Finalists’ Submissions

Welcome to the online exhibit of the finalists of the 21 Places for the 21st Century ideas competition, sponsored by the Vancouver City Planning Commission. In it, you’ll find the ideas of 21 groups and individuals who live, work, or study in the City of Vancouver and who (according to our judges) submitted creative, whimsical, funny, innovative, engaging, fanciful, wonderful, zany, sustainable, provocative, and delightful ideas to improve and enhance public spaces in Vancouver.

Entry #2 - Harmony Grove

(south end of Burrard Bridge)

View the Quicktime Movie

Entrants' Description: To create a sculptural sound garden in Harmony Grove (southeast of the Burrard Bridge), to celebrate the cultural and ecological (elemental) diversity that exists in our city.

Contributors: Sarah Knoebber - artist/therapist, Sean Mills - former recreation and site planner/artist, Laura Jean Kelly and Cameron Murray Topographics, landscape architecture firm, Robert Middleton-Hope - percussionist and builder of acoustical furniture.

Entry #21 - Charleson Park

(south False Creek)

Entrants' Description: Our idea is to enhance the appearance of the waterfall area in Charleson Park by repairing the drainage problem and by adding a theatre platform to make it a welcoming, family landmark for everyone of all ages.

Contributors: Who are we? We are a class of 33 seventh grade students at False Creek Elementary School who are determined to win the Ideas Competition. There's nothing specifically special about us. We are simply a group of individually unique kids that have a dream. We each possess our own special talents that range from sports all the way to reading Braille and using sign language. Some of us may choose to become world famous and some of us may choose to live a quiet life. But that's our future and right now it's the present. And in this present, we are simply a group of kids on our way to adulthood who wish to make the waterfall beautiful. Judith MacPherson (teacher) Sady Abdiannia, Anna Benke, Dennis Capocci, Winkie Chan, Keisha Charnley, Ian Cox, Taylor Dixon, Matthew Eaton, Erik Frostrup, Kelsey Gage, Luka Giljanovic, Olivia Harrison, Tia James, Nadja Jankovic, Deacon Jones, Katlin Kelly, Jordan Kerr, Sally Kim, Timothy Kong, Sine Kundargi-Girard, Thomas Laird, Jeff Lee, Sophie Lowe, Niloufar Malek-Zadeh, Connor McNamee, Claudia McNeilly, Noorshan Nanji, James Park, Nazar Poverlo, Gardenia Rosenau, Bryn Tucker, Dylan Young, Sharlene Zevallos.

Entry #22 - Southeast False Creek

Entrants' Description: We have created a plan for a multi-use recreational and educational space that celebrates sustainability, health, and fun.

Contributors: The Fireweed Collective is a group of people who share a belief that individual lives, guided by awareness and principle, can make substantial changes to the pattern of energy consumption and environmental responsibility. The many positive and proactive people and organizations we have encountered in our various communities, university, travel, work, and life experience inspire us. We are Fireweed because we are a force that spreads widely and blooms powerfully, thriving in the wake of unsustainable practices. Michael Ackhurst, Joseph Renwick Randon, Sarah Carr-Locke, Angela Cecil, Sarah Redrum, Aaron Fleury, Jennifer M. Lupichuk, Rustam Punja B.Sc., J. Burmaster, Keona Wiley

Entry #23 - Various Locations

Entrants' Description: An idea to inject art into the transportation system of the city of Vancouver.

Contributors: Andrew Hale is currently a student in Community and Economic Development at Simon Fraser University. He is committed to environmental and social issues and has worked with groups such as the Vancouver Island Public Interest Research Group, the Environmental Youth Alliance, the Yarrow Ecovillage Society and the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies. His career goal is to work in the environmental field on issues of sustainable development. Andrew•s interests include environmental law and policy, urban planning and green building strategies.

Entry #26 - Main Street SkyTrain Station

Entrants' Description: The idea is to raise awareness about the uniqueness of water in a city where this resource seems to be abundant and to inform Vancouver•s residents and visitors about ways of saving it.

Contributors: My name is Clemens Schneider and I was born on the 8th of June in 1978 in Seeheim-Jugenheim, Germany. As a student of geography at Cologne University I got a scholarship in September 2004 which enabled me to come to Vancouver and to continue my studies at the geography department at Simon Fraser University. My focus is on land resource management as well as on environmental policy and conservation strategies. Of special interest to me are the different approaches to these fields in Canada and Germany.

Entry #33 - Various Locations Downtown

 

Entrants' Description: “Heritage Underfoot” - The celebration of Vancouver’s areaways and prism lights, through conservation, public art and interpretation, would link today’s public realm to the early 20th century, reminding us of the historic character of our oldest commercial streets and demonstrating how the city functioned before our reliance upon electricity.

Contributors: Tanis Knowles has resided in Vancouver since 2001 and is a planning consultant at EKISTICS Town Planning Inc. The challenging process of balancing interests in changing urban environments is what inspired Tanis to a career in planning. She is interested in heritage and believes that sustaining linkages to the past can result in more meaningful and authentic place-making. Tanis is an active provisional member of the Planning Institute of British Columbia (PIBC) and sits on the City of Vancouver's Chinatown Historic Area Planning Committee. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, and loves exploring cities of all shapes and sizes, especially Vancouver!

Entry #34 - Downtown

Entrants' Description: Vancouver is not one city but two.

Contributors: SFU's Undergraduate Semester in Dialogue is a novel and intensive learning experience that uses dialogue to focus student education on public issues. The program unites teaching and research, celebrates discovery and dialogue and provides an environment where risks can be taken and bold initiatives embraced. The program addresses what we believe is the principal challenge for contemporary education: to inspire students with a sense of civic responsibility, encourage their passion to improve Canadian society, and develop innovative intellectual tools for effective problem solving. Danielle Baxter, Joy Bernardo, Racheal Morgan, Tawnia Shyanne

Entry #36 - Sears Building downtown

Entrants' Description: Video Screen • Mirror of the Community

Contributors: Wayne Turner works as a landscape architecture intern at Phillips Farevaag Smallenberg Landscape Architecture and Planning in Vancouver, B.C. He has a passion for design and community development — particularly events programming and how we can better program outdoor spaces in order to support ritual and celebration, thus helping to increase the richness and cohesiveness of our community at large.

Entry #39 - Miller Street (near Kingsway)

Entrants' Description: Eight Stepping Stones Toward a Sustainable Global Community

Contributors: We (Alice Miro, Siu-Kae Yeong, Marc Trudeau, and Graeme Brown) are a group of four inspired Vancouver residents, and UBC graduates, with backgrounds in Ecology, Economics, Environmental Sciences, Architecture, and Engineering-Physics. Our aspiration is to lead a revolution of thought and action towards a more balanced, secure world. Our hobbies include fine arts, ecological design, baking bread, eating fair-trade chocolate, biking, dancing, and positively changing the world.

Entry #40 - West 45th Avenue between Cambie and Ontario

Entrants' Description: We propose to transform four blocks of West 45th Avenue (between Cambie and Ontario), in order to make the street environmentally friendly to residents, pedestrians, animals, and even for motorists.

Contributors: We are an extended family living in the 100 block of West 45th Avenue. Alex Jamieson is a landscape artist and a retired Richmond City Planner. He is the principal scribe, photographer and illustrator. Brenda Jamieson is an enthusiastic gardener and a retired programmer analyst. She is the brains behind the project. Julia Wagner is a Master's Candidate in Agricultural (soil science) at UBC, and provided technical advice, feedback and ideas. Darren Wagner is a paramedic and retired river raft guide. He provided down-to-earth advice, and renovated the bathroom while all of this was going on. Jesse is part Borzoi and part something else. He appears in most of the photographs and is the research subject on which most of this proposal is based. He has lived with us for about a year.

Entry #41 - Venables Street from Strathcona Park to Commercial Drive

Entrants' Description: Our Strathcona-Grandview "Gateway" Project proposes a sustainable bridge for people between Strathcona Park and Commercial Drive, using multicultural landmarks, design guidelines, and a reclamation of street space on Prior-Venables for pedestrians, bikes and greenery.

Contributors: The contestants are five individuals (Jill Smith, Emily Chu, Kent Munro, Peter Trainor, and Dexster Smith) residing in Grandview-Woodland. Like many of our neighbours, we are pedestrians and bicyclists. We are fans of the Strathcona and Cottonwood Community Gardens, and we would like to be able to walk or bike along Venables Street to get there. We dream of a better bridge between our neighbourhood and Strathcona for people who walk, bike, rollerblade, and skateboard. As a multicultural team we are interested in commemorating the diverse cultural heritage of our two neighbourhoods.

Entry #44 - Below the Cambie Bridge (north end)

Entrants' Description: Welcome to the Vancouver Hawker Food Market - an open-air food centre featuring cuisine inspired by the hawker food of South East Asia.

Contributors: Mitchell Edgar is a resident of Vancouver's False Creek neighbourhood who moved to Vancouver in 2000. He is active in his community and is on the Board of the First Vancouver TheatreSpace Society, producer of the Vancouver International Fringe Festival. He has a degree in Urban and Regional Planning and has a strong interest in urban design and in projects that make Vancouver an even more diverse and exciting city that celebrates its place in the world. His interest in civic affairs and love of Asian food has led to this project concept of a hawker style market.

Entry #49 - 12th and Larch

Entrants' Description: My park, situated at 12th and Larch, is a place for all ages.

Contributors: Hello, my name is Shubby (Martz-Oberlander) and I'm ten years old. I like to swim, bike, skate and do gymnastics. I live near U.B.C. and I've home schooled all my life. I wanted to enter this contest because I love architecture and building models. I am entering a park because parks are great places to play or just talk with your friends.

Entry #51 - 43rd and Wales (Killarney)

Entrants' Description: On an underused public boulevard in South Vancouver (an area with a long history of farming), adjacent to a plant nursery on the former pastureland of Vancouver's only remaining neighbourhood dairy, a project is proposed for a collection of functional birdhouses to be constructed, accurately depicting architectural details of past and present neighbourhood buildings, and arranged on the greenspace in relation to their geographic sites in the neighbourhood, to create a living map of discovery that is accessible to all.

Contributors: We are a small group of neighbourhood residents (Janet Morley, Ken Ross, Christine David, Celly Manirakoze) interested in local history who meet on an informal basis to learn how to conduct research and compile archival material about the Killarney area. We actively collect copies of historical and contemporary photographs of the neighbourhood, and stories of the people - past and present - who have made the Killarney area their home. Our group is interested in all the elements that make up a neighbourhood: residences, businesses, places of worship, schools, parks, farmland, gardens and trees, We hope to raise awareness of our community's heritage by celebrating these collected pieces of history through a variety of expressions, such as public art, walking tours, oral history projects, and neighbourhood mapping.

Entry #52 - On the Water Around Vancouver

Entrants' Description: CULTURE ARK; a “necklace” of public realm barges floating off the edge of the Vancouver waterfront.

Contributors: Scott Romses (Principal, Romses Architects) and project team: Yong Sun, Herman Kao, Helen Pang

Entry #57 - Expo Boulevard

Entrants' Description: A suspended river of logs floating above and around Expo Boulevard, under BC Place concourse.

Contributors:CENTROPLEXUS "idea generation" is performed by Monty Walden and Betty Chong. Both grew up in the Vancouver area and studied at UBC, Monty in Engineering/Arts/Architecture and Betty in Commerce/Business. Monty has since worked in restaurant design/building, film production and has started and owned businesses in entertainment rigging, and custom lake-rescued wood furnishings. Betty worked at the Plaza of Nation and BC Hydro before heading to Ryerson to study New Media. Having both just returned to Vancouver from Toronto, they are discovering unrealized possibilities for creating a more cultural and memorable city.

Entry #59 - Various Locations (Cars)

Entrants' Description: This project envisions a fleet of cars with each one transformed into a garden; seats, trunks and engine become a place for flowers, herbs and vegetables to blossom and grow in parking spots on the streets of Vancouver.

Contributors: The Vancouver Design Nerds is a small, eclectic group of artists and design professionals who share a common passion for design and the design process. We focus primarily on fun, short-term design projects pertaining to sustainability and community enhancement. We operate in an open, collaborative process, which draws on the strengths of our diverse backgrounds. These backgrounds include fine arts, architecture, green building consulting, graphic design, industrial design, mechanical engineering, and not-for-profit management. Amy Walker, Alex Grunenfelder, Bill Andrews, Carla Weinberg, Eesmyal Santos-Brault, Richard Andrews

Entry #61 - Broadway Station (and elsewhere)

Entrants' Description: Our proposals share a common theme: that the process of urbanization requires recognizing the potential of wasteful, residual spaces - scattered throughout the city - to create better, healthier neighbourhoods within the City of Vancouver.

Contributors: Team PATCHWORK - Erick Villagomez is the Environmental Designer and Founder of Metis Design-Build, a practice dedicated to issues of economic, environmental, and social sustainability. He also teaches in the Environmental Design Program at UBC, and works as a researcher and consultant in conjunction with the Neighborhoods Lab, a research, teaching and community service unit dedicated to improving the quality of neighborhood-scale planning and design. Caroline Toth completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts at York University in 2000. She spent two years in London, England, where she worked in the print and advertising industry. Relocating to Vancouver in 2002, she is now working towards her Bachelor of Communication Design at Emily Carr Institute. Caroline recently founded BlueboxStudio, a graphic design practice based on the innovative reinterpretation of past and present design concepts.

Entry #63 - Gore and Union

Entrants' Description: A series of berm insets and 15 foot high mosaic covered poles, as pedestals on which to place heads, all carved in concrete and/or cast by people in the Strathcona area and passers-through, to be placed at Gore and Union.

Contributors: Glen Anderson - I am a local artist living in Strathcona for the past eight and a half years. My artwork consists of creating mosaics and sculpture for public spaces, often with the participation of many people. I have had a keen interest in creative uses of the urban landscape for a long time, believing that art in and by neighbourhoods is essential to a healthy city.

Entry #73 - St. George Street

Entrants' Description: A unique opportunity exists to transform St. George Street (in the Mt. Pleasant Neighbourhood) into St. George Creek by incrementally day-lighting the storm sewer in partnership with local community groups and the new Great Northern Way Campus.

Contributors: Bryn Davidson is a recent graduate of the M.Arch program at UBC. He has a B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from UC Berkeley and studied green building and sustainable development under Profs. Ray Cole, Patrick Condon and Bill Rees. He was a grant recipient of the UBC Sustainability Coordinator's Disbursement Fund and organized and facilitated a public course and lecture series titled “Sustainable Architecture 101”. His thesis project was studying sustainable development options for the Great Northern Way Campus titled ‘Soft Design & Culture Lab’. He worked for Busby and Associates Architects in Vancouver (summer 2004) and for AMC Engineers in Anchorage AK (1998-2001). Bryn was assisted in the development of the boards by his partner, Kamala Rao, a recent graduate of the UBC School of Community and Regional Planning. Their urban-ideas consulting firm is 'rao-D cityworks'.

Entry #74 - South end of Burrard Bridge

Entrants' Description: A community Garden Greenway and Recreation area for basket ball, skateboard, mountain bike and BMX courses accessed by the heritage tram extended from Granville Island.

Contributors: David Grigg is a denizen of Kitsilano.