Controversial condo tower in Vancouver’s Chinatown could get green light

A contentious condo building proposal for Vancouver’s Chinatown could get the green light Monday.

City staff will debate the future of the lot at 105 Keefer St. during a development permit board meeting, after years of back and forth.

Opponents to the project are holding a rally outside of City Hall ahead of the hearing.

It’s being led by the Vancouver Tenants Union, as the board faces calls to refuse the proposal and instead build social housing at welfare and pension rates on the site.

“It's not affordable to people who live in the neighborhood, who clearly need social housing, welfare and pension rate housing that is adequate, that is safe, that is decent for everybody in the neighborhood,” said Tintin Yang of the Vancouver Tenants Union.

Yang says the introduction of new condos contributes to the rapid decline of small businesses that the community relies on.

“The small grocery stores that a lot of the seniors depend on are being lost at a very rapid rate, because a lot of people who make higher incomes don't necessarily want to shop at those kinds of stores,” said Yang.

She argues this will make life even more difficult for those who struggle to make ends meet.

The land at the corner of Keefer and Columbia streets has sat empty for years.

Developer Beedie Living's condo tower was originally voted down by the city’s development permit board in 2017.

However, a challenge in BC Supreme Court, plus a shift in community sentiment, has given the project new life.

The nine-story, mixed-use commercial building—with plans for retail, a senior living centre and 111 residential units—is expected to be approved.

Vancouver Tenants Union has expressed concerns about the project’s lack of social housing, but seven legacy groups, including the Chinatown Business Improvement Association, have signed a letter of support for the development.

“This has been an empty parking lot for over 50 years. Even before I was around, Chinatown has gone through evolutions over the last 100 years and this is just part of it,” said Jordan Eng, president of the Chinatown BIA.

Eng says he believes the development will contribute to an inclusive neighborhood for seniors and working people.

“These aren't luxury condominiums. No one goes to Chinatown to buy a luxury condominium,” said Eng.

He adds that the past five years have been tough for Chinatown, in part due to the hard hit of the pandemic.

“We've seen the social decay in the neighborhood with the anti-Asian graffiti and vandalism on our social cultural institutions—the graffiti, the mischief, the social disorder,” said Eng.

He believes drawing more people into the area could chang that.

“We really need bodies, body heat, people on the street, eyes on the street to help restore this neighborhood,” Eng said.

The board has the authority to approve, with or without conditions, or refuse a development permit application based on their evaluation of the proposal under the zoning and development bylaw. Council does not have the power to veto the application.

With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Kevin Charach