Demolitions Increased After Vancouver's 'Heritage Action Plan' Took Effect

Allen Garr reports on the results from the first few months of Vancouver, British Columbia's "character home" policy (also known by its official title: the Heritage Action Plan), which is intended as a preservation measure for historic homes around the city. Garr explains the policy before revealing its initial results:

"There was a demolition moratorium in one section of Shaughnessy. But for the rest of Vancouver, the city offered density bonuses for owners who chose to renovate rather than remove pre-1940 character homes. Builders were also offered a break if they chose to 'deconstruct' those houses and recycle the building materials rather than shredding them."

Unfortunately for the goals of the policy, Garr reports that demolitions have only increased: "In the first four months of this year the city issued 342 demolition permits. That is an increase of 20 per cent over 2014." The remainder of the article offers local preservationists the chance to describe the current wave of demolitions and the implications for current development practices on residential neighborhoods in Vancouver.

Kerry Gold also covered the Heritage Action Plan earlier this year, providing more insight on the intended outcomes of the policy. For the record, Elizabeth Murphy warned of the potential for the Heritage Action Plan to fail its expectations at the time of the policy's adoption in June of 2014.