Dear Editor:
Re: Marine Drive Corridor Draft Plan Unveiled, June 2 news story.
As the president for CARP (formally known as the Canadian Association of Retired Persons), North Shore -Vancouver chapter, I am now deeply concerned with the “glass condo pre-sales fever” that is still gripping so much of the Lower Mainland. I will stay away from pricing as this is an issue already well preached within the public discourse –no matter the interests, vested or not.
Considering the aging population, accessible housing should be more of an issue. There are now more Canadians over age 50 than under 30. The average Canadian over the age of 65 has three chronic conditions and/or diseases. We are at a point in history where many will be looking to “downsize” ... but this does not merely involve moving from a 4,000-square-foot home to a 1,300-square-foot home. Nor is a 425-square-foot condo and a two- to three-storey townhouse going to be part of the accessible housing solution. (For every 10 units built, how many should be accessible?
Has West Vancouver council ever looked at this? We need conclusive numbers.)
Re: Park Royal, perhaps accessible housing (all one-level living with walk-in shower, in-suite laundry, level access from street to elevator) would be considered. This might be three- or four- or five-storey mixed housing. Shops on the bottom might include medical/dentistry clinic, drugstore, hair salon, market and exercise studio. Optimally, child care in addition to adult respite daycare programs might even be incorporated. The complex could be arranged around a central plaza with the rear of the buildings fronting Marine Drive. Bike lanes would be well integrated, in addition to ample pedestrian sidewalks, sheltered bus stops, a community garden and green space.
These are preliminary thoughts only. As a resident raised in West Vancouver, as well as having been a caregiver for a parent, and advocating for seniors housing options, I am concerned at the apparent short-sightedness re: current (let alone future) accessibility needs. West Vancouver’s real estate developers need to be “motivated” to step up to the needs of the very citizens who reside here.
Additionally, it would seem, currently, that any community planning seems juxtaposed to a) West Vancouver’s own pursuit of their wanting to be “dementia friendly” and b) the “aging in place” or “better at home initiatives” currently driving the medical system. Mixed messages are confusing, frustrating and counterproductive – at best.
I would respectfully request that this issue of “accessibility” be considered during the consultation process.
Elizabeth Dunbar
West Vancouver
Editor’s note: Under provincial law, council members can no longer receive or consider public input now that the public hearing is closed. Mayor and council are to debate and vote on the plan in council chambers at 7 p.m. today, June 7.
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