Vancouver Courier April 29 2015 by Vancouver Courier

OPINION 10

WEDNESDAY

April 29 2015

Houses make good neighbours

Vol. 106 No. 33

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vancourier.com MIDWEEK EDITION

THE VOICE of VANCOUVER NEIGHBOURHOODS since 1908

Land sale raises fears Residents meet to discuss Jericho

Naoibh O’Connor

noconnor@vancourier.com

WHEEL MAD Eager skater Theo Caseley, 12, was among hundreds of people who gathered Sunday to rally in support of the skatepark in Mount Pleasant Park. PHOTO CHUNG CHOW

Skatepark’s fate put on hold Skaters ‘scapegoated’ Megan Stewart

mstewart@vancourier.com

Like a mid-trick ollie, the future of the Mount Pleasant skatepark hangs in the balance. The Vancouver park board decided Monday night to defer its decision to tear out the 430-square-foot concrete landscape on West 16th Avenue. Instead, the NPA-majority board voted for more public input and a revised report, one that looks more closely at a transparent, noise-dampening wall. “Perhaps the options up there […] are

maybe a little extreme at this point,” said park board chairman John Coupar of the NPA. “There may be other ways to mitigate the noise that we haven’t fully considered before if we’re able to ﬁnd a way forward, perhaps that solves a problem for everybody and is respectful of the tax dollars we’ve already spent.” Because of three dozen neighbourhood noise complaints (some potentially from the same residents) and $26,000 worth of extra nighttime surveillance spanning the three years since the park was built, a staff report recommended planting grass in place of the skatepark or simplifying the ramps and rails to appeal to only beginners. Tearing out the park would cost $40,000 and downgrading it $25,000.

The park cost $80,000 to build. The possibility of a new skatepark at Jonathan Rogers Park — potentially the city’s 10th just nine blocks north — hinges on the future of the West 16th Avenue spot. Vision Vancouver Commissioner Catherine Evans asked if there is really “such a thing as a beginner skateboard park” since anyone on a skateboard can make the most of a basic curb. Despite standing room only at the meeting hall on Beach Drive, commissioners did not formally hear from any speakers before deciding to seek more feedback and revised recommendations. The 60-minute debate was punctuated by comments and applause from the crowd. Continued on page 3

Provincial government talks regarding the potential sale of its 38.4-acre portion of the Jericho Lands promises to be a hot topic at West Point Grey Residents Association’s April 29 public meeting. The meeting was initially arranged to focus on the Department of National Defense property — the 52-acre parcel of Jericho Lands that the federal government sold for development in October. But WPGRA spokesperson Phyllis Tyers said now both sites will be discussed at the meeting. “It was supposed to be focused on the DND portion, but I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of questions regarding the province now,” she said, adding that the association is concerned the province will sell the land without public consultation. Last fall, three First Nations — Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh — announced they’d partnered with Canada Lands, a federal Crown corporation, to acquire the 52-acre part of the site. The federal government sold the land, which sits between West Fourth Avenue and Highbury Street to the east and Eighth Avenue to the south, for $237 million. The provincial government portion of Jericho Lands is located immediately to the west and stretches to Discovery Street. It houses Vancouver Parks Board facilities — the Jericho Hill Centre and the Jericho Hill Gym and Pool, as well as West Point Grey Academy. These leases run until 2020. Word of exploratory talks taking place between the provincial government and First Nations emerged in a Global News piece in December. Vancouver-Point Grey NDP MLA David Eby asked the government on April 15 about its talks with First Nations, a potential sale, and whether there would be public consultation beforehand. Amrik Virk, Minister of Technology, Innovation and Citizens’ Services, responded to Eby by saying that more formal talks had indeed begun. Continued on page 4

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News

Park noise exceeded acceptable levels Continued from page 1 Evans and Green Party Commissioner Michael Wiebe argued the board should hear from citizens who signed up to speak. “I did want to hear from people from both sides,” said Wiebe. “You’re asking for consultation — they’re sitting right in front of us.” The four NPA commissioners voted to send the report back to staff. “I’m very hesitant to make an irrevocable decision of either removing this park tonight or signiﬁcantly downgrading it without ensuring we’ve really worked with the community to ensue all options for noise compliance,” said NPA park board vice-chair Sarah Kirby-Yung. “I’d really like to see the Skateboard Coalition be an active partner in looking at some solutions.” The president of the Vancouver Skateboard Coalition, Jeff Cole, said there are potential “solutions that would make this park work for everyone.” But he questioned if the

Former Vancouver Park Board commissioner Sarah Blyth addressed a rally Sunday to save the skatepark in Mount Pleasant Park. PHOTO CHUNG CHOW

adults jumping the fence at night and drawing noise and nuisance complaints are at the park to skateboard. It’s too dark to

skate, he said, but skaters are being “scapegoated” as the culprits for spilling into the park after bars close. “A person that hops the

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said, echoing the feedback presented in a 2013 report that found skaters were assumed responsible for grafﬁti, littering, smoking

and urination in the park. Another earlier staff report established the noise at Mount Pleasant Park does exceed acceptable levels. The city measured the noise from the skatepark over the course of one weekend and found it could be louder than the accepted 55 decibels during the day and 45 decibels at night. Six houses are directly affected by the loudest noise. When the noise spiked on a Sunday, however, the report found the excess decibels “were reached less than one per cent of the time.” “On the other hand,” the report states, “noise from the skateboard park will be less intrusive than indicated […] on many occasions since trafﬁc noise levels can be well above the background noise level.” The report also investigated the possibility of a transparent barrier to mitigate the noise from the skate park and proposed a transparent, 1.5- to 2.5-metre wall. twitter.com/MHStewart

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News

Eby pushes for community consultation Continued from page 1 “I can conﬁrm to the member from VancouverPoint Grey that in recent months we have begun to engage in more formal discussions and we won’t certainly pre-judge the outcomes of these discussions. We’re certainly interested in what they have to say and what opportunity is presented and First Nations are certainly noted and we’re happy to explore the opportunity with First Nations should an offer eventually materialize,” Virk said. When Eby further pressed Virk on whether the ministry will consult with the community before disposing of the land, Virk said: “As the member may very well know, local government is indeed responsible for all land use decisions and will certainly employ all different ordinates and bylaws and processes they have. And that’s when the extensive community consultations would occur.” In an email to the Courier Friday, the provincial

West Point Grey Residents Association spokesperson Phyllis Tyers: “I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of questions regarding the province now.” PHOTO DAN TOULGOET

ministry reiterated that the government had begun more formal discussions with First Nations in recent months. “We have a legal duty to consult with First Na-

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tions when selling Crown owned land,” the unattributed email stated, “and this is an obligation that we are committed to completing before any further process begins.”

Eby is speaking at the WPGRA meeting this week and he plans to encourage residents to pressure the government for consultation. “Canada Lands will

be presenting what their intent is with respect to community consultations [for the 52-acre portion], so that will be a big part of the conversation… Then from my side, it will be really a call to action that people get in touch with the provincial government however they can — and because it’s Point Grey, there are lots of people with direct connections to the government that are outside the usual [means] — and say, ‘Look, don’t sell this incredibly strategic and important piece of property without talking to the community,’” he said. Robert Howald will be the featured speaker from Canada Lands at the WPGRA meeting. Howald could not be reached by the Courier. Brian Jackson, the City of Vancouver’s head planner, said Canada Lands is in the process of hiring staff and consultants to begin working with the city on both the Jericho Lands and the RCMP site near Cambie

Street, which was part of the land deal last fall. Canada Lands told the city they would likely be ready to start discussions about process in May. “We had one meeting with provincial government staff to outline the planning process we anticipate for the Canada Lands portion of the Jericho lands. That was it,” Jackson added. “We committed to representatives of the communities that surround both properties that as soon as Canada Lands was ready and we were writing a report to council setting up policy statement processes for both — like Pearson Dogwood, the Oakridge bus barns site and Langara Gardens — we would be in touch to get their input before putting reports forward to council.” The West Point Grey Residents Association public meeting runs from 7 to 9 p.m., April 29, at Jericho Hill Gymnasium. twitter.com/naoibh

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News

Melanie Antweiler resigned as chairperson of Vancouver’s District Parent Advisory Council, April 20. PHOTO JENNIFER GAUTHIER

DPAC chair’s exit a surprise CLASS NOTES

Cheryl Rossi

crossi@vancourier.com

The chairperson of Vancouver’s District Parent Advisory Council resigned with a publicly posted letter April 20. Former DPAC chair Melanie Antweiler surprised other executive members by posting her letter of resignation to the volunteer body’s website, Facebook page and mailing list. Her letter stated she had lost conﬁdence in the executive and singled out the actions of a particular member. Antweiler says she shared her resignation publicly so people would know she was no longer chair. As to why she included accusations, she said: “I would have been asked, otherwise, why I was leaving.” DPAC removed Antweiler’s posts as soon as possible and released a statement about her resignation April 23. “We don’t think those statements are factual,” said acting co-chair Mabel Sun, who believes many of Antweiler’s frustrations were due to miscommunication. DPAC thanked Antweiler for her contributions and acknowledged her as a strong advocate for public education. “It is unfortunate that Melanie chose to resign under a cloud of unre-

solved issues, and that her letter of resignation was publicly posted and distributed widely by email,” the statement reads. “We as members of Vancouver DPAC executive will continue working with and through [Vancouver School Board] officials to resolve the issues at hand.” Antweiler said the VSB paid for two mediators. The first mediation didn’t go far. She resigned after she felt the second mediation failed to take concerns about her personal safety seriously. “It’s not a personality conflict,” she said. Antweiler said she wanted the mediator to help DPAC address problems that reoccur regardless of who’s on the executive, including respectful communication, time contributed and workloads. Sun and vice-chairs Diana Day and Farah Shroff are acting as co-chairs. DPAC holds its annual general meeting in May, with final elections to its executive in the summer. Sun says DPAC will likely strike a subcommittee to deal with communications and review social media protocol in its constitution and bylaws. DPAC’s website contractor also resigned as did parent Claudia Ferris from her role as communications coordinator. Ferris said in a voice mail to the Courier she didn’t think the problems that have arisen are unusual to a

volunteer-run executive. The VSB said in an emailed statement the board is working alongside DPAC to support its transition, but noted DPAC is an independent and autonomous body. Sun said DPAC needs to determine how it will vote on resolutions at the B.C. Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils’ annual general meeting May 2 and 3, and to focus on provincial underfunding and the VSB budget. “They already cut to the bone,” she said. “There’s nothing they can cut in the future, nothing. If they cut more, then the whole system is going to collapse.”

2015-2016 Budget

The Vancouver School Board is to approve its provisional budget for the next school year, April 30. Staff’s preliminary budget projected the VSB needed to meet a funding shortfall of $8.52 million. The board proposes changing its elementary band and strings programs, continuing to sell and lease back equipment and technology, decreasing its budget line for the purchase of furniture and equipment below average spending per year, reducing school maintenance, closing 28 unused classrooms for savings in cleaning costs and reducing and consolidating adult education offerings. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at 1580 West Broadway. twitter.com/Cheryl_Rossi

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News

Vision workers pick up city contracts

Mayor’s ofﬁce paid aide to Ontario premier for graphics Bob Mackin

bob@bobmackin.ca

The Twitter and Facebook director for Ontario Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne was paid by Vancouver taxpayers to produce graphics in celebration of Mayor Gregor Robertson’s third swearing-in last December. Cole Davidson, Wynne’s special assistant for digital media, conﬁrmed that he invoiced $600 for freelance work. The transaction was dated Dec. 9, 2014 and posted Dec. 20, 2014, according to Robertson’s 2014 discretionary spending records, released under Freedom of Information after a Courier request. “His work on social media engagement and infographic design was recommended to us by a variety of people, and was especially helpful on the engagement surrounding the Mayor’s inauguration,” said Braeden

Caley, Robertson’s communications director. Robertson and his staff spent $129,346.11 of public money on expenses deemed discretionary last year. The total was $15,000 greater than 2013, but the $93,815 spent on consultants was up by more than $42,000. Seven of the consulting transactions, worth $75,715, were dated Dec. 31, 2014 and mainly involved payments to veterans of November’s Vision Vancouver re-election campaign. Civil Communications and WPM Public Affairs were paid $15,000 each. Civil’s proprietor is Brenton Walters, the BetterTransit.info Yes campaign website registrant, and the payment was for transit referendum-related strategic communications and research. WPM was paid for strategic communications planning. Its proprietor is Marcella Munro, Vision’s campaign communications director and a contractor

Between November 2011 and December 2014, the Mayor’s office spent more than $384,000 through the discretionary budget, including more than $233,000 on consultants. PHOTO DAN TOULGOET

with the TransLink Mayors’ Council. Vision campaign digital coordinator Dan Pollock’s Theorem.ca Consulting got $12,000 for website development. Mark Vonesch, director

of the Tides Canada-funded Reel Youth, received $10,000 for video production services and Vision photographer Joshua Berson was paid $7,140 for “location photography for Jan.

1-June 30, 2015.” Berson was also paid almost $6,000 for four days of photo opportunities in 2013. Also receiving a consulting contract extension worth $14,250 was Oglov

Business Development, which was paid almost $296,000 in no-bid contracts between 2010 and 2013 after being added to a preferred suppliers’ list. The 2014 reports also show that $3,000 was spent for “Chinese language support” and $350 on Mandarin language tutoring. The contractors were also not identiﬁed. One expense was censored, because city hall deemed it personal. Other expense categories and totals included: Travel and training ($13,053.88), supply and services ($11,545.58), local transportation ($4,672.95), meeting expenses ($4,579.29) and advertising in the Pride Guide ($1,282.20). Between November 2011 and December 2014, the Mayor’s ofﬁce spent more than $384,000 through the discretionary budget, including more than $233,000 on consultants. twitter.com/bobmackin

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News Vancouver Courier wins 10 awards

The Vancouver Courier picked up ten awards – two golds, ﬁve silvers and three bronzes -- at the 2015 Ma Murray community newspaper awards competition for B.C. and Yukon publications at a gala Saturday night at the River Rock Casino Resort. Geoff Olson won the best cartoonist award for his memorable take of a certain Vision politician hopping into bed with Big Developers and Big Unions, while reporter Mike Howell also won ﬁrst place in the coveted

John Collision Memorial Award for Investigative Journalism for his feature story on the problems surrounding the Marguerite Ford social housing complex in the Olympic Village. “This in-depth report explored the tension between social goals and practical applications,” judges wrote. “This reporter provided a comprehensive look at the challenge of providing housing to hardto-house individuals in an urban community.” Howell also won a silver award in the best feature series category for his in-

Aaron Wong as the King. PHOTO REBECCA BLISSETT

depth coverage of the top issues in the November 2014 civic election. Former intern Wanyii Lee, now working for the

CBC, won silver in the business writing category for her story about the changing demographics of Chinatown retailers. Staff

writer Andrew Fleming was runner-up in the outdoor recreation writing category for his ﬁrst-person account of exploring a massive cave on Vancouver Island. The Courier sales team also won two silvers. Ad designer Adrian Cunningham and Tara Lalanne, director of sales and marketing, came in second in the newspaper promotion category for Digital Dentists. Lalanne and sales rep Keshav Sharma also came in second in the special publications category for their insert highlighting 17 adventure getaway options located near the city.

Former intern Jennifer Thuncher came in third in the sports writing category for a story of the controversial Paralympic athlete practice of “boosting,” where athletes and freelance photographer Rebecca Blissett won bronze in the portrait/personality category for her shots accompanying reporter Sandra Thomas’ story about Elvis impersonators. Last but not least, editor Barry Link and the editorial team also came in third in the online innovation category for coverage of the recent civic election.

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Opinion Neighbourhood houses Vancouver, we’re provide a home happier than you think Trish Kelly Columnist trishkellyc@gmail.com

Vancouver has been getting negative press after the publication of a Stats Canada report on the happiness of people across the country. Vancouver residents scored themselves lowest of any city. Striving to be the Greenest City, tooting our medal-finish livability rankings, “most unhappy city” is certainly not a title on Vancouver’s bucket list. The study doesn’t dig into the question of why we are the unhappiest city, but looking at the data pulled from almost 340,000 Canadians, it’s clear that people in big cities tend to score their happiness lower. Vancouver was the worst, but it was nearly a tie with Toronto. As was also noted in the Vancouver Foundation’s 2012 report called Connections and Engagement, people in big cities have weaker social connections, and generally are more withdrawn from their neighbours, two significant reasons to feel down about one’s life. But not everyone sees Vancouver as the capital city of morosity. Jennifer Wesman, manager of community programs at the Little Mountain Neighbourhood House, says if Stats Canada’s researchers had spoken to her or any of the 70 staff at this East Side community hub, they would have heard a different story about Vancouver. We spoke last weekend by phone just before Wesman headed off to support a neighbour at their citizenship ceremony. Wesman, who has been with the neighbourhood house for four years, sees a different Vancouver, one where neighbours get to know each other. Though it’s true that many on our city are feeling disconnected, Wesman told me Vancouver’s bad rap doesn’t give credit to all the pockets of connection happening across the city. At the Little Mountain location alone, over 150 community members are actively volunteering. Little Mountain is just one of 16 neighbourhood houses creating similar hubs in many of our neighbourhoods. For their volunteers and participants, the local neighbourhood house is often their path out of loneliness, isolation, and in many cases, even unemployment. It certainly worked for me. I was an atrisk youth in the ’90s. Along with other kids the system was forgetting about, I was poised to while away my final years of high school smoking cigarettes at the bottom of some gulley. A youth outreach

worker from the North Shore Neighbourhood House got to me in time. With her connections in the community and her genuine caring, she helped me seek a solution for our problems. Together, we developed a youth drop-in program at a nearby community centre that served much of the North Shore. It’s not just youth who beneﬁt from neighbourhood houses. Wesman told me of a woman who ﬁrst came to Little Mountain Neighbourhood House struggling with minimal English and a special needs child. At Little Mountain, she began English classes, got linked up with support for her child, and joined the community kitchen for newcomers. She now staffs the community kitchen program and is helping put together a cookbook Little Mountain will use as a fundraiser. Wesman says there are several staff who started out as program participants and now are also employees. This is all top of mind for Wesman as Little Mountain, along with the other 15 neighbourhood houses across the Lower Mainland, prep for Neighbourhood House Week which kicks off May 4. The following day, it will host a potluck and bike maintenance workshop. And next week, the cookbook launches too. If you haven’t visited a neighbourhood house you might think they’re just community centres unburdened from a mandate to provide recreation opportunities, but there are fundamental differences between the two. While they do not have the square footage of a community centre, neighbourhood houses also don’t have the divisive operating agreements that some Vancouver community centre associations wrestle with. Their program decisions are nimble and constantly being tailored to the community’s needs. Neighbourhood houses embrace a community development model and look for ways to build both informal and formal support systems for program participants, linking them with resources and each other. From literacy programs to potlucks and single mom support groups, neighbourhood houses focus on nurturing the people of the neighbourhood at every life stage. If Vancouverites want to do something to improve their happiness, visiting a neighbourhood house this week would be a good start. A full list of locations can be found on line at anhbc.org twitter.com/trishkellyc

Michael Geller Columnist

michaelarthurgeller@gmail.com

Last week it was difficult to avoid hearing or reading about happiness. At the beginning of the week, Statistics Canada revealed that based on 340,000 survey responses collected over a four year period, the Vancouver metropolitan area ranked last out of 33 cities in Canada. Saguenay, Que. topped the list. Measuring happiness is not a new thing. While Canada once was one of the few countries that did it, today many countries measure national happiness. There is even an International Day of Happiness held March 20. One of the world experts in the field is Vancouver’s own John Helliwell. John and I attend a weekly discussion group and I can attest to the fact that he seems genuinely happy all the time. Last Tuesday, John participated in a panel discussion at the Museum of Vancouver organized by the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR). The program was titled “Change Makers: from Evidence to Action: Inspiring Ideas for Happier Communities.” John was joined by the Statistics Canada official who oversaw the Canadian survey and Meik Wiking, the CEO of the Danish Happiness Research Institute. Yes, there is a Danish Happiness Research Institute. Wiking noted that while Vancouver may rank last amongst Canadian cities, by international standards we are quite a happy region. In an effort to increase happiness in Denmark, the state has eliminated community centre fees, created inter-generational community gardens, and studied the relationship between sustainable living and levels of happiness. Meik addressed the commonly held belief that happiness is tied to economic growth, possessions and consumption. While happiness is definitely linked to wealth, researchers around the world have concluded that above a certain financial threshold, additional wealth fails to improve individual and collective wellbeing. However, people with good health and employment, strong social networks and a sense of purpose in life are on average much happier. Since Vancouver is striving to become the most sustainable city in the world, I was interested in a Danish research

report distributed at the conference examining a correlation between sustainability and happiness. It concludes that people who say it is important to care for nature and the environment are happier than those who do not. Furthermore, those who reduce waste and recycle are happier. Examples included people who get joy from seeing other people finding value in things they would normally have gotten rid of. Those of us who have recently given away old clothes or furniture can probably attest to this. Last Thursday, the results of another survey were announced. This one examined the level of happiness in 158 countries and concluded that Canada is the fifth happiest country on the planet. Only Switzerland, Iceland, Denmark and Norway ranked higher. The 2015 World Happiness Report from the Sustainable Development Solutions Network undertook analysis in the fields of economics, psychology, health, national statistics and public policy. Armed with the information that Vancouver was not a happy city but Canada was a happy country, I decided to visit The Happy Show at the Vancouver Museum. Earlier in the week, Courier writer Cheryl Rossi wrote an excellent preview of this show. While some Vancouverites may be disturbed by a few of the displays, I highly recommend it. Check out the washrooms. You cannot help but leave feeling a bit happier. After attending the conference and Happy Show and pondering the national and international happiness surveys, I thought about some recent Courier columns in which I explored how good neighbourhood planning and housing design can improve happiness. “Pocket neighbourhoods” that cluster small houses around communal space are just one example of friendlier planning. So is the inclusion of corner stores and cafes within residential neighbourhoods. More block parties and perhaps an annual Neighbourhood Day, like that celebrated in the Netherlands, might also reduce the increasing social isolation many of us are experiencing. While none of us like to be told we are in last place, I hope Vancouver will score higher when Statistics Canada next reports on our level of happiness. After all, look on the bright side. We can’t do worse. twitter.com/michaelgeller

The week in num6ers...

80 100 10 384 93 153

In thousands of dollars, the amount of money the park board spent on building a Mount Pleasant skatepark three years ago that they are now considering tearing down.

The approximate number of houses included on the Beautiful Empty Homes Tumblr site listing vacant residences across the city.

The number of awards the Vancouver Courier won at the 2015 Ma Murray community newspaper awards competition held Saturday at the River Rock Casino.

In thousands of dollars, the amount of money the mayor’s office spent on expenses through the discretionary budget between November 2011 and December 2014.

The number of years park board watchdog Eleanor Hadley reached before passing away March 6 in hospital from pneumonia.

The number of goals scored for Canada by Burnaby’s Christine Sinclair, who was named captain of the women’s national team on Monday for the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

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Inbox LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Trustees not entrusted with politicizing school websites

Re: “Parent angry at Yes ads on VSB school websites,” April 22. My thanks to parent Koula Stoubos (and the Courier) for bringing the Vancouver School Board’s promotion of the Mayors’ Council’s position, vis-àvis a tax increase to fund an iffy we’llgive-you-everything transit plan, to the public eye. The school trustees can vote their choice, but adults — and those who have children in the school system — are mature enough to vote (or not) without a biased urging from the VSB trustees. The trustees should stick to what the public pays them to do: to oversee schools/education (in the narrow meaning, not from a pseudo-philosophic viewpoint). It’s bad enough that the mayors are using/wasting millions of taxpayer dollars to push their self-interests. Mike Tropp, Vancouver

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CO U R I E R A R C H I V E S T H I S D A Y I N H I S T O R Y

Empress of India arrives in city

April 29, 1891: The ocean liner RMS Empress of India arrives in Burrard Inlet from Yokohama, Japan to open regular service to Asia after setting a new speed record for crossing the Pacific by two days. She was one of three steamships dubbed “the white empresses” built in England for the Canadian Pacific Railway. The first CP train had pulled into Vancouver four years earlier, and the railway company had signed an agreement with the British government to deliver mail to Hong Kong via Canada. The 140-metre-long ship left England on Feb. 8 and sailed to Vancouver via the Suez Canal and Indian Ocean. After departing from Japan, she crossed the ocean in a record time of 11 days, seven hours and 27 minutes. The Empress of India plied the Pacific for 23 years before being sold to the Maharajah of Gwalior and turned into a hospital ship for Indian troops during the First World War PHOTO CITY OF VANCOUVER ARCHIVES She was sold for scrap in Bombay in 1923. REF # AM54-S4-: SGN 890 ADVERTISING

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Unlike Koula Stoubos, I completely agree with teachers and the VSB supporting the Yes side. It is not political. It’s the smart and progressive, forwardthinking choice. Anyone informed would support the Yes side for a better city. Her last quote is perfect: “Anybody taking transit, if they had the money, would buy a car.” It’s opinions like this that keep Vancouver from having world class transit and being a world-class city. Julia Longpre, Vancouver

Grandview-Woodland the wrong spot for spot rezoning

Re: “Grandview-Woodland group wants spot rezoning halted,” April 22. Many kudos to the Grandview Woodland Area Council (GWAC) and Jim Fraser for focusing on the key problem of spot rezoning in our local community and across the city. Bringing this issue before city council is critical as the Grandview-Woodland Citizens Assembly ﬁnalizes its recommendations on our much discussed community plan. Spot rezoning effectively makes a sham of the neighbourhood consultation process and a ten year moratorium would be an excellent ﬁrst step in returning credibility to the city planning process. Barbara Cameron, Vancouver

•••

The Grandview-Woodland Area Council has dedicated enormous amounts of time and energy to the local planning process. We have contributed our time and thought to the Citizens’

Barry Link

ddhaliwal@vancourier.com

blink@vancourier.com

PUBLISHER

EDITOR

Tara Lalanne

DIRECTOR SALES & MARKETING

tlalanne@vancourier.com

TheVancouverCourierisadivisionofLMPPublicationLimitedPartnership. Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement No. 40025215. All material in the Vancouver Courier is copyrighted and cannot be reproduced without permission of the publisher. This newspaper reserves the right to reject any advertising which it considers to contain false or misleading information or involves unfair or unethical practices. The advertiser agrees the publisher shall not be liable for damages arising out of error in any advertisement beyond the amount paid for such advertisement. We collect, use and disclose your personal information in accordance with our Privacy Statement which is available at vancourier.com.

ONLINE COMMENTS Opinions across the board on board’s Yes side backing

Re: “Parent angry at Yes ads on VSB school websites,” April 22. Wow. I’m a parent and I don’t have time to get incensed about anything anymore. Where does she get the energy? But seriously folks, schools are one of the many, many institutions that beneﬁt from improved transportation, whether it be transit options for grandparents taking a child to school, improving the commute of teachers, and so on and so on. Hu Gadarn, via Comments section

•••

“It’s much faster to go with a car,” she said. “Anybody who’s taking transit, if they had the money, would probably buy a car.” My parents had cars, and I still biked and took the bus to school. More frequent buses would have been nice. Its almost like grown-ups have better things to do than chauffeur their perfectly able kids to school every day — not this lady though apparently. ilstotch, via Comments section

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TransLink tax is controversial with the public divided for good reasons. Schools shouldn’t be spreading political propaganda. Stanley, via Comments section

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Groups should stay out of politics, particularly taxpayer-funded groups. positively4thstreet, via Comments

have your say online...

FLYER SALES

Dee Dhaliwal

Assembly and to sub-area workshop after sub-area workshop. When the Citizens’ Assembly issues its ﬁnal recommendations, we expect the city to pay respectful attention and implement their recommendations. In particular, GWAC has urged the Assembly to recommend a ten year moratorium on spot rezoning. Spot rezoning, generally requested by developers wanting to build taller, more proﬁtable buildings than the local zoning calls for, makes a hash of neighbourhoods and of community plans. As well, one upzoned building leads to more of the same because each creates a precedent. Between the very large contributions developers are allowed to make to civic election campaigns and the Community Amenity Contributions they provide to the city, developers are running the show in Vancouver. A CAC is essentially the bribe paid to the city to allow a developer to bypass local zoning. I want to register my support for the ten year moratorium on spot re-zoning. Micah Waskow, Vancouver

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Letters may be edited by the Courier for reasons of legality, taste, brevity and clarity. Send to: 303 West Fifth Ave., Vancouver V5Y-1J6 or email letters@vancourier.com

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THE VANCOUVER COURIER W E DN E SDAY, A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

Community

1. Donald Hall was one of the many who showed up at the Cinematheque’s Poster Sale this past Saturday morning. The sale included an auction for three first-edition posters of blockbusters Raiders of the Lost Ark, Back to the Future, and Return of the Jedi where the starting bids ranged from one hundred to three hundred dollars. 2. Cinematheque held the sale in the lobby of its downtown cinema. 3. Some of the staff who organized it included Kate Ladyshewsky and Shaun Inouye. The last sale was in 2008. 4. Jennifer Jarvis showed off her The Princess Bride brooch. 5. The sale saw the release of hundreds of posters by arthouse favourites such as Michaelangelo Antonioni, Jean Renoir and Albert Lamorisse. See photo gallery online at vancourier.com. PHOTOS REBECCA BLISSETT

Posters memorialize movie moments

The Cinematheque holds ﬁrst poster sale in seven years CITY LIVING Rebecca Blissett

rvblissett@gmail.com

Many people’s experience with posters didn’t follow them past their teen years when either Heather Locklear or her big-haired equal Rob Lowe adorned many a suburban bedroom wall. But real poster collecting, just like any other subgroup of collectors, is about the hunt for both rare and favourite which is why the Cinematheque was score heaven Saturday morning. The Cinematheque advertised its Poster Sale as an annual event but the truth is the last one was seven years ago. Since then, the theatre has amassed hundreds of arthouse posters that volunteers tirelessly cataloged for the

first time for the sale where the most expensive boutique poster had a $25 price tag. This excluded the auction for three first-edition posters of blockbusters Raiders of the Lost Ark, Back to the Future and Return of the Jedi where the starting bid was also reasonable (money raised supports the theatre’s Indie Filmmakers Lab for kids). “The posters definitely act as art but they’re also tokens or mementos of the experience. What I’m hoping for is the people coming in have a personal connection to the film that they saw here,” said the Cinematheque’s operations and marketing director Shaun Inouye minutes before doors opened to the dozens waiting outside the Vancouver cinema. “What’s also neat about this is that it’s a history of the programming at the

Cinematheque as well.” The handful of Cinematheque volunteers and staff who worked the two-hour long sale were happy to put the posters in the hands of appreciators rather than online auction opportunists. When Inouye scanned the line-up he said was pleased to recognize faces of several patrons. Those in the line-up were given a sheet with the list of available titles and scampered into the small lobby to rummage through the boxes that contained ﬁnds such as Michelangelo Antonioni’s L’Avventura (1955), Jean Luc Godard’s Every Man For Himself (1980), and Roberto Rossellini’s Rome Open City (1945). Inouye picked up a Francois Truffaut poster while volunteer Alan Kollins said he already had 50 titles in his own col-

lection, including his most cherished David Cronenbergs. But not all posters went to the homes of keen collectors — Reilley Pollard, one of the first through the door, bought Vittorio De Sica’s The Bicycle Thief and Federico Fellini’s 8 ½ because he just moved into a new place and wanted art for the walls. Posters once travelled with the film canister from theatre to theatre (why firsteditions are exceptionally rare, theatres had to return them, all folded up, along with the film) and the collector’s market didn’t start until the 1960s — notably when many European films were making their way to North America. The beauty of restoring arthouse films is that the distribution companies have virtual free reign when it comes to poster

design, as they’re appealing to a niche audience. “They get quite creative with the imagery and the artist they bring in to work on the posters because they’re distilling the film into a particular image,” said Inouye. “With blockbuster or mainstream films, they’re really selling the actors that are in it so that’s why you see that classic Photoshop look with all the main actors standing next to each other with probably nothing else about the film.” The Cinematheque prides itself on giving Vancouverites a film education based on its programming. It was established as a film society in 1972 and, according to Inouye, is one of the most active film societies in Western Canada with more than 500 film screenings each year which includes

international cinema, director retrospectives, contemporary Canadian films, arthouse classics, and experimental shorts. And it’s the glimpses of appreciation that leave the people behind the curtains at the Cinematheque happy. “I saw somebody find the poster for The Color Wheel and that was really neat because they remember seeing it here two years ago,” said Inouye, “There are titles a lot of people know but it’s those jewels — those films that didn’t break through to the mainstream at all — that people have a different relationship with. It’s almost like an ownership. They’re a fan and they like a film that not everybody does and The Color Wheel is definitely one of those films which is the best part about it.” twitter.com/rebeccablissett

W E DN E SDAY, A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 5 THE VANCOUVER COURIER

News

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Development Permit Board Meeting: May 4 FINAL DUTY Mourners for Eleanor Hadley gathered Saturday afternoon at Barclay Manor to bid farewell to the senior, a tenacious guardian of green space in Vancouver. The memorial included the display of a painting of the 93-year-old Hadley in her younger years.

The Development Permit Board and Advisory Panel will meet:

Sandra Thomas

Monday, May 4, 2015 at 3 pm Vancouver City Hall, 453 West 12th Avenue Ground ﬂoor, Town Hall Meeting Room

PHOTO REBECCA BLISSETT

sthomas@vancourier.com

Friends and acquaintances of Eleanor Hadley gathered Saturday afternoon at Barclay Manor to bid farewell to the senior, a tenacious guardian of green space in this city and in particular Stanley Park. Bruce Mcdonald, au-

thor, historian and dear friend to Hadley, spoke of the 93-year-old’s ﬁnal days. He says even while in hospital ﬁghting the pneumonia that eventually took her life, Hadley was determined to recover and continue her run for park board. Hadley also ran for the board (unsuccessfully) at age 90. Filmmaker

Dan Pierce created a video montage of interviews he had done with Hadley during the ﬁlming of the documentary The Hollow Tree, which brought smiles to everyone in the room. Attending the celebration of life were Hadley’s aunt Virginia Maziak and her daughter from Ontario, as well as several

former park board chairs and commissioners. Former park board chair Laura McDiarmid told the crowd that while Hadley was famously known for being outspoken, often to the chagrin of the sitting park board, she also played an important role to the democratic process. twitter.com/sthomas10

Penalties urged for vacancies

City developing site to report vacant homes Naoibh O’Connor

noconnor@vancourier.com

James Macdonald, a contributor to the popular Beautiful Empty Homes Tumblr site, is encouraged the city is developing a digital site where Vancouver residents can report vacant homes. But he hopes the information will be made public and he wants a public beneﬁt extracted from non-resident buyers. Mukhtar Latif, the city’s chief housing ofﬁcer, informed council in an April 20 memo that the reporting site is in the works. Latif said the Vancouver Affordable Housing Agency, in addition to a review of studies and potential data sources about vacant homes, has issued a tender for consulting assistance in investigating this issue, including how it impacts the “vibrancy of neighbourhoods.” The department also is working with City of Vancouver communications and 311, and with community groups to develop a site where “the public can report vacant homes in a coherent fashion, thus allowing us to potentially match it up with B.C. Hydro data.”

Concern about vacant homes has climbed as property values have soared, vacancies have dropped, and residents with average incomes have been driven out of the real estate market and from Vancouver. Macdonald started Beautiful Empty Homes on Tumblr last August with other Dunbar residents out of concern there are too many empty homes in the city while families and homeless people are looking for a place to live. About 100 so-called empty homes have been posted on the site, with their locations mapped. The most recent post, in January, is of a Vancouver Special described as a “Commercial Drive Casa,” which the poster said has been vacant for more than a year. Macdonald said the city’s plan for a reporting site sounds good, although it’s belated. “I guess we think homes should be lived in by people and if people do want to speculate, which happens globally now, it’s up to the government to get a public beneﬁt out of that,” he said. “Like a punitive property tax assessment on an empty

home or in Hong Kong they have a surcharge if you’re a non-resident or a company that’s purchasing a residential home, you pay a stamp duty and that money is invested in public housing or in parks [or something].” Latif’s memo lists 10 possible reasons a property might be left vacant such as development timing; that the home is in the process of being sold or rented; that it’s been vacated in anticipation of being renovated; that it’s being ﬂipped; that it’s a domestic investment property; that it’s an international investment property; that it’s used for “hoteling,” which means the owner might work in the city but has a long commute so he or she has purchased a property to live in during the week; that the owner is on sabbatical or is a snowbird; or the owner is in hospital or in care. Vision Vancouver Coun. Kerry Jang said it’s important to get accurate information before acting. “I often get emails that there are all these empty houses and if they weren’t empty, they’d be used by people, there would be a lot

to consider the following development permit application: 1177 Jervis Street To develop this site with a 19-storey, mixed-use building with one level of commercial space (first floor) and 19 levels of residential (first to 19th floors) containing 91 dwelling units (63 market and 28 social housing) all over three levels of underground parking, with vehicle access from the lane. Please contact City Hall Security (ground floor) if your vehicle may be parked at City Hall for more than two hours. TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM: 604-873-7469 or lorna.harvey@vancouver.ca Visit: vancouver.ca Phone: 3-1-1 TTY: 7-1-1

more product on the market, prices would drop and so on and so forth,” he said. “It gets to the point that we want to actually ﬁgure out if it’s true or not… Really what we want to do is collect really good information and metrics on it and see if this is actually a problem. Then, if it is, if housing is simply being treated as a commodity, then we can take that information to the federal and provincial governments and see if they want to do something about it. If it isn’t, then we put that one to rest.” Jang said people shouldn’t jump to conclusions if they spot what appears to be a vacant home. Last year, his own home was identiﬁed by someone as being vacant. Jang’s lived in it for more than 20 years, but moved out for eight months to renovate it. “I’m a third generation Canadian, born and raised in Vancouver, and somebody sent me an email saying, ‘I think this house is empty and I see an Asian guy in a suit in there and he must be the real estate agent or a foreign investor,’” he recalled. “And it was my house.” twitter.com/naoibh

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F R I DAY, A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 5 THE VANCOUVER COURIER

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THE VANCOUVER COURIER W E DN E SDAY, A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

Travel

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings wrote The Yearling, her Pulitzer Prize-winning book, at this table, on a typewriter similar to this one, in her house in Cross Creek, Fla. The house is now a shrine to the author.

The Pulitzer prize-winning house that ‘crackers’ built Mitchell Smyth

Meridian Writers’ Group

Cross Creek, Fla. — In the early 1930s, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings wanted to get away from urban life, to ﬁnd “some small place of enchantment” (her words) where she could write. She found it here among the poor white sharecroppers of north-central Florida, the people known as “crackers.” She bought a citrus grove, moved in with her husband Charles and unpacked her typewriter. There was no indoor plumbing and power came

“I’m worried about Mom.”

from a generator. And there was no telephone. A ranger-guide at the grove, now a state park, takes up the story: “One day in 1939, the girl from the grocery store a couple of miles away came running up. ‘You’re wanted on the phone,’ she said. ‘You’ve won something.’” Indeed she had. She’d won the Pulitzer Prize for her novel The Yearling, about a cracker couple, their young son and his pet fawn. The farmhouse — actually three cracker houses stitched together by walkways — is preserved much as it was then. The citrus trees are laden, there’s a

vintage Oldsmobile in a lean-to, blue herons wade in the creek and chickens, ducks and cats wander around. Park rangers, in 1930s period garb, take visitors — an estimated 30,000 a year — around. During the day, Rawlings and her husband (they divorced the same year the writer won her Pulitzer) built fences, pruned trees, slaughtered hogs, picked oranges and grapefruit and fought storms and ﬂies. And now and then Marjorie went off to live for a while with cracker families, absorbing, as historian Webb Garrison notes, “The

color, cadence and unremitting despair of Florida life in the 1930s.” Then she put it all on paper, pounding her typewriter, a similar model to the one you’ll ﬁnd today in the table in the living room, near drafts of some of her manuscripts. In 1942, she published the memoir Cross Creek, recording her early years struggling on the citrus grove. Some critics call it her best work but it has been overshadowed by the success of The Yearling. Both Cross Creek and The Yearling have been made into motion pictures. Rawlings didn’t spend

all her time working the farm and writing. Guides say she liked to party now and then. There was Prohibition when she first moved in and she would go to places deep in the woods and drink with moonshiners and bring back a five-gallon jar. Moonshiners figure in several of her stories. After the Pulitzer win, Florida, which lacked the literary aristocracy of some other states, basked in the shadow of Rawlings’ success. She welcomed the likes of Robert Frost, A. J. Cronin, Dylan Thomas and Wendell Wilkie to Cross Creek. Ernest Hemingway became

a friend — she has said his crisp style was an inspiration — and first lady Eleanor Roosevelt entertained her at the White House. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings died of a cerebral hemorrhage in 1953, aged 57. She is buried in a cemetery near her peaceful citrus grove in Cross Creek. Her grave marker reads simply, “By her writing she endeared herself to the people of the world.” For more information, go to the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park website at floridastateparks.org. For information on travel in Florida, check out visitflorida.com.

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MADE IN CANADA

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THE VANCOUVER COURIER W E DN E SDAY, A P R I L 2 9 , 2 0 1 5

Living

Every step helps build our community

Staying physically active is a key part of healthy living. PHOTO DAN TOULGOET

The habit of physical activity HEALTHWISE Davidicus Wong, M.D

davidicuswong.wordpress.com.

VA N C O U V E R

June 28, 2015

H A L F - M A R A T H O N & 5k

Pace, stride, endurance. Every kilometre you run can earn donations for the Scotiabank Charity Challenge. The Challenge raised over $7.3 million last year, helping build stronger communities across Canada. Together, we’re building a Bright Future for everyone.

How do we acquire our habits? Often it is from the standard set by those around us. If your friends each have more than three alcoholic drinks in one day when you go out on the weekend, you might think that’s normal and healthy (If you do, it’s not. Ask your doctor or your liver.) If your friends and family are couch potatoes, you are more likely to be one too. And it’s not because it’s contagious or genetic (unless your dad really is a potato). My role models for physical activity were my parents. My dad was very athletic and trained us in the fundamental movement skills of throwing, catching, jumping, running, agility (balance and coordination), kicking and striking (balls but not each other). He has shown us from our

toddler years into his 80s that a variety of physical activity is a fundamental key to healthy living. Always a do-it-yourselfer, he continues to do his own house and yard work. My mom — when she wasn’t cooking, cleaning and running errands for the rest of us — exercised daily. This included aerobics classes, tai chi, bowling and line dancing. Fast walking was always a part of my parents’ active lifestyle. To help more people in our communities acquire the habit of being physically active, Doctors of B.C. has organized Walk With Your Doc events throughout the province. The doctors who treat you in their clinics and hospitals are now your role models in the community. We really do walk the talk! During the week of May 9 to 17, doctors throughout British Columbia will be promoting physical activity in a variety of community events. On Saturday, May 9,

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we’ll kick off the week with a free and fun 2 km walk at Kitsilano Beach Park at 10 a.m. As the event’s emcee, I’ll be there with many of my colleagues along with our patients. Even if your doctor isn’t there, you’re welcome to attend. All members of the public are invited, but come early to get your free pedometer. For more information about this event, check online at www.bcma.org/walk-withyour-doc. To celebrate the World Health Organization’s Move for Health Day on Sunday, May 10 (Mothers’ Day), many cities are hosting a variety of activities in local parks and recreation centres. To ﬁnd out more, check out your community’s recreation facilities. Dr. Davidicus Wong is a family physician and Physician Lead of the Burnaby Division of Family Practice. You can read more about achieving your positive potential in health at davidicuswong. wordpress.com.

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Arts&Entertainment

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GOT ARTS? 604.738.1411 or events@vancourier.com

April 29 to May 1, 2015 1. The DOXA Documentary Film Festival is back to expand your mind and stretch your eyeballs April 30 to May 10 at various venues across the city. From politics to justice to musical retrospectives, there’s something for everyone. Highlights include the political pranksterism of The Yes Men are Revolting, April Martin and Paul Hill’s probing Cincinnati Goddamn and the revealing Don’t Think I’ve Forgotten: Cambodia’s Lost Rock and Roll. Details at doxafestival.ca. 3. The Vancouver International Burlesque Festival celebrates 10 years of tassels, twirling and stripteases. Performers such as Crystal Precious, Lydia DeCarllo Betsy Bottom Dollar, Pink Flamingo Burlesque, the Starlet Harlots, Mr. Gorgeous “the king of boylesque” and Midnite Martini “the reigning queen of burlesque” grace the Vogue Theatre stage April 30 to May 2. Tickets at northerntickets.com. Details at vanburlesquefest.com. 4. Nick Offerman and Megan Mullally share all the gory details of sharing a bed as part of the quirky couple’s aptly named comedy tour Summer of 69: No Apostrophe. According to the press bumph, the evening will feature “funny talking, heavy ribaldry, light petting and an astonishing ﬁnal act of completion.” See it all, ahem, go down April 29 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Tickets at all Ticketmaster outlets and livenation.com.

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BALLET BC

Arts&Entertainment KUDOS & KVETCHES Selfie denial

CHOREOGR APHY

EMILY MOLNAR SET

Omer Arbel

MUSIC

Jeremy Schmidt CHOREOGR APHY

GUSTAVO RAMIREZ SANSANO SET

Luis Crespo MUSIC

Igor Stravinsky

MAY 7-9, 2015

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DANCER DARREN DEVANEY. PHOTO MICHAEL SLOBODIAN.

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As previously reported by K&K, a growing number of music festivals have taken the bold stand of banning selﬁe sticks from their hedonistic, devil’s music bacchanalias, including Coachella and Lollapalooza. Well, according to an item in the Georgia Straight, you can now add the Squamish Valley Music Festival and the Pemberton Music Festival to the list of selﬁe stick-free zones. Granted, there is nothing less rock ’n’ roll than trying to improve the composition, angle and steadiness of a photo or video of yourself with the help of an elongated rod. But surely there are far more egregious, unsexy items that should be kicked off the summer music festival circuit. Hacky sacks, for one. And how about dudes wearing do-rags. And do we have to mention Birkenstocks. Mind you, if the Vancouver Folk Fest banned all of these things, it would probably cut the crowd down by half. So let’s just focus on hacky sacks. And yes, all are pop culture references date back to the last time we went to an

Good news, selfie sticks have yet to banned from Marpole’s In the Heat of the Knight theme park.

outdoor music festival back in 1997. Before we even knew what a selﬁe was. Or even a smartphone, come to think of it. It’s like our life is always stuck in second gear, when it hasn’t been our day, our week, our month, or even our yearrrrrrr….

Zip it

Maybe this speaks more to our lack of a social life than our desire to become more involved with our community, but we watched Monday’s park board meeting online at home, for the better part of two hours the other night. What did we learn? Queen Elizabeth Park is going to get a zip line — sorry, “aerial trail”— by next summer, de-

spite there being pretty much no public demand for it until some aerial trail enthusiasts at the park board ﬂoated the idea, approved it and picked a private company to build it without it being put out to tender. Hmmm. We just hope the park board will hold a contest to name the newborn zip line. So far, we’d like to propose “Sky Slide,” “Human Cloud,” “Treetop Tickler,” “Unnecessary” or “Gary.” Think about the conversations: “Hey, honey, why are you so late getting home? “Oh I was hanging out at Queen E. Park and spent the afternoon riding Gary.” Gold. twitter.com/KudosKvetches

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Arts&Entertainment Sheri-D Wilson takes back the mic at Verses fest

Every poem is a political action, says ‘unapologetically badass’ spoken word performer STATE OF THE ARTS Cheryl Rossi

crossi@vancourier.com

Poems Sheri-D Wilson performed from her Open Letter: Woman Against Violence Against Women collection at the National Slam Finals in Victoria last fall struck such a chord that Vancouver’s Verses Festival of Words will feature an event called Take Back the Mic. The poetic gathering touts how the spoken word can transform trauma into healing. “We can come together in unity, women, by sharing our stories and by sharing ways to heal and ways to transform,” Wilson said. The lunchtime event on May 2 will see Wilson, Toronto-based poet and storyteller Lishai Peel and other women and feminist men speaking their truth and celebrating strength and bravery. Wilson maintains personal stories can transform and build communities, becoming a collective voice that gathers momentum. “It’s an exciting form,” said the founder and artistic director of the Calgary Spoken Word Festival and founder and former director of the spoken word program

Poets Sheri-D Wilson (l) and Lishai Peel perform at Take Back the Mic as part of the Verses Festival of Words.

at the Banff Centre. Wilson’s Open Letter, which has already gone to third print, asserts our society treats the earth the same way it treats women. The collection mentions missing and murdered women from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, those who’ve disappeared on the Highway of Tears in Northern B.C. and Wilson’s experiences of violence. Wilson lived in Vancouver for 20 years, worked in a studio behind the No 5 Orange strip bar on the edge of the Downtown Eastside, had a knife pulled on her in Gastown’s Blood Alley and hitchhiked on the Highway of Tears. She started writing Open

Letter a couple of years ago, unaware of how timely its publication in 2014 would be with allegations of sexual violence against comedian and actor Bill Cosby and radio host Jian Ghomeshi dominating the news alongside stories of women committing suicide after being harassed. The poet of three decades has long wielded words to illuminate ignored women and their discounted concerns, sometimes before others found her focus socially acceptable. Wilson says her writings “conversations with my c***” were banned but then lauded after Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues saw mainstream success.

Wilson’s written about disregarded women surrealists and beatniks and celebrated spinsters in a way that makes that status aspirational. She’s written about women’s bodies and stroked her keyboard to conceive women’s erotica. Wilson says two days of intense discussion followed her reading from Open Letter in Victoria. “That’s an interesting thing that happens out of poetry, poetry that is about taking action, poetry that doesn’t sit down and witness it from far away, but poetry that is in the midst of it,” Wilson said. “That’s what I was taught to do by my teachers like Anne Waldman, Diane di Prima and

Allen Ginsberg, to take action with your poetry, that every poem you write is a political action.” Wilson wants to see women unite to support each other’s wisdom so she encourages those who attend Take Back the Mic to bring their own poetry and stories of truth, and she looks forward to performing alongside Lishai Peel. Peel authored the graphic novel Why Birds and Wolves Don’t Trade Stones in 2013 and released the 2014 album From Here On with musician and composer Waleed Abdulhamid. At Take Back the Mic, she’ll share some of her heavier pieces about overcoming the vicarious trauma

of domestic violence. “But mostly, these days, I write from a place of joy,” Peel said. She’s looking forward to performing alongside Wilson, who mentored her at the Banff Centre. “Very unapologetically badass is how I would describe [Wilson],” Peel said. Wilson will also co-facilitate a lunchtime session called Talk the Talk: Community Organizing and Power Dynamics April 30. The Verses Festival of Words runs until May 3 and includes masterclasses and poetry slams. Take Back the Mic starts at 12:30, at the Havana Theatre. Details at versesfestival.ca. twitter.com/Cheryl_Rossi

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