariboo gold fields. On September 26, 1862 Sam and Fitz preempted a meadow and built a homesteader cabin at 49th and Marine Crescent, now McCleery Park, where their descendants farmed until 1956. In 1985 the Kerrisdale Historical Society erected a memorial cairn at the site.

Kerrisdale originally was the name of a tram station at Wilson Road (now 41st Avenue) and West Boulevard; the community was part of Point Grey municipality which merged with Vancouver in 1929. In 1905 B.C. Electric Railway manager R.H. Sterling asked area resident Mrs. William MacKinnon to name the tram station. She adapted the name Kerrisdale from her old family home, Kerrydale, in Gairloch, Scotland.

Tracks were laid to connect Kerrisdale to Dunbar and, by 1912, to downtown Vancouver. By the 1920s Kerrisdale had become an integral part of Vancouver city. At the same time, because of the central focus of shops, transportation and community facilities, it retained its sense as a separate--and charming--village.

January 22, 2005 in Location, Location | Permalink

Heritage: Dunbar / Southlands

A retrospective on the Dunbar / Southlands neighbourhoods in Vancouver, BC.

Archaeological data indicate native people occupied this area for at least 2,000 years before the arrival of Europeans. The first homesteaders, in 1863, were Fitzgerald and Sam McCleery. The McCleery farm, now McCleery golf course, was the first operating farm in Vancouver, and the farmhouse, built in 1873, was the first permanent dwelling in the Vancouver area.

Dunbar/Southlands was part of the old Municipality of Point Grey. The area had been logged, but land for development was available only in Marpole and Kerrisdale. Most of the land was a mass of fallen, burned timber and was held by the Canadian Pacific Railway and the provincial government.

The origin of the name Dunbar is sometimes attributed to Charles Trott Dunbar, general agent for the Union Land Company of St. Paul, Minnesota, who came to Vancouver in 1888. He invested largely in real estate, and owned and controlled considerable property in the city. In 1906 a Vancouver newspaper reported he was promoting Dunbar Heights and "selling lots like hotcakes." However, the name's origin is earlier, for in 1886 it already appears on a map of Vancouver. Another suggestion is that the area was named after the Battle of Dunbar in 1650, in association with other battle-named streets in the area--Trafalgar, Balaclava, Blenheim, Waterloo and Alma. These names, however, were given by the city council in 1907 in substitution for Boundary, Richards, Cornwall, Lansdowne and Campbell, which were in use elsewhere in the city.

In 1912 a section of the UBC lands was subdivided and town-planning principles were established. The fact the university was to be established nearby was undoubtedly responsible in large part for the early development (and type of development) of the Dunbar/Southlands area. By 1919 the municipality was earning a reputation as a well-controlled area with regulations outlining building and landscaping. At that time a third of Point Grey's municipal revenue came from CPR land taxes. By 1927 three streetcar routes served the area.

When Point Grey amalgamated with Vancouver in 1929, it was agreed Vancouver would respect the area's restrictive zoning by-laws. The first land development of any consequence occurred in the mid-1920s, and some of the homes built during this period are still standing. Dunbar/Southlands consists almost entirely of single family dwellings and there are no highrises. There are "castle" homes scattered throughout, with two fine examples on West 39th Avenue just west of Dunbar.

The area is noted for its beautiful gardens, and the park board has planted many flowering trees along the streets. In some parts the trees meet overhead, forming archways several blocks long. There are many parks, the largest being Memorial Park West on Dunbar between 31st and 33rd avenues. Dunbar Community Centre opened here in 1950 after a spirited community drive for funds. At Musqueam Park one can plunge into the forest and follow Tin Can Creek, where salmon still spawn each fall.

The churches have followed the area's development. Knox Presbyterian started in 1920. It later became part of the United Church and changed its name to Knox United. Immaculate Conception Church began in 1924 and St. Philip's Anglican in 1925. Dunbar Heights United also dates from these years.

Within 15 minutes of downtown Vancouver, at the mouth of the Fraser River, there's a serene pastoral retreat where horses and waterfowl mingle with high-tech development and historical landmarks. No other major Canadian city has country living so close by. It's not uncommon to hear the cries of blue herons, red-tailed hawks and bald eagles as you clip-clop along a country road on your horse. You'll also pass opulent new homes next to old rustic dwellings, as the area is still zoned for limited agriculture.

Spring cherry blossoms, among the best in the city, herald the beginning of the planting, pruning, and sowing season for spectacular English country gardens. Great pride is taken in creating these postcard-quality blooms.

Southlands Riding Club, incorporated in 1943 and home to some of Canada's finest equestrians, sits on just over seven hectares in the heart of the community. The clubhouse, once an abandoned fisherman's net storage hut on Deering Island was dismantled and carried piece by piece, by members on horseback, to its present site. Today cyclists, joggers, walkers and riders enjoy the wonderful river trail along the Fraser leading to Pacific Spirit Park, with its meandering trails under giant cedar and firs. Two-thousand-year-old Camosun Bog, a unique wetland within the park, can be reached by a boardwalk path beginning at Camosun and 19th Avenue. The bog is revered by the Musqueam people as a portal to the spirit world.

The entire Dunbar/Southlands covers an expanse from 16th Avenue to the Fraser River, and from Camosun Street east to Blenheim. It encompasses the Musqueam reserve, Celtic and Deering Islands, plus two public and three championship-rated private golf courses. This area contains some of the highest priced real estate in Canada.

January 14, 2005 in Location, Location | Permalink

Granville Island: North America's Finest

A secret no more. Get used to it. As we inch closer and closer to the 2010 Olympic frenzy we will continue to see Vancouver's best assets receive more and more global showcase and attention. Everybody's favourite food cornucopia, Granville Island - has now received the exclusive distinction of "Best Neighbourhood in North America".

Vancouver's Granville Island has been crowned king of the neighbourhoods, districts and downtowns in North America by the American organization Project for Public Spaces. The organization's monthly publication, Making Spaces, rated thousands of neighbourhoods across the continent for their November issue. Granville Island topped the list that included the East Village in New York City, South Beach Florida, and Kensington Market in Toronto. The list honours the first inductees into the Great Public Spaces website's new category Neighbourhoods and Districts. - TravelVideo.tv

Photo: [DotBC]

January 11, 2005 in Location, Location | Permalink

Downtown: Green With Envy

I've always trumpeted Vancouver's downtown development model to out-of-town friends and visitors as a rare example of urban city planning done right. When visiting other cities, I am far too frequently appalled by how 'unlivable' their downtown cores are. Many cities used the suburban trend that began in the 1950's as an excuse to overlook the residential viability of downtown living in favour of packing in as much office/commercial density as humanly possible. The end result? The lack of residential population in downtown cores primarily equates to a daily mass exodus away from downtown at the end of the work day resulting in increased traffic congestion, an inherent lack of green space, and above all else a downtown core that is widely considered 'unsafe' past 8-9pm. Vancouver's downtown residential environment is a near utopia as compared to many cities in North America, and now other cities are starting to take notice of some things that have made Vancouver's core so successful;

Many point to the lively downtown neighborhoods blossoming in Vancouver, B.C. Sleek, chic high-rises have persuaded more than 130,000 people -- roughly a quarter of the city's population -- to live in dense urban settings. - Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Hey, Seattle, welcome to the club! Practically every city on the West Coast is building "Vancouver-style" neighborhoods in or next to their downtowns -- compact, mixed-use communities characterized by the kind of high-rise residential towers seen on the Vancouver, B.C., skyline. So, Seattle, it looks like you're next. Mayor Greg Nickels has proposed rewriting the codes for downtown to allow tall, Vancouver-style towers. And with your views, downtown amenities and new transit options, you're more than ready. Give people what they can get in the suburbs -- neighborhoods that are clean, green and safe -- and plan for children. That means providing for child care and good schools. And then you may find you can hardly keep up with the demand, as people choose the city over the distant suburbs. - Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Downtown tall and skinny as that latte?
[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]
Vancouver-style housing great for Seattle
[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]

January 10, 2005 in Location, Location | Permalink