A Neighborhood Manifesto
“The GOOD Guide to Better Neighborhoods: A Neighborhood Manifesto”
GOOD magazine did an issue on neighbourhoods in Spring 2010 and ran a special feature on how to create better communities and connect actual human beings with each other.
A lot of their ideas resemble we’re trying to do at 33 Fraser and echo our overall development philosophy, particularly their thoughts on community gardens and meeting your neighbours.
It’s missing a few things that we think are crucial (bikes and carshare for example), but it’s an interesting list with a lot of smart suggestions and solutions.
http://www.good.is/post/the-good-guide-to-better-neighborhoods-a-neighborhood-manifesto/
(Source: GOOD magazine - illustration by Trevor Burks)
Biltmore Cabaret
Popular with the hip, young crowd, the Biltmore Cabaret is one of East Van’s best live music venues.
It’s famous for hosting Glory Days, a weekly Saturday night social that feature local and international touring bands and live DJs; Ice Cream Social, a traveling dance party featuring music from the 50s and 60s; and the Rock and Roll Pizza Party, which is exactly what it sounds like.
Check out who’s playing next at: www.biltmorecabaret.com
Les Faux Bourgeois
Les Faux Bourgeois is drawing diners from all corners of Vancouver to East 15th Avenue and Fraser - the epicentre for fine dining in the neigbourhood.
This affordable and casual French bistro has received well-deserved attention lately, with Best New Restaurant nods (nominations, second and first place finishes) from the Georgia Straight and the Vancouver Sun and stunning reviews from everyone who eats there.
Globe and Mail
Go ahead, be sneaky. If you order for the table and don’t show anyone the menu, they’ll think you blew a small bundle on flakey tarte flambée Alsacienne, lamb sirloin napped a glossy sherry reduction and other richly braised French bistro classics.
-Alexandria Gill
Northwest Palate
The traditional bistro setting creates a cozy and casual dining scene focused on well-prepared, simply presented, and moderately priced dishes that are faithful to classic French roots.
-Laurie Guy
Vancouver Sun
It either makes you pine for Paris, or transports you there!
-Mia Stainsby
Make reservations! This place gets busy.
http://www.lesfauxbourgeois.com/
Said the Whale
Local music scene darlings and overall wonderful people, Said the Whale craft and perfect their infectious sound in a jam space in our building at 4283 Fraser, the site which will soon become the home of our development, Fraser & 27th.
The group are famous for finding inspiration in their surroundings. Their debut album Howe Sounds/Talking Abalonia features Vancouver-centric songs like ““Howe Sounds,” and “The Banks of English Bay,” while their sophomore release expands on their life in Vancouver and incorporates experiences from their cross-Canada tour (“Holly, Ontario,” “Emerald Lake, AB”).
We look forward to a song about 4283 Fraser on their next album. Said the Whale, if you’re reading this, check the fine print of your rental agreement. We’ll see you in the studio!
http://www.saidthewhale.com/
(photo: Jonathan Taggart http://jonathantaggart.com/ from www.saidthewhale.com)
Fraser Street - the new Main Street?
Vancouver and its communities are in a state of flux. Many people think that Fraser Street is in a unique position to become the new Main Street - a neighbourhood hub for art, food, fashion, music and small business.
This article in the Globe and Mail points out that rents on Main Street have nearly doubled and local independent businesses are moving over to Fraser Street. First-time home owners have also flocked to the neighbourhood due to its heritage homes with inexpensive price tags, family-friendly parks, tree-lined streets, good schools and great restaurants.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/real-estate/fraser-street-hits-its-stride/article1804537/page1/
However, as this article from the Georgia Straight from five years ago shows, declaring Fraser the new Main is like calling anything the “new black.” It’s been done. “It’s already happened,” says realtor Nancy Steele in the Globe piece.
http://www.straight.com/article/neighbourhood-watch-0?#
That being said, the best is yet to come for the Fraser Street area. We believe that we’re at the ground floor of an East Van cultural shift and can’t wait to see what comes next.
Update
This Vancity Buzz article also looks forward to the upcoming changes to Fraser Street. Check out the comment in particular for some feedback from people who live along Fraser.
http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2010/06/is-fraser-street-the-new-main-street/
This Is East Van - Community Photography Project
We think this project embodies the artistic and cultural community-oriented philosophy of East Van. It’s artistic people getting together to share their perceptions of where they live, and they’re not waiting for any sort of publisher to put their work out; they’re doing it all themselves.
This Is East Van creative directors Erin Sinclair and Jason Uglancia aim to “compile images from local photographers and self publish them in a book that captures what is happening in East Vancouver right now.”
They’re looking for “ANYTHING in any photographic medium that captures what it means to live, work, party and exist in East Van.”
Check it out at http://www.thisiseastvan.com/
Welcome to East Van - t shirts
Have you seen these shirts?
Kingsway. Nanaimo. Fraser. Main. Commercial. Broadway. Renfrew. Hastings. Eastvan. The major arteries that make up East Van in Myriad typeface on a smart looking t-shirt.
Welcome to East Van shirts can be found at Sharks and Hammers in Gastown and on the bodies of people like Brian King, guitarist and yeller/screamer/singer for local band, the Japandroids who wore one on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon in January 2010.
Welcome to East Van shirts: http://www.welcometoeastvan.com/
Sharks and Hammer blog: http://sharksandhammers.com/chirp/
Monument for East Vancouver
Growing up in East Van, the symbol that Ken Lum used for his Monument for East Vancouver was prolific. I know it’s in vogue to remember even if you actually don’t, but I actually remember it. And it was scary. It was associated with bikers, thugs and vandals. I saw it carved into men’s arms.
It also was pretty cool. It was edgy. It was dangerous. It was also ours.
Now, it doesn’t carry the same intimidation factor that it once did, but it’s still bold and still holds a lot of meaning. Now, it’s a unifying symbol for East Van in its entirety - arts, business, culture and communities. But it also speaks to the socio-economic history of the area.
It’s interesting how a symbol’s meaning can shift over time, depending on what ideas we attribute to it and the stories we tell about it.
What does the East Van cross mean to you?
(Photograph by: Gerry Kahrmann, PNG - from the Vancouver Sun)
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1 read this article by John Mackie in the Vancouver Sun. The city conducted a survey before the monument went up and most people, including East Van people, didn’t recognize it. Now everyone remembers it, even if they weren’t alive when it was used. http://www.vancouversun.com/business/East+side+soaring+symbol+illuminated+cross/4065958/story.html
East Van - The Cultural Heart of Vancouver?
East Van is quickly becoming known as the “cool part of town” and the “cultural heart of the city.” Those who live here, know that it’s not becoming anything; people are just starting to take notice.
This Vancouver Sun article by John Mackie explores the transformation of the perception of East Van as a “scary no-man’s land you steer clear of when the sun goes down” to a place that defines authenticity, community and culture.
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/East+sheds+emerges+Vancouver+cultural+heart/4075819/story.html
NOW and Cause+Affect
Cause+Affect is a local branding and design agency that straddle the space between civics, culture, sustainability and development. They wear many hats there, but their overall goal is to make Vancouver an interesting place to call home.
Naturally, Cause+Affect was our first choice when we realized that in order to get our ideas out, we would need a cohesive brand.
Brands are a funny thing. Sometimes “brand” is a loaded term that people connect with “brand bullies” and evil corporations, trying to brainwash consumers. But really, a brand just the outward expression of an organization’s personality an organization. Cause+Affect realizes this and they helped us encapsulate our history, our beliefs, and our vision into one cohesive voice.
www.causeandaffect.com
Welcome to NOW
Welcome to our blog! We intend to make this a place to share ideas, not just about our development philosophy, but about everything that makes East Van such a vibrant, interesting community.
