The York Theatre: saved!
In a promising sign of their commitment to arts and culture, Vancouver’s newly minted City Council unanimously passed a motion on 18 December that should ensure the future of the historic "York Theatre":http://plankmagazine.com/feature/york-theatre-danger on Commercial Drive on the city’s eastside.
Slated for destruction as early as January 15, the nearly century-old theatre is currently owned by EDG Homes, who purchased the property in August 2007. According to the "Province":http://www.theprovince.com/City+offers+density+save+theatre/1093769/stor... newspaper, at the time of the purchase, EDG had been assured by city staff that the theatre was of no historical significance or interest. EDG wishes to tear down the building in order to clear space for a townhouse development.
Vancouver developer Bruno Wall has stepped forward with a $12 million commitment to purchase and restore the 500 seat theatre. According to the Province, Wall has also offered to hand ownership to the city — in exchange for development rights equivalent to a 20-storey building, to be built on an as-yet undetermined city site. According to Tom Durrie of the "Save the York Theatre Society":http://www.vancouverartsandculturesforum.com/about/interests/future-of-t..., it is Wall’s intention that the restored facility be run by the "Vancouver East Cultural Centre":http://www.thecultch.com/. In an e-mail announcement, Durrie described this arrangement as a guarantee of sound operation of the venue and that rental agreements will be affordable to local arts group.
The week before the Council meeting, Heather Redfern, Executive Director of the East Cultural Centre, had "written":http://plankmagazine.com/feature/york-theatre-danger to the Vancouver arts community about the fate of the York Theatre. In her letter, Redfern outlined how a staff report to be presented to the Council recommended a density transfer of only 1/3 of the capital required to realize a proposed restoration project. The report further recommended that the East Cultural Centre be responsible for raising the remaining 2/3rds.
In the end the Council rejected the staff proposal and instead granted Wall the 100% density transfer that will finance the renovation project. We can only applaud this decision. It was clear that East Cultural Centre was not in a position to raise the sorts of capital required, especially having just completed fundraising for their own (much needed) renovation program. The staff report further recommended that the current owners be requested to voluntary postpone destruction of the building, an option EDG had made clear was of no interest to them. We were literally a month away from losing yet another cultural asset in this city.
Vancouver has a shameful history of ripping down its heritage. We recently lost the "Imperial Theatre":http://www.vancouverneon.com/page_q/venus%20theatre%20page.htm on Main Street (which operated for years as the Venus, a porn movie house). The Imperial, originally a vaudeville house, was of a similar age to the York. Let’s hope that this enlightened decision by the City Council is a recognition that a vibrant city needs a vibrant cultural sector.
A heartfelt thank you must go to Heather Redfern and Burno Wall. Durrie describes Wall as a long time supporter of the arts and a theatre enthusiast. We can hopefully look forward to a day when a vibrant cultural hub emerges in the Commercial and Venables area centred on the Cultch, their new Culture Lab Studio and the restored York theatre.
And a special, Gold Plank, must go to Tom Durrie, who has campaigned for so long to save this historic theatre. Durrie has suggested that everyone "e-mail":http://city.vancouver.bc.ca/ctyclerk/mayorcouncil/index.htm their thanks and gratitude to the Mayor and the Council. We think this is a wonderful gesture.
What a wonderful gift to the city.