Hootsuite owner Ryan Holmes is partnering 50-50 with Westbank Projects’ Ian Gillespie to propose a hi-tech hub in the Mount Pleasant area. This according to VanCityBuzz’ Kenneth Chan. It’s an entire city block bounded by Main, Quebec, 5th, and 4th.
Furthering the transformation of the area into “Mount Pixel”, the proposed project would make Westbank a major hi-tech landlord. To me, this is a welcome development, serving and enabling well-paying jobs and growth of the knowledge economy in Vancouver. Perhaps, this can be seen as large steps away from the “rocks and logs” economy. Except for thermal coal, of course.
Part of the planning thought process is likely the proximity of the site to two existing rapid transit stations and one possible future one. The Ontario bike route is nearby, and CoV plans upgrades to nearby Off-Broadway (5th & 7th Ave), Central Valley Greenway.
Gillespie told Vancity Buzz the vision is to develop a digital media and high-tech campus on the site, with the intention of creating a spillover effect for the immediate area.
“These won’t just be buildings housing just Hootsuite,” said Gillespie. “What we want to do is bring a half dozen firms that are in that digital space altogether, and if other landlords do the same you’ll get an exciting critical mass of these companies.”Over the past three years, Mount Pleasant – aptly named ‘Mount Pixel’ by some planners and tech moguls – has quickly gained a loose concentration of emerging technology and digital media companies that are looking for more flexible and cheaper space outside of the built-up downtown peninsula. The growing list of companies includes Evolve Digital Media, Gener8, Switch United, The Capital, Odyssey Media Inc., Capture Moment Media, and Citrus Pie Media Group.
Look for zoning change deliberations to hit City Council in 1Q16.
Zoning change means someone gets less, so that someone else can get more. Jeff Lee airs the issue in the Vancouver Sun.
The neighbourhood between Main, Cambie, First and Broadway is largely zoned for light industry. From body repair shops to light manufacturing to wholesale supply depots, the neighbourhood has long been a stable bastion of blue-collar jobs.
But in recent years the area has become attractive to the digital, social media and green tech sectors for its supply of relatively cheap buildings and proximity to public transportation. That’s created a question of whether such uses are actually industrial or commercial in nature.
Kent Munro, the city’s assistant director of planning for the area, noted there are at least seven or eight other digital companies in the area, creating a new source of employment.
“Those are good green jobs and the city doesn’t want to lose those jobs,” he said. “We’re exploring if there is a way that we can make some adjustments, not wholesale adjustments but strategic adjustments down there to allow a little bit more to happen.”
As did Frances Bula in the Globe and Mail.
The tech and green sectors have a tremendous amount of potential. I don’t see a big conflict with the current light industrial zoning, but sure, fine tune it. Some of these companies will not just appear as open plan offices but will also manufacture (or at least assemble) products on site. The fact there are a growing number of amenities nearby, not to mention residential and transit, makes this area far more attractive to tech than suburban business parks.