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After almost a year of public engagement consultations, the City of Vancouver and its municipal partners have revealed three options for the Britannia Renewal Project. This project is a Master Plan for the renewal of the 18-acre Britannia Community Services Centre (BCSC), and brings together the City of Vancouver, the Britannia Community Services Society (BCSS), Vancouver School Board (VSB), Vancouver Public Library (VPL) and Vancouver Park Board (VPB).
A community-led movement created the current Britannia Centre over 40 years ago, but the complex is showing its age and the need to renew the facilities was voiced by the community as early as the mid-1990s. After several fits and starts, in 2015 the Capital Funding package for Britannia was approved by Vancouver voters.
Reconciliation is the encompassing theme in the renewal process, and an indigenous lens will be applied to all of spaces and program areas. Through public engagement the following key program areas were identified: shared public space; food hub with kitchen, garden and distribution centre, childcare, youth and seniors spaces, spaces for arts and culture, a library for life-long learning, recreation opportunities, an inviting and inclusive public realm, and the possibility of social housing.
On the evening of February 13th, the three renewal options were presented for public review and feedback. All options include a common gathering and event space, a greenspace connection to Grandview Park, pedestrian promenades, and as a gateway to the site.
Master Concept 1 (William) offers a consolidated footprint of operations and services for the community and is visibility from Grandview Park. It does, however, have several drawbacks, including increased traffic impact on the residential neighbourhood, replacement of all VSB fields, reduced opportunity for housing, and difficult phasing.
Master Concept 2 (Commercial) has key spaces, such as the library and the gym, surrounding the central commons and a connection to the Napier Greenway. Some of the drawbacks of the plan are the pool and rink not being directly adjacent, making it more difficult to use heat energy recovery, and a smaller common space.
Master Concept 3 (Parker) offers an increase in the public realm and green space, wider Parker Greenway, pool and rink adjacent to each other, the easiest phasing, and opportunity for an aquatics outdoor space. One of the major drawbacks is the rink being more remotely located from other community centre facilities.
Community feedback on the three plans will inform the final master plan, which will be presented to the partner Boards and Council. Redevelopment is scheduled to begin in spring/summer 2018. Feedback can be submitted via an online questionnaire.
Additional information and images can be found in our Database file for the project, linked below. Want to get involved in the discussion? Check out the associated Forum thread, or leave a comment in the field provided at the bottom of this page.
| Related Companies: | Diamond Schmitt Architects |
