Vancouver Is Awesome #143 - December 29, 2022

Mostpeople

considerit unfortunate whentheyfind somethingintheirmeal that’snotsupposedtobe there.

Tobefairit’susuallyahair, fly,orpieceofbone. ButforRudyPospisilitwas aluckymoment.

Pospisil,aVancouver-area firefighter,wasshopping onGranvilleIslandrecently whenhestoppedinfora mealatTony’sSeafoodand OysterBar.

Thefoodarrivedandhe gotafriendtotakeaphoto ofthefancymealbefore diggingin.Then,whenhe putoneoftheoystershellsin hismouth,hefeltsomething hard.

“Irarelyeatoystersbutthey wereonspecialsoIthought “Whynotgetthehalf dozen?’”hetellsVancouver IsAwesome.

“Ithoughtitwasapieceof shell,”hesays.

Hepulledthehard,little objectoutanditturnedout tobeaweewhitepearl The

photohisfriendhadtaken earlieractuallycapturedthe pearlsittingintheoyster. Pospisil’sserversaidit’s anextraordinarilyrare occurrence.“It’sa1in10,000 chancetofindapearlinan oyster,”hesays.“Theserver toldmetobuyalottoticket, thatit’smyluckyday.SoI didandIwon...anotherfree ticket.”

Asidefromtheadvice,the serveralsogavehimtheshell thepearlcamefrom. “I’mgoingtomountthis pearlintheshelland giveittoaspecialgirlat Christmas,”hesays. Pospisiljustfinishedaglobal bikeride,raisingmoney forcharityandsaysonthat massivetrip,eatingfoodin over30countries,henever hadamealliketheoneon GranvilleIsland.

“Ihaveneverfoundapearlor anythingofvalueinameal before,exceptindigestionin someroughplaces,”hesays

ByBrendanKergin

Streetsareoneofthosepublicgoods thatuniteprettymucheveryone. Whetheradriver,cyclist,ortransit user,thestreetsofthecityplayarole inyourlife,sometimesindrasticwaysand sometimesinsubtlebutnotableways. Soherearesomefunfactsaboutthe streetsofVancouverweallshare.

1.

YoucangofromFalseCreek toMexicoononeroadway

OakStreetstartsoffratherdramatically,and maybethat’sfittingforoneofthelongest roadwaysaround.Theold(andunused) railwaycutsitofffromFalseCreek,butit’s notthatfarfromtheocean,lessthan250m. Fromthereitheadssouth.Ifyoutoo,were toheadsouthonOak,you’dbeabletostay onthatoneroadwaywithoutturningoffall thewayintoMexico.

First,itturnsintoHighway99(while stillinVancouver)andheadstotheUSA OnceovertheborderitbecomesI-5,oneof America’sgreathighways.Itgoesthrough Seattle,Portland,Weed,Sacramento,and L.A.

FromthereitcrossesintoTijuana,Mexico, butit’salittleunclearwhichhighwayitreally flowsintothere,asacoupleofroadways branchout.ItcouldjustendinTijuana,or connectwithHighway1inMexico(ona mapitappearsthat’sanexit,butdirections onlinesaytheI-5becomesHighway1)which goestothetipofBajaCalifornia.

Thelongeststreetis StanleyParkDrive 2.

AccordingtotheCityofVancouver,Stanley ParkDriveisthelongeststreetwithinthe city,at16.6kmlong(thankstoallthose

curvesaroundthewater’sedge). Forcomparison,BoundaryRoadisabout 10kmlong,runningstraightnorth-south, whileBroadway,whichrunsthewidthof thecityeast-westisabout14kmbeforeit hitsUBC.Thenthere’stheserpent-ybeast thatisSouthwestMarineDrive/Chancellor Boulevard,West4th,West6th,East2nd, andGreatNorthernWay(andmore). Whiletheyalllineupasoneroadastraffic flows,they’reconsidereddifferentroads (andtechnicallyUBCisn’tVancouver).

Thesteepeststreetisin PointGrey 3.

Thesteepeststreetisn’tOakStreet.While itisquitesteepatthestart(andgetsclosed downinicyconditions),acoupleofthe lesser-usedstreetsinPointGreyhaveitbeat, buttwoappeartovieforsteepest.

Accordingtothecity,TolmieStreet betweenthe1500and1800blockmaybe thesteepest,butcontourlinesshowthat 1900to2100DiscoveryStreetseesachange ofaround40moveracoupleofblocks, makingitsteeper.

Feelfreetocyclethetwotocompare

Translinkownsfivebridges 4.

Whilemostpublicstreetinfrastructureis usuallyownedbycity,provincialandfederal governments,theydon’townitall.

TransLinkownsfivebridges.

WhilemostthinkofTransLinkasMetro Vancouver’stransitcompany,it’salsothe transportationauthority.Assuch,itowns theKnightStreetBridge,thePattullo Bridge,theGoldenEarsBridge,the WesthamIslandBridge,andtheCanada LineBikeandPedestrianBridge

TheCambieStreetBoulevard isa historicalsite 5.

Whenyou’redrivingthroughVancouver, youmaybespendingagoodchunkoftime lookingatahistoricalsitewithoutrealizing it.

Thereareafewboulevardsinthecity(we’re talkingaboutthetypeinthemiddleofthe road),butonlyonehasheritagestatus.

OnCambieStreettheboulevardthatrunsin themiddleoftheroadnearQueenElizabeth ParkandintoSouthVancouverhasbeen deemedtohavesignificantheritagevalue.

“TheCambieHeritageBoulevardisvalued asanearlyCanadianexampleofurban designandplanning,influencedbyprinciples oftheEnglishGardenCitymovement, combinedwiththeidealsoftheU.S.City Beautifulmovement,”accordingtoCanada’s HistoricPlaces.

ByBrendanKergin

Indigenous-ownedradiostation beginsbroadcastinginVancouver

drastically,”notetheapplicationsauthors

Afteraperiodofdifficulty,CFNRand NNBhavereboundedandwanttoenterthe Vancouvermarket

Rightnowthestationisplayingmostlymusic,

“Theteamherehasworkeddiligentlyon anewplanwhichwillnotjustinitiateand sustaintheprojectbutallowittofosterand growaswell, notetheapplicationsauthors. Wehaverevenuesourcesthatareprepared toinvestinthisimmediatelyandgenerously enoughtooffsetourstartupand operatingcosts ”

Vancouverwillprovidethecitywithanew culturalconnection.

“IfweareabletobroadcastfromVancouver, theepicenterofAboriginallifeand reconciliationinCanada,itscitizenswillhave anewvitalconnectiontoculture,language, andpopularroots,blues,andAboriginal music,”explainsthosebehindCJNYonline.

ThestationJourney106 3wasfirstannounced severalyearsago,butneverlaunched Anofficiallaunchisintheworks;inan applicationwiththeCRTCtoextendthe deadlineoncreatinganewservice,alaunch dateofFebruary2023issuggested,thougha dateaslateasAugust2023wasappliedfor “SinceMarchofthisyear,thepriorconditions thathinderedthisinitiativehavechanged

Alongwithmusic,thegoalofCJNYwillbe toconnectthoselivinginVancouverwith communitiesintheprovincesnorth HalftheAboriginalpopulationofVancouver isfromtheNorth Thus,ournewservices willenableAboriginalNortherners,whoall toooftenaredisplacedeconomicrefugees, toconnectwiththeircherishedhome communitiesonceagain, notestheCJNY website

Thereshope,too,thatbroadcastingfrom

CFNRlaunchedinthe1990sandisbasedin Terrace(rebroadcastingthroughoutnorthern BC) InVancouveritwillbepickingup wheretheAboriginalVoicesRadioNetwork (AVR)leftoff AVRusedtorunCKURon 106 3FM,buthaditslicenserevokedin2015 CFNRwasawardedthatlicensein2017and changedthecallsigntoCJNY

“CJNYVancouverwillcombinemusic, storytelling,newsandinformation,and culturalsharingtoachievearichmulticultural entertainmentmashup,unlikeanythinginthe Vancouverradiomarket,”statesthestation’s website

ByBrendanKergin

BobKronbauer:There’sa reasontheDTESisthesafest placetooverdoseinB.C.

B.C.gasbills todropin2023

FortisBCplayedSantathismonthasit announcedaNewYear’sdecreasein naturalgaspricesformostcustomers amountingtoabout$4permonth overalldependingonconsumption.

Thecompanysaidthedecreasefollowsa reviewofdelivery,storageandtransport ratesanditscostofgasrateeachquarter withtheBCUtilitiesCommission.

“Thisisdonetoensurethattherates chargedtocustomersappropriatelyrecover thecostsrelatedtodeliveringenergysafely andreliably,”FortisBCsaidinastatement.

“Customerswillseeanoveralldecrease becausethecostofgashasgonedown,”said JoeMazza,thecompany’svice-presidentof energysupplyandresourcedevelopment.

“It’simportanttoremember,however,that ratesreflectmorethanjustthepriceofthe commodity,”hesaid.“Ourratesalsofactor inimportantinfrastructureupgradesand maintenancetooursystemtoensurethe safeandreliabledeliveryofenergytoour customers.”

ByJeremyHainsworth

Whenacloserelativeofmine diedasaresultofsubstance usedisorderinVancouver’s DowntownEastside (DTES)inthe1990s,theonlyreasonwe foundoutaboutitwasthatourfamilyhad hiredaprivatedetectivetotryandfindhim Insteadofreunitingus,theyeventuallycame uponhisdeathcertificate Hedisappearedfromourlivesyearsprior, makinghiswayfromaruralexistencetothe cityafteralifefilledwithalcoholanddrug abuse Hediedaloneinhisroomatthe SROhelivedinonEastHastings

TheCityofVancouver’sformerHomeless AdvocateJudyGravestellsmethatthe GrandUnion,wherehelived,wasatthat timeknownasa“drinker’shotel,”andthat most,ifnotall,ofthetenantsweremen Whenhediedthey(we’renotsurewho “they”are,asweweregivensuchlittle information)clearedtheroomoutofwhat littlebelongingshehad,andallwewereleft withwerehisashestobury Atthetimeofhisdeath,harmreduction hadnotyetbecomeapartofthewider, mainstreamconversationaroundsubstance usedisorder,andIsitheretodaywondering ifhehadbeenexperiencingwhathedid present-dayifhisstorymayhaveended differently

Thismonthanewstudyheadedupby UBCGeographygradstudentKevinHu waspublished,showingthatthechances ofdyingfromdrugpoisoningis30percent higherforpeoplelivinginruralareasof B.C thaninurbancentres.Insomemore remoteareas,it’sashighas50percentmore likely

ThestudyshowsthatwhileVancouver’s DTEShasahighernumberoftotaldeaths fromitduetothedensityofdrugusers inthearea,thechanceofpeopleactually dyingfromdrugpoisoningisfarlowerthan

anywhereelseintheprovince

Theyconcludethatitslikelyduetoalack ofaccesstoharmreductionservicesinrural areas,combinedwiththecontaminationof theillicitdrugsupplywithfentanylwhichis happeningeverywhere

Ifyou’vespentanytimeintheDTESyou knowthatmanylocalswhoarentdrug userscarryNaloxonekitsincasetheysee someonesufferingfromdrugpoisoning I can’tsaythatmostpeoplecarryit,butmany do

Theareahasmultiplesupervis2ed consumptionsiteswhichworktoprevent fataldrugpoisoningattheacutelevel,as wellasthethreeotherpillars;enforcement, treatment,andprevention,listedherein whatmanybelievetobetheirorderof effectiveness,fromleasttomost

TheneighbourhoodwhereIliveisntfar fromtheDTESgeographically,however, thedistanceinawarenessaroundwhattodo forsomeonewhenweseethemsufferingis immense

Myopinionisthatoneoftheotherreasons you’relesslikelytodieofanoverdosein theDTESisincalculablebyanystudy-it’s thefactthatthecommunityactuallycares, anditscollectiveheartishugeandresilient. Thethreadsthatholdtheneighbourhood togetherarestrongerandmoretightlyknit thananyinthecity

I’vemadesomemistakesinwritingabout theDTESinthepast,butoverthepast fewyearsI’vebeenreflecting,learning,and makinganhonestattempttogiveavoiceto morepeoplewholivethere,andhavingour reporterscoveritmore Andfairly

EveryneighbourhoodinVancouvershould looktothisoneforamodelofhowhumans mighttakebettercareofeachother.

BobKronbaueristheFounder,Publisher, andEditor-In-ChiefofVancouverIs Awesome

JewishCommunity Centrereceives$25M infederalfunding

TheJewishCommunityCentre ofGreaterVancouver(JCC) announceditwillbereceiving$25 millioninfederalfundingfromthe DepartmentofCanadianHeritage,the largestinvestmentfromtheGovernment ofCanadainaJewishcommunalproject inhistory,accordingtoEzraShanken, CEOoftheJewishFederationofGreater Vancouver

Thiscontributionwilladdtothe$75 millionalreadyraisedaspartofacapital campaign GordonandLeslieDiamond’sDiamond FoundationinDecemberannounced thatitwouldcontribute$25millionto thecampaigntofundtheredevelopment iftheJewishcommunitycouldmatch thatdonation,JWestCapitalCampaign chairmanAlexCristalltoldGlacier Media.

InOctober,largecontributionsfrom 24familiesmatchedtheDiamond Foundation’s$25milliongift,unlocking thatcapitalfortheproject Thisaddsto

the$25millioninfundingprovidedin2021 bytheB C government Thefundswillbeusedforthe redevelopmentofthe3.3-acresiteat West41standOakStreetinVancouver, B C ThegoalistotransformtheJCC intoastate-of-the-artmultigenerational communityhubintheOakridgearea withmorechildcarespaces,expanded seniorsprograms,artsandculturalspaces andanexpandedVancouverHolocaust EducationCentre,saidtheJCCinapress release.

Shankensaysthatthisdecisionwasborne outofthewanttohavemaximumimpact inthecitxyofVancouverandbenefitfrom thesiteasawhole.

“Thisisabeautifulcommunityinvestment inthecityasawhole Wehaveahousing challengeintheJewishcommunity, andweknowthatsomanypeoplehave housingchallengesacrossalloftheir communities Buildingresidentialhousing givesustheopportunitytoaddressthat housingchallenge, hesaid.

ByClaireWilson withfilesfromGlenKorstrom

RyanReynoldsand BlakeLivelytomatch foodbankdonations

Vancouver-bornRyanReynolds andhiswife,actressBlake Lively,willbematchingall donationstowardstheGreater VancouverFoodBank(GVFB)upto $25,000

Thisisn’tthefirsttimethecouplehas offeredahelpinghandtolocals,from donatingtoRedCrossduringlastyears BC -widefloodingtodonating$250,000 toCovenantHouseVancouver.

RyanandBlakeareexpectingachildin thenewyear,andtheywanttosupportour BabyStepsprogramtoensurethebabies

inourcommunitiesreceivethenutrition theyneedtothrive,”writesthenon-profit organizationonInstagram

In2021,GVFBprojectedtoreceive enoughdonationstosupport200babies permonthbut,inNovemberthisyear, theorganizationwasabletosupport442 babies “Thatsa121percentincrease!” GVFBwrites

TheBabyStepsprogramraisesfundsfor formula,diapers,andbabyfoodforbabies aroundMetroVancouver.

ByMariaDiment

Nowinits21styear,DineOut Vancouverwillreturnin January2023withitsalwaysimpressiverosterofrestaurants offeringfixed-pricemealsandadditional programmingforfoodlovers.

ThefestivalhasrevealedDineOut VancouverwilltakeplacefromJan.20to Feb.5,2023.

OrganizedbyDestinationVancouverand designedtogivelocalsandvisitorsalike anabundanceofopportunitiestoexplore thecitysdiverseandexcitingfoodscene duringatypicallyquietertimeofyear,Dine Outisagreatwaytorevisitoldfavourites andtrynewrestaurants.

SetmenuswillbeofferedforDOV2023 atthreepriceranges:$20-$34,$35-$50,or $54-$64.

Typicallyabout300MetroVancouver restaurantstakepart,offeringspecial DineOutmenusatsetpricepoints andotherdeliciousoptionsfordiners. Additionally,specialpairingdinners; wine,beer,andspirittastings;andfun eventslikethepopularStreetFoodCity featuringlocalfoodtrucksroundoutthe

17-daycelebrationofallthingsdelici inVancouver.StreetFoodCitywill takeplaceJanuary21to29outsidet VancouverArtGallery.

celebration delicious StreetFood will take 21to outsidethe

Amongtheeventsplannedinclude TheVancouverWorldChefExchan whichwilltakeplaceataselectionof Vancouver’snewlyawardedMichel Starrestaurants.They’llhost“culina luminariesfromdifferentdestinatio foraone-of-a-kinddinner,”accordin organizers.

Exchange, take ata Vancouver’snewlyawardedMichelin Starrestaurants. “culinary erentdestinations a accordingto

Othereventsandexperiencesinclud thingslikegelato-makingworkshop dumpling-makingclasses,long-tabl dinnerswithThePaellaGuys,a“sea foraging”trip,beerandwinegather andmuchmore.Ticketsareonsale

eventsand include like workshops, classes,long-table dinnerswith Paella a“sea trip,beerandwinegatherings, more. areon now isabout community,collaboration,andsharing

“DineOutVancouverFestivalisab community,collaboration,andshar Vancouver’sculinarystorywiththe world,”describestheevent Expecttoseeafulllistofparticipati restaurantsandtheirmenusonlineo Jan.11,2023.

toseeafull participating restaurants menus on

ByLindsayWilliam-Ross

Sandwichshopannounces permanentclosure

Atrueproductofthepandemicandanemblemofthe creativitythechallengingtimesinspired,aMount Pleasantsandwichshophasrevealeditwillwind downoperationsinafewweeks

Side Hustle was launched in May 2020 as a true “side hustle venture of Eight 1/2 restaurant on 8th at Main Leaning into the appeal of take-out and restrictions on dine-in, the venture was established to typify its moniker, running like a concession window and offering delivery Ultimately,theshopwasabletoopenuptodine-in,too Known for its menu of hearty sandwiches with playful names (like the Dr. Bahn Mi Henry), Side Hustles

Newthree-day motorcycle showlaunching

operator shared on social media that the time has come to shut things down.

ItswithaheavyheartIhavetoannouncewellbe closingourdoorsattheendofJanuary2023,”readsthe announcement,whichgoesontoofferextensivethanks andappreciationtoallthosewhohavecontributedtoSide Hustle’sovertwoyearsofoperation

ThereremainsalittlemoretimetogetatasteofSideHustle Thesandwichshopat151E8thAveisopenWednesdayand Thursdayfrom11a m to9p m ,FridayandSaturdayfrom11 a m to11p m andSundayfromnoonto5p m

ByLindsayWillaim-Ross

Lookingforagiftfor amotorcyclefan?

Anewthree-day motorcycleeventhas beenannouncedforthenew year,featuringmotorbikes ofallsortsincludingcustom builds,racers,andclassics “Ivebeenbuildingand rebuildingmotorcyclesand goingtocustomshowsfor years, ”saysshowco-founder DavidDupreyinapress release “Ivealwaysbeen blownawaybytheworkof custombuildersandamreallyexcitedforTheAceMoto Show.”

TheshowwillbehostedinabuildinginGastown,at140W HastingsSt fromJan 27to29,2023 The15,000sq ft space willbefilledwithbikes,outfitters,andartists “ItwillbeachanceforVancouveritesofallages,genders, andridingstylestosharetheirpassionforridingandadmire someunbelievablycreativebikes, addsDuprey,whorecently openedBurnoutCafe,anewhubforthecitysmotorcycle community

TicketsfortheshowgoonsaleDec 21 Friday,Jan 27will seeanopeningnightVIPparty,whiletheshowwillbeopen from11a m to7p m Saturdayand11a m to6p m Sunday Ticketswillbe$25perdayor$45foraweekendpassthat includestheopeningnightparty

ByBrendanKergin