Neighbourhood Retail Change: The Evolution of Local Shopping Areas in Vancouver, BC
department or school: Applied Science, Faculty of
department or school: Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of
data provider: DSpace
creator: Kay, Vanessa
issued: 2016-01-29T16:53:55
issued: 2010-09
description: Neighbourhood-serving urban shopping areas have traditionally offered local residents access to the most frequently needed goods and services, as well as places to connect and socialize. Since the mid-­‐20th century, however, the urban retail landscape has undergone major changes, including the rise of regional shopping malls and large format retailers. The impact of these shifts on lower-­‐order urban retail areas is poorly understood and seldom researched, except in cases of decline characterized by high vacancy rates and deteriorating buildings. Nevertheless, access to basic goods and services within urban neighbourhoods remains an important equity issue and a catalyst for strong communities. Recent research indicates that it is also a critical factor in supporting local resilience and public health. The purpose of this study is to investigate the evolving functions of Vancouver’s neighbourhood-­‐ serving shopping areas from the end of the 1950s to the present. This critical period spans the replacement of the city’s streetcar system by trolley buses, the rise of regionally-­‐serving large-­‐ format retail, and the emergence of sustainability as a pillar of planning policy. Analysis of historical occupancy data from case study areas over this period informs generalizations about past and present trends in the overall number and mix of businesses supported within Vancouver’s neighbourhood-­‐serving shopping areas. Findings of this report are intended to inform future policy directions and planning strategies relating to Vancouver’s local retail. While findings, conclusions and recommendations are specific to this city, trends found in Vancouver are also relevant to circumstances described within the planning literature as affecting other cities in North America and Europe.
aggregated CHO: https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/29621
note: Neighbourhood Retail Change The Evolution of Local Shopping Areas in Vancouver, BC Professional Project Report by Vanessa Kay Masters of Planning Candidate School of Community and Regional Planning University of British Columbia, Canada i TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS........................................................................................................................................i EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .........................................................................................................................................i 1.0 INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………………………………………1 2.0 LITERATURE REVIEW............................................................................................................................. 2 2.1 Sustainability Literature .................................................................................................................. 2 Implications for GHG Reduction and Post-­‐Carbon Resilience .....................................................................2 Active Transportation and Public Health .............................................................................................................3 Social Cohesion and Neighbourhood Identity ....................................................................................................4 Portland Example: The “Twenty-­‐Minute Neighbourhood” Planning Concept .....................................5 2.2 Neighbourhood Planning Literature............................................................................................. 6 Retail Revitalization Literature.................................................................................................................................7 2.3 Retail Planning Concepts .................................................................................................................. 7 Hierarchy/Levels of Retail .......................................................................…
has type: Graduating Project
is shown at: 10.14288/1.0102523
language: eng
peer review status: Unreviewed
provider: Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
rights: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
scholar level: Graduate
is part of: University of British Columbia. SCARP Graduating Projects
subject: Urban shopping
subject: Local shopping
subject: Shopping areas
subject: Retail
subject: Neighbourhood
type: Text
identifier URI: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/29621