The Town Planning Act was provincial legislation in B.C which allowed local governments to execute urban plans and re-evaluate and revise zoning by-laws.
From Bartholomew & Associates seminal A Plan for the City of Vancouver. A comprehensive urban planning document prepared by the American-based firm Bartholomew & Associates. This map lays out the proposed zoning for the central areas of Vancouver, including the neighbourhoods of Hogan’s Alley and Strathcona
A Plan for the City of Vancouver is a report written by Harland Bartholomew & Associates which lays out detailed instructions for creating a “great city” by developing districts, constructing roads, and expanding public transit
Ninety percent of the Strathcona area was zoned commercial and light industrial even though the area was almost entirely residential. This zoning change meant no bank or lending institution would provide loans or mortgages for housing improvements
Conducted by the Greater Vancouver Youth Council, the Vancouver Housing Survey provided important written evidence attesting to the presence of the Black community within the Strathcona area
This newspaper clipping is from an April 1938 edition of the Daily Province. This article by Vancouver journalist Jack Stepler painted a picture of Hogan’s Alley centred on rampant criminality and unsanitary living conditions. This is an example of how media outlets at the time portrayed the neighbourhood
Found in the meeting minutes of the City of Vancouver’s Social Services Committee, which met at City Hall on May 8, 1939, this report describes the poor building and living standards of the residents as being a direct result of the “economic conditions” of the residents.
This newspaper clipping from 1939 shows how public narratives like the one featured in the Daily Province article worked to encourage political leadership to take action and clean up Hogan’s Alley.
Parliament passed the National Housing Act with new provisions that outlined Canada’s national support for urban renewal programs in Canadian municipalities. These provisions were specifically to aid municipalities to deal with the prevention, rehabilitation, and redevelopment of “urban blight”
Rebuilding a Neighbourhood was published by Leonard C. Marsh, a social scientist at the University of British Columbia. This report detailed a hypothetical slum-clearance and urban rehabilitation project for Vancouver
The City of Vancouver’s Planning Department released the Vancouver Redevelopment Study which was largely based on provisions outlined by Marsh in Rebuilding a Neighbourhood (1950)
The British Columbia branch of the Association for the Advancement of Coloured People was formed in 1958. The BCAAP’s foundational mission was to be the leading advocacy organization for the province’s Black and African Diasporic communities
Created by the City’s Properties Division, this map outlines the plan of urban renewal for Hogan’s Alley and areas of Strathcona deemed as the highest priority to redevelop. These plans were developed as an extension of the Vancouver Redevelopment Study (1957).
Phase II of the Strathcona Redevelopment Project continued between Keefer, Jackson, Georgia, and Dunlevy Streets, despite the local community rejecting two city plans.
This newspaper clipping from 1964 plainly expresses the public’s disregard towards the neighbourhood of Hogan’s Alley after it had been demolished, and erasure of the Black community there, sentiments that had been entrenched for many years.
In 1965, the City of Vancouver sought public approval and funding to advance the urban renewal agenda
The Vancouver Transportation Study directly accelerated the demolition of Hogan’s Alley to accommodate the construction of the Georgia Viaduct.
This clipping announces the opening of the Strathcona Urban Renewal area office to the public to explain city plans to citizens. It specifically mentions that there will be an attempt to have a Chinese interpreter on site due to the large population of Chinese residents in the affected area.
Vancouver’s 5 Year Plan Programme sought more funding, specifically for the Georgia Viaduct renewal project. Additional funding was granted to further the Viaduct construction, notably as urban renewal remained on the national agenda.
This article from The Province newspaper describes how Municipal Affairs Minister Dan Campbell rejected a City plan that would displace 650 people to build a $1 million Britannia Community Services Complex project funded by “urban renewal money”.
City Council gave its approval to a $5 million Strathcona Urban Renewal Scheme. Half of the $5 million was funded by the federal government, while the rest was shared by the City and the Government of British Columbia. Under this initiative, property owners could “rehabilitate their own homes” with grant money.
Vancouver received this title for its “rehabilitating” of the Strathcona area. The Strathcona Rehabilitation Project was described by Urban Affairs Minister Ron Basford as “the forerunner of many such projects.”
This article from The Vancouver Sun describes how City Council members voted to rezone the neighbourhood of Strathcona between Pender, Campbell, Gore, and Prior from a multi-family category to a two-family dwelling district.
These images were created by the City’s Planning Department and Town Planning Commission for the Strathcona Rehabilitation Project.
The Strathcona Property Owners and Tenants Association (SPOTA) submitted a brief to Vancouver City Council which proposed a comprehensive development program for Sites C & D in Strathcona.
While our team is aware that this event is certainly not the first time a Black person was discriminated against in British Columbia, we endeavour to draw attention to the time it took for a ruling on human rights involving discrimination against Black people in B.C. to happen.