This is a study of administrative confusion and uncertainty which has beset development of an important part of Vancouver's industrial waterfront. False Creek is a two-mile long, twenty-foot deep inlet. Half the residential area of Vancouver is separated from the commercial center by this waterway and its shore is extensively occupied by industry. Originally the inlet was more than twice its present size, but the eastern half and a central mud-flat "bay" were reclaimed by the federal government prior to the First World War. Until 1924 the federal government claimed title to the bed and foreshore but in that year acknowledged the province's claim. It retained, however, the reclaimed area known as Granville Island and owns a large tract of Indian reserve land near the False Creek mouth. At the turn of the century the city was given title to the eastern half of the bed and foreshore, and later made the reclaimed portion available to the Great Northern and Canadian National Railways. The Canadian Pacific Railway owns almost all the upland lots on both the north and south shore of the waterway as it exists today. These are occupied either as terminal yards or under lease. Headlines have been established along its shore and the Navigable Waters Protection Act applies. False Creek has been a problem area because it is both an obstacle and an industrial area of high utility and potential. The city administration has been able to cope with the former, limited only by the funds available. Any over-all development, however, has been virtually impossible because of: 1) a confusion (before 1924) as to the spheres of responsibility of the senior governments, 2) their tendency generally to act without consideration for the over-all development, and 3) the total lack of co-operation between themselves or with the city in furthering comprehensive economic development. This has meant that the only development, apart from the federal reclamation, has been the result of private enterprise. It has been the good fortune of the city that this has never, yet, been contrary to the over-all potentialities of the area. Recent action by the federal government indicates that the Indian reserve property may be disposed of for purposes inimical to the best economic use of the shore. There appears to be no possibility of the city developing the waterway comprehensively by its own efforts, nor any likelihood that either or both senior governments will do so. The answer may lie in a statutory corporation publicly and privately owned, perhaps on the order of the English "mixed undertaking". Such or similar action would be facilitated if the city were able to acquire the False Creek land presently held by the federal government, perhaps by accepting it in payment for the city-owned (1954) airport. / Arts, Faculty of / Political Science, Department of / Graduate

The project began with a comprehensive investigation to discover and define the crucial elements of design in high density housing that foster a strong and rich sense of community. Both historical precedents and current Vancouver projects were studied to determine their attitude toward community in dense housing situations. I found the designs that were most successful in preserving a traditional sense of community demonstrated a far greater respect for one's individuality. They provided a strong frame for variable urban living, which reflects the pluralism of urban life. The program for this thesis was a live/work community and one live/work building within that planned community. The site for this exploration was South-East False Creek. The resolution of my proposal began with developing a new housing fabric, a prototype that could be used at South-East False Creek or in other areas of the city. The fabric I developed is a more intimate, finer slice of the existing Vancouver city grid. By maintaining some of the critical dimensions of Vancouver's city grid, the design of the new fabric can either fit into the existing grid or occur next to it. The community plan provides several distinct adjacencies for the buildings: live side, work side, park side and street/parking side. My concern with the design of the building was to identify a set of possibilities that are inherent in the community fabric, which show the diversity of the building itself as well as the flexibility of the space within the units.

[No Abstract]

False Creek has been both the poster child and the ground zero of Vancouver’s acclaimed ‘urban renaissance’ – the transformation of the city from resource town to world-class metropolis. This study explores the interplay between urban redevelopment and the loss of industrial land and blue-collar work in False Creek in the 1970s. I investigate how city officials, urban experts, local workers and business owners viewed and made sense of the transformation of False Creek from an industrial site to a commercial, recreational and residential district. An examination of the testimony of local workers and businessmen as well as of the visions of municipal authorities is necessary to demystify the loss of inner-city industrial land as a natural and inevitable process. I demonstrate how the demise of the industrial sector in False Creek resulted in part from state policy, and from changing understandings about the place of industry in the socio-economic life of the city. Finally, I make the case that while the redevelopment project incorporated innovative planning practices, and brought countless benefits to many Vancouverites, the transformation of the area is inextricably linked to a story of displacement. / Graduate

The project began with a comprehensive investigation to discover and define the crucial elements of design in high density housing that foster a strong and rich sense of community. Both historical precedents and current Vancouver projects were studied to determine their attitude toward community in dense housing situations. I found the designs that were most successful in preserving a traditional sense of community demonstrated a far greater respect for one's individuality. They provided a strong frame for variable urban living, which reflects the pluralism of urban life. The program for this thesis was a live/work community and one live/work building within that planned community. The site for this exploration was South-East False Creek. The resolution of my proposal began with developing a new housing fabric, a prototype that could be used at South-East False Creek or in other areas of the city. The fabric I developed is a more intimate, finer slice of the existing Vancouver city grid. By maintaining some of the critical dimensions of Vancouver's city grid, the design of the new fabric can either fit into the existing grid or occur next to it. The community plan provides several distinct adjacencies for the buildings: live side, work side, park side and street/parking side. My concern with the design of the building was to identify a set of possibilities that are inherent in the community fabric, which show the diversity of the building itself as well as the flexibility of the space within the units. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School of / Graduate

[No Abstract] / Applied Science, Faculty of / Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School of / Graduate

This thesis focuses on communicative participation processes and the mutual understanding that can occur amongst participants. This mutual understanding can often lead to better sustainability planning outcomes. It analyzes both the process and the outcomes of the process through a case study. The principle research question addressed is: does communicative participation in development processes, by a broad range of interests, contribute to social, environmental, and economic sustainability? The research instruments include: action research conducted by the author in the Southeast False Creek Model Sustainable Community Planning Process case study, which took place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; twenty qualitative interviews with the members of a policy Advisory Group, staff of the local civic government, and political representatives; and analysis of the key planning documents generated by the process and other contextual documentation. The findings from the action research are presented, followed by the qualitative interview findings. These two types of results (which were conducted independently of each other) were then compared, analyzed, and contrasted with the literature in an iterative manner. The literature consulted includes: communicative action, communicative action in planning, public participation, sustainable development and sustainable urban development (ecological, social, and economic). Two sets of criteria, one for the process and the other for the outcome, were derived from the literature review. The research findings indicate that this case study is an example of a reasonably good communicative participation process that was deep and long-term, but did not involve the broader community as well as it could have. The analysis concludes, however, that power played a significant role in this case study. This highlights the need for communicative action theory in planning to be supplemented, extended, and revised. Communicative action theory could be strengthened by being supplemented by political economic theory, progressive planning theory, mobilization theory, and postmodern trans-cultural planning theory. The process outcome, the policy for Southeast False Creek, was found to make marked progress towards ecological sustainability, and marginal movement towards economic sustainability. The policy was found to be quite lacking in terms of social sustainability, although it was given more consideration than in previous development policy in Vancouver. A lack of focus on social sustainability was found in the process, and this was reflected in the policy. Although the sustainability policy was found to be quite weak overall, it did lead towards greater sustainable urban development in Vancouver, and increased awareness about sustainability in the development policy community. This thesis makes a significant contribution to communicative action theory by analyzing a case study that put this theory into practice. It may also improve planning practice by recommending ways to improve communicative participation processes. / Science, Faculty of / Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES), Institute for / Graduate

Mixed-use neighborhoods, which feature increased housing/job variety and density, can create pedestrian and bicycle-friendly environments by reducing dependency on vehicles and traffic congestion, and shortening distances between housing, workplaces and other destinations. Municipal regulations are vital to modern mixed-use developments due to their capability to control the direction of metropolitan growth. In this research, I have attempted to make a correlation between local regulations and current neighborhood development patterns in three well known, mixed-use neighborhoods using the case study approach. Three mixed-use neighborhoods, the North Pearl District (NPD; Portland, Oregon), South Lake Union (SLU; Seattle, Washington) and False Creek North (FCN; Vancouver, Canada), were chosen for this case study research. I examined and visualized the local regulations that pertain to mixed-use development of each neighborhood using Illustrator and SketchUp. I also analyzed and discussed U.S. Census information, including households per acre, average household size and household vehicle occupancy. The investigation indicates that among the three neighborhoods, the mixed-use regulations of FCN are the most straightforward and clear. This is reflected in the consistency between regulations and current land uses. The overall mixed degree in NPD is relatively large likely due to its incentive regulations, making itself as a highly walkable neighborhood. The local regulations in SLU are the most complicated, and focus on attracting innovative firms. In conclusion, we have conducted a study to investigate the development of mixed-use neighborhoods by scrutinizing local regulations and analyzing current situations and statistical data. The results indicated that the straightforward and incentive regulations, such as legalized neighborhood land use plan and bonus floor area ratios, benefit the mixed-use developments of neighborhoods by increasing the efficiency in land use and maximizing the mixed-use degree, thus leading to a compact, walkable and vital community. / text

False Creek is a distinctive neighbourhood in the centre of Vancouver where you would expect to see high density, perhaps high rise development; instead you can see a low and medium rise and low density development with large public open space. It contrasts to the nearby Fairview Slopes and the West End. This thesis tries to investigate and explain what made this land development so different from others. In the 1960s, liberal ideology emerged in Canada. Its influence was felt here in Vancouver. It was embraced by the upcoming new "class" of professional, technical and administrative workers. This new liberal ideology gave new meanings to the ideas of "growth" and "progress". It promoted social equity and livability in urban development; its priority was placed on people not property.Vancouver was transforming from an industrial city to a service oriented post-industrial city. A political party founded at this time, The Elector's Action Movement (TEAM), was liberal-oriented and won the municipal election in 1972. Its election co-incided with the False Creek south development. TEAM innovatively administered the development. It broke away from the former administration, the NPA, and innovatively implemented measures to secure a livable and socially mixed community. The implementation of False Creek south in the first two phases was achieved with the commitment of the TEAM City Council and with the blessings from the federal and provincial government. The result is an innovatively designed and socially mixed neighbourhood in downtown Vancouver. What we can see today in False Creek south shore phase I and II is a legacy of what this party achieved in urban development. With the deterioration of economic situation and the return of a conservative movement in the late 70s and early 80s, TEAM faded away from the municipal politics. Conservative NPA was back to the municipal administration. Urban development was left to the private sector to manipulate.The later two phases became profit driven development with very little concern of social issues. To provide a socially mixed community was not an objective in the later phases in False Creek south. The result is high density, high rise development of the later two phases. This thesis investigates the False Creek south shore development in and after TEAM administration; compares the policies of the two administrations, and the perception of the role of the administration during and after TEAM control; examines the demographic and physical design differences in the same development between different phases. This helps to reveal the inter-relationship between urban development and civic politics and provides a valuable insight into the effects of policy and ideology on the nature of urban development.

High-technology and information technology industries represent a growing component of 'new economy' sector activities. Cities around the world often perceive these industrial and commercial activities to be high-growth in nature, bringing economic advantages and benefits to the cities where they are situated within. Concentration of hightechnology and information technology economic activity in cities has resulted in the formation of localstrategies and related policy initiatives aimed at attracting these sector industries into designated areas. Initial problems that ensued revolved around questioning the legitimacy, effectiveness and appropriateness of implementing these policy initiatives, which were characteristic of 'induced' development. Impacts on broader issues regarding the city's space-economy and structure were often not taken into account in these implemented high-technology led strategies and policies. This thesis responds to these problems by addressing the planning imperatives of initiating high-technology sector led development in urban environments. False Creek Flats was the primary case study examined in this thesis. Due to the proximity of the False Creek Flats site to Vancouver's metropolitan core, a research concentration on the inner-city is carried throughout the thesis. The research objectives and question are aimed at examining challenges posed to planning by following a particular policy and city initiated development path for high-technology sector concentration in False Creek Flats. Objectives are focused around the purpose of conducting a policy analysis on the process and initiatives for high-technology policy formation that occurred over the past decade in False Creek Flats. The research methodology consisted of gathering relevant and informing data and theories through an academic literature review. Information derived from editorial sources was also utilized to situate issues directly related to the primary case study. City of Vancouver policies, documents and sources represented a majority of the primary sources pertaining to the policy analysis of the high-technology framework for False Creek Flats. An internship conducted with the City of Vancouver Central Area Planning Division contributed to gaining access to information and planning perspective on the Flats high-technology led strategy. The stated imperatives to planning are based on False Creek Flats high-technology led strategy's classification as a primarily induced development. Imperatives exhibited in the policy framework formation and details are the importance of the proactive and assertive stance taken by the City of Vancouver and Planning Department. Flexibility, evolution and innovation to formulate new planning responses to deal with the problems and opportunities of implementing high-technology initiatives in the Flats were found to be essential. Planning implications for this case study include the ability to examine the issues from a broader perspective to take into account ramifications on existing city policy, structure and function. These planning elements are going to be critical in maintaining the original guiding principles, vision and goals for high-technology sector concentration in False Creek Flats.