P2
POLICY REPORT
URBAN STRUCTURE
Date: June 30, 1995
Dept. File No.: BP
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Associate Director of Planning - Community Planning
General Manager of Engineering Services
SUBJECT: The Vancouver Greenways Plan
RECOMMENDATIONS
A. THAT Council adopt the draft Vancouver Greenways Plan (June
1995), with the amendments noted in section 3 of this report;
and
B. THAT the portion of the Ridgeway Greenway on 37th Avenue,
between Knight and Granville Streets, be designated the city
greenway pilot project, and that staff report back after
completion of the conceptual design.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of A
and B.
COUNCIL POLICY
On November 3, 1992, Council adopted the Vancouver urban greenway
system, in principle, and directed staff to assess public interest in
the greenway concept through the CityPlan process.
On March 23, 1993, Council endorsed the greenways implementation process
proposed in the Administrative Report dated March 16, 1993.
On September 16, 1993, Council approved the staff resources, budget and
work program to initiate the greenways implementation process. Council
also instructed staff to create the Greenways Coordinating Committee and
to report back on the implementation of a pilot program.
On November 20, 1993, the public approved the 1994-1996 Capital Plan
which included the $1,560,000 greenways budget.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to request Council adopt the draft
Vancouver Greenways Plan (June 1995), with the amendments noted in
section three of this report, and designate the portion of the Ridgeway
Greenway on 37th Avenue, between Knight and Granville Streets, the city
greenway pilot project.
BACKGROUND
In 1991, Council appointed the Urban Landscape Task Force. In their
final report, Greenways/Publicways, the Task Force recommended the
development of a system of greenways connecting all parts of the city.
The proposed greenway system was incorporated into the CityPlan public
review process. The public strongly supported the idea. In response to
this support, Planning and Engineering staff were instructed to pursue
developing greenways in Vancouver. A series of public workshops were
held on greenways in November and December of 1993. The results of
these workshops included additional greenways ideas and a number of
potential projects. To facilitate the development of greenways, a
coordinating committee made up of City staff and representatives of the
Urban Landscape Task Force and Vancouver City Planning Commission was
created.
DISCUSSION
1. Draft Vancouver Greenways Plan
Greenways are "green paths" for pedestrians and cyclists. They can be
waterfront promenades, urban walks, environmental demonstration trails,
heritage walks and nature trails. Their purpose is to expand the
opportunities for urban recreation and to enhance the experience of
nature and city life. The Vancouver Greenways Plan, attached as
*Appendix A, presents an overview of the proposed greenway system,
including descriptions of the two major components, city and
neighbourhood greenways, and an implementation strategy.
(a) City Greenways
City greenways join important destinations and create a network that
covers the entire city. They will be developed by the City with the
support of the public, and they will be funded through City funds and
contributions from major developments, adjacent neighbourhoods and
sponsors. The proposed network of 14 city greenways is approximately
140 km long. Street rights-of-way will be used for approximately 50% of
the proposed network. As a result of the legacy of the Seawall and
Seaside Route, 25% of the network is in place. The remaining city
greenways extend the existing waterfront routes, provide a variety of
routes that cross Vancouver, and connect into the larger regional trail
system.
*LIMITED DISTRIBUTION TO COUNCIL. ON FILE IN CITY CLERK'S
OFFFICE(b) Neighbourhood Greenways
Neighbourhood greenways will be smaller in scale and more local in focus
than city greenways. Their development will be a local undertaking with
technical and funding support provided by the City. A number of
neighbourhood projects were initiated or completed in 1994 including the
John Street Connector, the East 19th Avenue Neighbourhood Greenway, and
the Keefer Street Pedestrian Overpass Improvements.
2. Public Review of the Draft Plan
The draft Greenways Plan was presented to the public at open houses held
at ten community centres across the City and at the Pacific Centre Mall
during the month of June. These open houses were attended by
approximately 1,000 people. People attending the open houses were asked
to fill out a survey which asked how supportive they were of the
Greenways Plan. Of the approximately 158 people who filled out the
survey, 93% strongly supported the concept of a city-wide network of
greenways, 69% strongly supported the proposed city greenway routes, and
84% strongly supported the concept of neighbourhood greenways.
Respondents were also given the opportunity to comment on the plan. The
comments were generally along the following lines. Maintaining and
increasing public access to the waterfront was very important. The
city-wide network is appropriate because it covers and represents the
whole city. Neighbourhood greenways are an excellent concept because it
involved neighbourhoods and strengthened the sense of community. A
detailed listing of all the comments is presented in Appendix B.
3. Proposed Changes to the Draft Plan
As a result of the public process it is proposed that the following two
substantive changes be made to the draft Plan.
(a) Publicways
The term Publicways was first used in the Urban Landscape Task Force's
final report Greenways/Publicways. This term will be used to designate
routes running through commercial areas, including the City Centre
Circuit in the downtown. As a result of a number of factors unique to
the commercial areas, including the large number of diverse uses that
must be accommodated within the street rights-of-way, these routes will,
in all likelihood, look significantly different than the other routes.
Therefore, adopting different terminology will help avoid confusion.
(b) West 11th Avenue Greenway
The community felt strongly that the project is not a neighbourhood
greenway in that it is part of a private development proposal, and will
be funded by the public contributions of the developer. Therefore, this
greenway will be removed from the neighbourhood greenway category and
incorporated into the description of the Arbutus City Greenway.
4. Implementation of the Greenways Plan
(a) City Greenways
Initial city greenway initiatives focus on building an on-street pilot
project. A portion of the Ridgeway was identified as the most promising
pilot project. The entire Ridgeway extends from Pacific Spirit Park to
Central Park in Burnaby. The proposed pilot project is located on 37th
Avenue, between Granville and Knight Streets and passes Queen Elizabeth
Park, Van Dusen Gardens and Kensington Park. A design has yet to be
done, and will be created in concert with adjacent residents, landowners
and other interested groups. Council allocated $1.5 million toward
greenway development in the 1994-1996 Capital Plan. Approximately $1.0
million will be used for city greenways; the majority of these funds
will be for the Ridgeway pilot project.
After adoption of the Greenways Plan, staff will begin the community
consultation process regarding the development of the Ridgeway pilot
project. This process will form the basis for a conceptual design of
the greenway. Upon completion of this work, staff will report back to
Council. Staff anticipate that this report will be before Council in
the fall of 1995.
Planning the downtown publicways and waterfront greenways will also be
undertaken. In addition, greenway planning will be incorporated into
current City initiatives, such as CityPlan, other major planning
programs and the day-to-day business of relevant City departments.
(b) Neighbourhood Greenways
Neighbourhood greenway projects have been handled on a case by case
basis, as they were brought forward by the community. The City has
provided advice and assistance as required. This flexible approach has
worked well and accommodated the various project types and the different
levels and styles of community involvement. At the same time, it has
allowed the City to address general concerns such as safety. Therefore,
this approach will be continued. Approximately $500,000 will be
allocated for neighbourhood greenways. In addition, neighbourhood
greenway planning will be incorporated into the day-to-day activities of
relevant City departments, and a public information package on greenway
projects and related City programs will be prepared.
(c) Funding
As part of the next capital planning process, staff will prepare a long
range plan to assist Council in determining greenways funding levels for
the next and subsequent Capital Plans. Tbis plan will provide Council
with funding options based on length of time to complete the network and
alternate funding sources.
CONCLUSION
The draft Vancouver Greenways Plan has received wide public support.
Adopting the Plan will further the development of the greenways system.
* * * * *