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Vancouver Connects: August 2023
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| A Message from the City Manager
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| These are exciting times for Vancouver. Our rapid growth and evolution from a suburban to an urban destination drive and inform every plan and decision we now make as a City. Our values-based goal is to focus on an equitable economy and improve our community’s safety, livability and prosperity citywide. We have a lot of projects both in the planning stages and already underway that will help ensure we achieve those goals. One of them, the Main Street Promise, is about to become a reality.
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Vancouver Arts & Music Festival Kicked Off Today!
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| Free and open to all ages, the Vancouver USA Arts and Music Festival invites you to experience three days of exciting music, art, dance, food and fun Friday, Aug. 4 through Sunday, Aug. 6 in downtown Vancouver and Esther Short Park.
Three outdoor stages will host more than 30 live music and dance performances, from jazz to alt rock, and African beats to Ukrainian pop. The festival features daily activities for attendees of all ages including interactive mural painting, art vendor booths and art demonstrations in glass blowing, ceramics, calligraphy and more. Children will love the instrument petting zoo, caricature artists, doodle walls, roaming entertainers, face painting, balloon art and lawn games set up across the festival grounds.
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Summer Street Paving on a Roll
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We’re about halfway through our busy summer paving and preservation season, installing 127 ADA curb ramps, resurfacing five miles of poor-condition streets and completing 16 miles of preservation treatments to keep our good streets in good shape for the long haul. By the end of September, 20 neighborhoods will see improvements on local streets. If pavement work is happening near you, you'll get plenty of advance notice! We're placing signs, mailing postcards, posting to Facebook and NextDoor and dropping off door hangers to all residences and businesses adjacent to pavement work with details about construction hours, parking restrictions, closures and more.
Please watch for signage and flaggers during construction, alerting travelers to slow down and be prepared for delays. We appreciate your patience and flexibility as we work to improve conditions on your street for a smoother ride!
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Marshall Park Playground Grand Reopening Sept. 9
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| Get ready to play! The highly anticipated grand reopening of the Chelsea Anderson Memorial Play Station (CHAMPS) is set for 10 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 9 at Marshall Community Park, 1015 E. McLoughlin Boulevard. The new playground, designed by non-profit Harper’s Playground, marks a new era of inclusive play for Vancouver.
This massive playground is designed for all ages and abilities to enjoy. Fun features include a large centerpiece hill, zero-entry teeter-totter, sand play area, wheel play area, wheelchair swing, sensory garden and a playable art piece made from a real fire truck, water pump and upcycled fire hydrants!
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What Are They Building Over There?!
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This month, we launched an interactive Development Projects Dashboard to provide you with a one-stop source for information about every new development project, at every stage, in Vancouver. The new dashboard provides you with an interactive map of all commercial, industrial and residential projects taking shape in our growing city. This is the first of many dashboards we're developing to track and report the City’s progress to the community, so you can hold us accountable for the results!
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Making Inroads in the Heights District
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| Designs for a street network near the former Tower Mall site in central Vancouver are moving along. These streets will lay the foundation for the future development of a vibrant neighborhood center, including housing, shopping, parks and public space – all within a 20-minute walk. Work on the Mill Plain Blvd./MacArthur Blvd. intersection is anticipated to start in 2024. We plan to issue requests for proposals from developers for the development of City-owned land on Mill Plain next year. Follow along on Be Heard Vancouver to see this new district come to life over the next decade!
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Make Way for a Safer McGillivray
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| The City is planning to make improvements on McGillivray Boulevard, between SE Chkalov Drive/SE 7th Street and SE 164th Avenue, to improve safety and comfort for all travelers – no matter how they choose to get around. Thank you to the neighbors and businesses along the corridor who attended a community open house, chatted with City staff as we canvassed on the corridor, provided more than 101 comments and 1,400 survey responses online, or attended one of seven community conversations in July. Based on your input in the initial phase of this project, the project team developed preliminary conceptual design options that could address the top concerns you identified on the corridor, including: speeding, cars ignoring stop signs and unsafe conditions for cyclists and pedestrians. These preliminary conceptual design options were reviewed by our Transportation and Mobility Commission.
Based on their feedback, the project team is currently developing draft design options. Follow the project on Be Heard, for opportunities to review and weigh in on these potential options in the coming weeks. The City’s Transportation and Mobility Commission will vote on a recommended design option later this year.
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Housing Grants Committee Volunteers Wanted
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| We’re seeking volunteers who work or live in Vancouver to help us decide how to distribute millions in grant dollars to build more affordable homes, prevent homelessness and boost small businesses. As a Housing Grants Committee volunteer, you'll spend about 10 hours in January - February 2024 reviewing and scoring grant applications for federal housing and community development grants and the Affordable Housing Fund. If you'd like to get an inside look at some of the innovative ideas being developed by community groups and other organizations to address homelessness, affordable housing and economic success in Vancouver, don't miss this opportunity!
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Help us Update Vancouver's Constitution
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| We're looking for 15 community members who live within Vancouver city limits to serve on the 2024 Charter Review Committee. Our charter was approved by voters in 1952. It serves as Vancouver’s “constitution” and directs our City government’s structure and operations. As a committee, you'll review the charter and present recommendations for changes to Vancouver City Council. If the changes are approved by the council or through a citizen petition, they will be placed on the ballot for a public vote.
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Don't Fret, Summer isn't Over Yet!
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