A United Future | Ideathon Challenge 2022

Vision Statement

“TorenewFalseCreekSouthby implementinginnovativehousing, community,andsustainablesolutions, inlinewiththeresidentstobring prosperityforall.”

BackgroundContext

“North Views from FCS neighbourhood” (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

The False Creek South neighbourhood is a unique waterfront community, situated between the Cambie and Burrard bridges, with current housing units in the area occupied through leases that begin to end as early as 2031. Local population and economy have been growing since the 1970s when this neighbourhood was developed, and changes are necessary to adapt to current-day standards and provide more affordable housing.

Currently, there are many sources for guidance regarding the design of the False Creek South neighbourhood, such as FCS Original Development Plan, and RePlan. These sources provide input on the desires of the local community, government and thoughtful recommendations on specific designs.

The existing urban density in FCS is lower than other Vancouver sites, enabling residents to have a more “neighbourhood” feel than other areas. Preserving this community's character - namely the “small town” feelwhile increasing density is a major goal.

GeographicScope

Our development plan intends on enhancing the False Creek South area with regard to the current design of the site. Our proposed solution is to create sectors with commercial, transit, and residential areas which would include parks, schools, and gardens. Analyzing the geography of the site also provides insight into how to implement solutions which would utilize the surrounding environment such as a water reclamation system close to the ocean to account for flooding. By creating a central location for recreation, gathering, and greenery, we are able to unify the area aligning with our vision of bringing prosperity to all residents through innovative housing, community, and sustainable solutions.

“Background” (City of Vancouver, 2021)

Planning Analysis

A consideration of macro forces and conditions that impacted our recommendation.

Environment: Heat Island, Rising Sea Levels

An aspect that needs to be considered before moving forward with any plans for the False Creek South development is the rising sea levels as this community is right along the water. Studies have shown that by the year 2050, the sea levels are expected to rise 12 inches from where they are today (Younger, 2022). In addition, the “heat island effect” also needs to be considered as these new developments will have an impact on the surrounding heat absorption of the land.

“New Shoreline Approximation” (Google Maps, 2022)

Political-Legal: Lease Renewals, Co-ops

There are political and legal ramifications with developing the neighbourhood because the owners are held by a co-op while the city owns the land. Depending on lease renewals, the co-op will either dissolve the corporation, continue the co-op, or restructure for expansion.

The Property Endowment Fund enables the city to benefit more through retaining ownership and control of the area, as opposed to selling land parcels to private interests. The False Creek South area is of strategic interest because it is prime waterfront property. However, the City of Vancouver would prefer to keep ownership of the land as they could control the land use, and housing prices/mix.

“Lease Renewal Dates” (RePlan, 2016)

Local Area Context

Prior to the industrialization era, False Creek South belonged to the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil Waututh First Nations peoples (Neighbourhood Plan, 2017). For centuries, the natural biodiversity and geography of False Creek South have proven itself to be a thriving environment for fishing, foraging and settlement. After the construction of railways in the late 19th century, the area went under dramatic transformation. The nature and peace of the environment were disrupted, as shipyards, factories and warehouses began to establish in the False Creek landscape. These heavy industries brought in trade opportunities but they also devastated the neighbourhood. Efforts to revitalize the area and bring back its unique character came into the discussion since the decline of these industries in the 1970s.

Many elements of False Creek South uphold notable historical significance, such as the shoreline and Granville Island. Due to its geographical advantage, False Creek South flourished with living forms, including elk, beaver, bears, deer, cougars and many insect and bird species. This paved the way for Indigenous usage of the land for more than 10,000 years. Furthermore, the easy access to English Bay and the Salish Sea, as well as Granville Island, are key sites that reflect the heritage of the area. Its coastal location allowed for industry openings and Granville Island became a fishing area, which was a part of a traditional trail network that went from cə snaʔəm to the foot Granville Island and to sən’a?qw. Thus, in order to maintain the heritage and characteristics of this groundbreaking region, we must preserve the biodiversity, Indigenous connection and industrial opening of False Creek South.

Many elements of False Creek South uphold notable historical significance, such as the shoreline and Granville Island. Due to its geographical advantage, False Creek South flourished with living forms, including elk, beaver, bears, deer, cougars and many insect and bird species. This paved the way for Indigenous usage of the land for more than 10,000 years. Furthermore, the easy access to English Bay and the Salish Sea, as well as Granville Island, are key sites that reflect the heritage of the area. Its coastal location allowed for industry openings and Granville Island became a fishing area, which was a part of a traditional trail network that went from cə snaʔəm to the foot Granville Island and to sən’a?qw. Thus, in order to maintain the heritage and characteristics of this groundbreaking region, we must preserve the biodiversity, Indigenous connection and industrial opening of False Creek South.

“Logs in False Creek, circa 1940s" (Vancouver Sun Archives, 2016)

Demographics and Ownership

According to the Neighbourhood Plan (2017), FCS currently has a population of 5,400 people (2011). One of the main goals of the redevelopment plan was to create a socially mixed community; the housing mix was implemented to include demographics with families with children, couples with no children and singles. As of 2011, 40% of the households are families, while 46% are made up of singles. In terms of age, 61% of FCS’s population is 45 years or older, while in Metro Vancouver it is 43%. Additionally, the median age of residents is 52 years old in FCS, compared to 40 years old in Metro Vancouver. Therefore, the overall age profile of this neighbourhood is older than Metro Vancouver.

However, the household income distribution profile of FCS remains similar to Metro Vancouver. The median income of FCS households is $62,764, which is slightly lower than the Metro Vancouver median income of $63,347 but higher than the city of Vancouver at $50,116 (2011).

“Seniors” (City of Vancouver, 2016)

Problem Definition

There are three issues with the area currently that drive the need for innovative solutions: low density of housing, old infrastructure and lack of connectivity in the area.

The False Creek South neighbourhood has a total of 3203 market and nonmarket rental housing units for 3.5 million square feet of land (City of Vancouver). Even the fact that around a quarter of this is zoned for parks still leaves ample space to develop the area. Along with this point, the fact that there has been no development in the area since the 80s means that all current structures are at least 40 years old and should be inspected for whether they require renovations and/or redevelopment (City of Vancouver).

The next issue is that the transit and residential connectivity to the rest of the city is limited, and there are few roads, parking lots and transit routes to accommodate current and future tenants/commercial businesses. And lastly, though the area has the feel of a quaint neighbourhood there is a lack of community infrastructure; the parks and walkways present lack benches and tables to relax and overall most of the green space is open and without any utility.

“Subject Site/Area of Focus” (Google Maps, 2022)

Our Aim

3 Main Goals:

To increase the density of co-op buildings

To enrich the "small town" feel of the neighbourhood

To achieve a netzero carbon emission goal

Vision, Innovations & Objectives

In order to foster community, we aim to focus on three main goals that will bring prosperity to the community. Firstly, we propose building a central hub that will help bring together the people in one main area. Secondly, we plan on creating a transit hub that connects False Creek South to the rest of Vancouver. Lastly, we recommend enhancing the connectivity throughout the neighbourhood to make it easier and more accessible for people of all ages to get around.

“Community Forum” & "Central Place Focus" (City of Vancouver, 1974)

“Area of Focus Developments” (Google Maps, 2022)

Character

Our vision works in line with RePlan/City’s plan to relocate the Elementary School, expand open space, and implement the False Creek South’s Campus of Care and Intergenerational Hub. We aim to deliver redevelopment which is contextually responsive in accordance with the unique qualities this site and neighbourhood possess. Through ensuring that all residents live within a 5-minute walk within greenspaces, our vision of further enhancing these spaces by adding community gardens and seating spaces offers residents a greater advantage of these areas. By providing more gathering opportunities and activities within the 9 hectares of park areas this site offers including Charleson Park and Sutcliffe park, we can retain the unique aspects of these parks while making them more accessible to all. Having over 290 individual businesses which range from local small businesses to popular retail chains over 1800 jobs are provided within a diverse range of fields which increases the diversity of the area (City of Vancouver, 2018).

Currently, the False Creek South area utilizes heritage street names including Scantlings, Forge walk, and Millyard. Residents describe their love for the small town they feel this area provides them with. Despite our development, we aim to maintain this by incorporating elements of the industrial past to maintain the character and history of the land. This combination of parks, 5-minute walking distance to greenery, short buildings, local businesses, schools, and industrial street names work together to maintain the small town feel while further increasing the density of the False Creek South area.

“Gathering Spaces" & "Internal Courtyards" (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

“Sutcliffe Park” (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

"Dean's Food Store" & “Urban Informality: Stairs built by City vs built be residents” (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

“Front Yard Gardening” & "Pond" (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

"Community Gardens” (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

Recommendation

“False Creek South - Central Hub” (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

Our first recommendation is to build a new fountain courtyard in the middle of the central hub to act as an intersection point for various flows of traffic. It connects the school, daycare, playground, transit hub, and residential units. Moreover, there will be an addition of picnic tables, benches, and BBQ pits for social gatherings. Currently, in the community, there isn’t anything in place that allows the residents to meet new people.

Furthermore, the transit hub improves connectivity and accessibility for residents. It includes a covered bus stop, streetcar access, and parking to improve existing transit infrastructure. Additionally, for the connectivity aspect, the site will include new streams of various walking and bike paths, better signage for the elderly, and more efficient routes between the different amenities around False Creek South.

Increase Housing Density

Phased Development

Our housing focuses on the “False Creek Co-Op” site, whose lease ends in 2031 and is seeking renewal with the possibility of redevelopment. This site is zoned as FCCDD and consists of housing, local businesses, Urban Farm Class A, and more (City of Vancouver, 2019).

This Co-Op is situated on 2 parcels of land, totalling ~188,000 s.f. of land. It has a current building footprint of ~96,864 s.f. It is 3 stories tall and contains 170 units that are ~1024 s.f. per unit.

Under phased redevelopment, we estimate that approximately 900 units total can be built, with ~800 s.f. per unit. Below are rough calculations for residential housing costs.

“False Creek Co-Op" (Hornet Consulting, 2022)

CurrentBuildingData(Approximate)

Site SizeSq.ft(Measured) BuildingFootprint Sq.Ft.(Measured) Stories(Assume) FSR(Estimate) TotalBuilding Sq.Ft(Approx) Units(Actual) Sq.Ft/Unit(Approx.)

188,000 96,864 ~3 ~1 ~175,000 170 ~1024

NewBuildingData(Estimated)

Site SizeSq.ft(Measured) BuildingFootprint Sq.Ft. Stories(Assume) FSR(Estimate) TotalBuilding Sq.Ft(Approx) Units(Actual) Sq.Ft/Unit(Approx.) 188,000 - ~10-12 5 750,000  900 ~800

NewBuildingProforma(Estimated)

Item Unit Price Costs Note

LandCost 188,000 0 0 City-ownedland: 29,562,000AssessmentValue+15%= 33,996,300MarketValue

SoftCosts N/A N/A 50,000,000 ~10%ofthetotalcostincludingland

HardCosts 750,000s.f. 420/s.f.  315,000,000 $330mfor900Units,Startbuild2025

OtherFees N/A N/A 10,000,000 CAC’s/DCL/DCC’s not included

Sub-Total 375,000,000

Financing 6.5%  3yrs 73,125,000 For3yearsconstructionloan Inflation 3% 3yrs 33,750,000 Forahighestimateof3yrsinflation GrandTotal 481,875,000 Totalcostforresidentialcomplex

Sustainable Solutions

With respect for natural habitats and the environment, we seek to implement environmentally sustainable practices throughout our design. This was done to preserve the current style of local greenery and homegrown aspects, and restore nature while meeting the City of Vancouver’s 2050 net-zero carbon emission goals. (City of Vancouver, 2020)

Sustainable Buildings

Our recommendation is to use eco-friendly and durable construction materials, using recycled or reclaimed materials, and apply valueengineering techniques to ensure maximum efficiency and longevity of the buildings.

Local Food & Water

Innovative solutions such as community gardens and urban farms, earth balconies, garden walls, and roofscapes (City of Vancouver ODP, 1974) will provide local food supplies while reducing pollution. These features can also be demonstrated by biophilic buildings such as Boscoe Verticale in Milan, Italy, which holds “800 trees (as well as 4500 shrubs and 15,000 perennial plants)” (McDonald & Beatley, 2021).

“Oxara Concrete” (Engineering For Change, 2022)

“Boscoe Verticale” (Stefano Boeri Architetti: 2022)

Implementing a rain collection system through water storage, and a water reclamation system by building a new creek that runs from the housing to the local pond will offer fresh non-potable water for the community while reducing infrastructure demands from the city.

A similar concept can be seen located in the adjacent Olympic Village area, where landscape architect firm "PWL" has designed a creek that runs into the ocean. This also presents an opportunity to “re-wild” the pond area and return wildlife to the area through the “restoration of urban ecosystems” (McDonald & Beatley, 2021), while defragmenting natural habitats nearby.

Trees and natural shrubbery can also be planted for a natural shade canopy, storm-water management, to reduce the urban heat-island effect and “reduce energy and resource consumption, and help mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, as well as allow cities to become more walkable and transit-friendly” (McDonald & Beatley, 2021).

“Eco-Friendly Wastewater Treatment System” (Youtube, 2011).

Clean Energy

Moreover, clean and renewable energy production methods such as solar panels and roofs, small wind turbines, and building eco-friendly transit infrastructure such as EV charging stations, bike lockers, and shared vehicle parking, all add to increase environmental sustainability. One example of a net-zero building is “Harmony House”, located in Burnaby, which “produces as much energy as it uses on an annual basis” (Harmony House, 2022).

“Harmony House” (Habitat Design + Consulting Ltd, 2022)

In conclusion, if the City of Vancouver decides to grant lease renewals and promote development, it can satisfy citizens by securing affordable housing, solving housing supply issues, and profit economically while achieving net-zero carbon emission goals. We intend on maintaining the unique characteristics of the residential properties in order to preserve the current aspects of the housing mix, diverse demographics, and architectural aesthetics. Additionally, public citizens will have increased amenities, new businesses to shop from, and benefit from a renewed neighbourhood.

By maintaining the city's model of parks, short buildings, local businesses, walkability, and sightlines, the general character of the neighbourhood is also preserved. Creating a central gathering hub fosters a unique community characteristic by further developing pre-existing community areas and connecting them through central corridors. Building on the neighbourhood's current practices, we believe that our eco-friendly features, local natural resources, and renewable energy strategy will add to their goals of environmental responsibility.

We strive to promote Indigenous reconciliation by incorporating Indigenous art murals and signage that outlines the historical context, which can help enlighten people about their heritage. Through the combination of urban planning concepts such as waterfront regeneration, rewilding, and urban informality, a utopian city can be built, while avoiding aspects like gentrification. Overall, we believe that our plans are able to achieve the Principle 3 goals while satisfying the local residents' desires, public interests, and achieving the city’s broader aims, hoping that whatever plan is adopted will bring prosperity to all.

Bosco Verticale. Stefano Boeri Architetti. (2022, September 7). Retrieved November 25, 2022, from https://www.stefanoboeriarchitetti.net/project/bosco-verticale/

City of Vancouver. False Creek South provisional vision statement & guiding planning principles. https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/false-creek-south-provisional-vision-statement-and-guiding-planningprinciples.pdf

False Creek Official and Area Development Plan. City of Vancouver (1998). Retrieved December 4, 2022, from https://bylaws.vancouver.ca/odp/odp.htm

False Creek South: Opportunities for the Future Engagement Summary Report. City of Vancouver (2021). Retrieved December 4, 2022, from https://vancouver.ca/home-property-development/false-creeksouth.aspx

False Creek South Neighbourhood Plan Launch. City of Vancouver (2017). Retrieved December 5, 2022, from https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/false-creek-south-history-and-context-workshop-presentation.pdf

False Creek South Planning Program. City of Vancouver (2017). Retrieved December 5, 2022, from https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/false-creek-south-planning-program-june-2017-open-house-informationdisplays.pdf

False Creek South provisional vision statement & guiding planning principles. City of Vancouver. Retrieved December 5, 2022, from https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/false-creek-south-provisional-vision-statementand-guiding-planning-principles.pdf

McDonald, R., Beatley, T., SpringerLink (Online service), & Springer Social Sciences eBooks 2021 English/International. (2021;2020;). Biophilic cities for an urban century: Why nature is essential for the summer of cities (1st 2021. ed.). Springer International Publishing.

Replan. False Creek South Neighbourhood Association. (2022, July 4). Retrieved December 4, 2022, from http://www.falsecreeksouth.org/replan/

Walking Tour 1: False Creek South East. City of Vancouver (2017).. Retrieved December 5, 2022, from https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/false-creek-south-walking-tour-summary-east.pdf

Younger, S. (2022, November 15). NASA Study: Rising Sea Level Could Exceed Estimates for U.S. Coasts. Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet. https://climate.nasa.gov/news/3232/nasa-study-rising-sea-levelcould-exceed-estimates-for-us-coasts/

HornetConsulti n g

Thank you!

Prepared By: Akamdeep Dhanoa Alfred Fernandes Daniel Chu Emily Wong-Abdul Isabel Xing