History

In 1990, Concord Pacific was given permission to build 7,650 residential units on the Expo lands they purchased from the province. Part of the agreement was a requirement for 2.75 acres of park for every 1,000 residential units. Lot 9 (Creekside Park - the land northwest of Science World) was part of this original commitment. The actual wording of the agreement required the development of Creekside Park “when either lots 6A or 6C were rezoned for development”.

“Or” becomes “And”

In 2004, council heard a rezoning application for lot 6A which included the new wording “when 6A and 6C were completed” the park would be developed. This would effectively over-ride all previous agreements. Part of the motivation for this amendment was an agreement between the Province, City and Concord to use lot 9 for sorting polluted soil from 6C. Council agreed to the amendment without asking for anything in return (such as, for example, a time-commitment on 6C). It is not clear to us why this ill-considered rezoning application was rushed through council.

Current Situation

Lot 6C is zoned commercial, a use apparently of no interest to Concord Pacific. Furthermore, 6C turns out to be a convenient material storage area for Concord’s down- town development projects, and it is now a junkyard. Concord has no approval from the City for using 6C this way, but the City has so far done nothing. Furthermore, Concord is using Creekside Park for its own commercial interest by building their presentation centre in the Park, and by leasing the remaining grounds to Cirque du Soleil. We have always assumed the rent charged is significant. However we have learned this past year that the land has always been zoned as a park, so they've only been paying a few thousand a year in taxes to the city.

Although council may have considered it reasonable in 2004 to allow Lot 9 to be used for sorting the soil from 6C, it has become obvious that they erred by not imposing strict deadlines for this process. The Park agreement should now be honored. Other methods for soil remediation exist, and have been used successfully in the area. Things change. Why should Concord Pacific be held to their original agreement?

Many people who purchased property in the area were promised a park by smiling agents, some of course representing Concord itself. The city has developed per capita green-space allocations. This is a fair and reasonable approach - one of the reasons that Vancouver is a most livable city. Setting aside Lot 9 for parkland addresses the needs not only of local northeast False Creek Residents, but also of families living in east Vancouver and the downtown east-side who are relying on this park to address their needs for open parkland.

The amount of money involved in property development in Vancouver is enormous, so the pressure to break agreements is great. As an example, over the years, Concord has received concessions from council, and now has 2,350 more units with no additional public amenities in North False Creek. When the city enters into an agreement with a developer it is usually after a long and considered process by City staff and councilors. If developers know that they can erode concessions over time by dealing with a new council and new staff, then the entire planning process becomes meaningless.

Agreements reached between the City and developers require the developer to provide specified amenities which benefit all the residents of the City. Developers must be held to these agreements.