Richmond Review, February 07, 2014

Page 1

Page 32 · Richmond Review

Friday, February 7, 2014

Children's Arts Festival returns on Family Day 16 / Dog saga continues 3

SEE PAGE 13

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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2014

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Richmond office vacancy lowest since 2008: report Dramatic rebound from vacancy rate that hovered near 25%

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Richmond pianist to play Carnegie recital hall 9

Richmond’s office market continues to recover since peaking in 2010 when one in every four offices were empty. Avison Young’s year-end Metro Vancouver Office Market Report for 2013 shows Richmond no longer boasts the worst vacancy rate in Metro Vancouver. At year’s end, Richmond’s rate sat at 15.4 per cent—nearly double the Metro Vancouver average of 7.8 per cent, but better than Surrey’s high of 17.3 per cent. Richmond’s rate is now at its lowest point since mid-2008, according to the real estate firm. It reached a peak of 24.6 per cent in the 2010 Olympic year. “While leasing activity remained limited, vacancy continued to decline in all classes as tenants occupied existing properties,” says the report. Class A properties—the most desirable—still have the highest vacancy rate of 19 per cent. The rate for the lesser Class B rests at 7.9 per cent, while Class C properties boast the lowest rate: 5.7 per cent. Avison Young predicts Richmond’s recovery will slow in 2014, and rental rates will remain stable. See Page 3

Matthew Hoekstra photo Pat Oleksiew at the Yarmish House on Williams Road Monday afternoon. Built in 1922 by the first Ukrainian settlers in Richmond, it’s now slated for demolition.

Historic house to be flattened Three-storey Williams Road home, built in 1922, served as Ukrainian Catholic Church by Matthew Hoekstra Staff Reporter Walking up the chipped concrete steps, Pat Oleksiew walks across the wooden front porch of a historic Richmond house whose end is near.

Years ago the porch was surrounded by glass. Oleksiew recalls watching a hummingbird flying near the windows, accidentally wedging itself in the glass. Her dad managed to grab the tiny bird and place it on her lap. She petted it a few times, then it flew off. “I was just six or seven,” said the 58-year-old. “I still remember that.” The three-storey Yarmish House, at 6711 Williams Rd., looms large in the Blundell neighbourhood. It was built around 1923 by the first Ukrainian settlers on Lulu Island, and served as the local Ukrainian Catholic Church until a

church was built. But the house is now vacant, and Interface Architecture is planning to build 14 townhouses on the property, along with two adjoining lots. Demolition is imminent. The house is listed in the City of Richmond’s heritage inventory, but is not a protected heritage site. City officials and the architect explored options to save the building—or at least parts of it—but non proved feasible. No one spoke at a public hearing on the project last year, and city council granted rezoning. See Page 3

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