In Our View: Filling Hole In Downtown

It appears, at a quick glance, to be forlorn and forgotten.

In a downtown Vancouver that has undergone a face-lift over the past two decades, Block 10 appears abandoned and neglected as it sits kitty-corner from Esther Short Park and is abutted by Vancouvercenter on one side and Heritage Place on another. Those projects represent the attention that has been placed on the area in recent years as the downtown corridor has added some bustle.

But now, Block 10 — euphemistically called “Heritage Square” by Vancouver’s Downtown Association — is ready for its close-up. City officials are preparing to open the 1-acre block to a “request for proposals” in an effort to develop the area bordered by Washington and Columbia streets between Eighth and Ninth. The idea is to attract proposals that likely would include ground-floor retail, office space above that, and residential development on the top. The city’s request amounts to saying, “Who has a great, innovative, dynamic idea for this long-ignored space?”

Surely, such a dignified fate is in order for a block of downtown real estate, but the sale will not come easily. Two years ago, the city put forth a “request for interest” on Block 10, only to be ignored by developers. Yet the economy has improved since then and progress has continued on a proposed Waterfront Vancouver development, and both of those factors might make the area more attractive to would-be builders.

For years, Block 10 was a vibrant part of downtown. In the early 1900s, the site was home to Preston Bicycle Shop, W.E. Carter Wholesale Grocery and B.P. Youmans Hardware, but somewhere along the line, it was acquired by the Lucky Lager brewery and resigned to an ignominious fate. The brewery used the area as a lot for employee parking and for trucks, and the space was acquired by the city upon purchase of the brewery site in 1993.

The block has been off the city’s tax rolls since 1994, which points out the economic necessity of developing it, but there also are aesthetic reasons for seeking a purchaser. While several blocks surrounding it have sprouted like spring flowers and brought renewed life to downtown, Block 10 has remained a patch of gravel that stands out for its starkness.

So, the area is ready to bloom; the question is, with what? Downtown areas frequently struggle with striking a proper balance between retail, office and residential space, but it is a credit to modern planning that cities have eschewed the whole-block, street-level parking lots that were in vogue in the 1960s and 1970s. Competition from suburban malls forced cities across the nation to re-evaluate the amenities they offer and the perks of density, and residents and visitors alike have benefited from that reinvention.

For Block 10, that could mean a street-level grocery store and restaurants and a coffee shop and retail outlets. And, in keeping with the ethos of the Northwest, a brewpub would be a good bet. All of that, however, will be dependent upon the vision of developers who can look at a desolate downtown block and picture something that adds to the vibrancy of the city.

All of that is a long way off, as proposals must be delivered and decisions must be made and public hearings must be held. But in opening the door to a “request for proposals,” the city has taken the first step toward filling in what is a hole in its downtown.