A publicly posted notice found in the Kitsilano neighbourhood is riling up some Vancouver folks due to another presumed case of not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) attitudes.
The City of Vancouver has a development application in place for 2560 to 2580 Trafalgar Street, which would see two 100-year-old homes demolished.
A notice shared online shows that at least one community member is trying to protect the home, which is described as a “cherished sanctuary.”
“Save our precious homes,” the notice says.
A “cherished sanctuary”…
Got a hunch this poster was written by someone over the age of 60…
2560 Trafalgar St. Vancouver pic.twitter.com/8x06Ck2bfA
— Mortimer (@mortimer_1) May 13, 2024
If the Urban West Architecture development is approved, the City will greenlight replacing the impacted homes with 26 secured market rental units in a four-story apartment building.
Development render. (City of Vancouver | Urban West Architecture)
Both 2560 and 2580 Trafalgar Street were previously sold for $2.7 million, were built in 1924 and sold on June 27, 2022, and have an assessed value of around $2.5 million.
2560 Trafalgar Street (Maude, MacKay & Company Limited)
2580 Trafalgar Street features four bedrooms, while 2560 Trafalgar Street features seven.
2580 Trafalgar Street (Maude, MacKay & Company Limited)
Outcry in support of more housing
Be entitled with your own property
— Uni (@ofhardknocks) May 13, 2024
Many have outed the publicly posted notice about the potential demolition of the Trafalgar Street homes as another case of NIMBY sentiments in Vancouver, specifically Kits, with many voicing their support for more housing both on X and Reddit.
“Most houses that old are ready to retire, anyways,” one Reddit user said. Adding, “I grew up in an old house that was almost 100 when I lived there. The amount of upkeep is staggering and annoying as hell, lol.”
Someone else said, “If those houses didn’t want to be demolished, they should have just pulled themselves up by their bootstraps.”
Another Reddit user’s opinion stated that this is why the province has a housing problem.
“This attitude of forbidding all change is why we’re in such a sorry state to begin with.”
Meanwhile, on X, folks are voicing their support for more housing.
I love old houses too, but sorry housing for more people trumps this BS.
— Julia Longpre (@juliamarblefaun) May 13, 2024
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen developments see some pushback in Kitsilano.
In May 2022, we reported on a supportive housing project that has now been approved. However, Kitsilano community members who opposed it expressed much resistance to it, at one point claiming that children would be harmed.
Do you support protecting the historic homes in question and others like them, or would you prefer to see multi-housing developments replace them? Let us know in the comments.