City launches upgrade project Public meeting gathers input LONSDALE MER- CHANTS, office managers, property owners and _ resi- dents turned out in force Tuesday night to participate in a public meeting to in- troduce the Lonsdale Revitalization Project. By Layne Christensen Contributing Writer A team of consultants ied more than 50 people in the first of sev- eral work sessions designed to gather input to determine which direction should be taken for. the revitalization of the central and - lower Lonsdale commercial districts, North Vancouver City selected the consulting firms of John Talbot and Associates, Harris Hudema Market Analysis and Davidson Yuen Architects to con- duct the $20,000 study, which was -frecommended by local business operators and property owners last July. Participants at Tuesday’s start-up session were asked to : change seats and share their im- . pressions of Lonsdale with a stranger. After viewing a five-minute . “home video,’ prepared by the ‘consultants: and shot from the window of a car travelling down Lonsdale, they were asked for their views and concerns. oem of those concerns includ- ed: . @ trees that obscure storefront signage; -@ “pockets of drabness”’; -@ & lack of continuity; ® and a shortage of parking. Central. Lonsdele property owner Diarmuid O’Dea said the video showed Lonsdale was “very “unhip.”’ ‘Lonsdale has stayed boring compared to other parts of the Lower Mainland,”’ said O’Dea. “Central Lonsdale could be any . small town anywhere in North -- America: boring,’’ said Judi Ainsworth of the North Van- couver. Chamber of Commerce. ° + Still other participants discussed index @ Gary Bannerman .... Weather ’ Sunday, sunny. High 19°C, Lows 12°C. Monday and Tuesday, sunny. High 20°C, Low 11°C. Canadien Publications Mail Sales Product Agraoment Number 0087238 EL NORTH VANCOUVER CITY COUNCIL the positive attributes of Lons- dale. “Ivs a wonderful view at the end of the street with the ships down there,’’ said Don Steele, director of Highwater Tackle at 113° Lonsdale Ave. nowhere else that has that."’ Participants then filled out and discussed two draft questionnaires Prepared by the consultants. The revised questionnaires are to be distributed to central and lower Lonsdale merchants and customers during the week of Sept. t4 by merchants and man- agers, who will act as Neighbor- ~ hood Block Captains. A suggestion was made that an additional questionnaire be cir- culated to residents in the area to determine their shopping patterns. The results of the questionnaire are to be discussed at another public meeiing at city hall in Oc- tober. North Vancouver City planner - Gary Penway said the revitaliza- tion project can move in one of three directions as a result of con- tinuing discussions with Lonsdale merchants and property owners: @ helping the business community market themselves and make themselves viable as a group; © improving the streetscape by making sidewalks and public areas more attractive and functional; @ improving the physical appear- ance of the buildings by providing incentives to property owners. “The direction that we see for Lonsdale now is that it remain a strong commercial core street,” said Penway. *“In the end, which direction this study heads in is going to de- pend upon the input we receive through the process.’’ ‘There's. — Sunday, August 23, 1992 - North Shore News - 3 WEST VANCOUVER firefighter Geoff Graham surveys the damage after a recent fire caused. an estimated $5,000 to $8,060 damage to ornamental hedges in the 800-block of 3th Street. The fire was caused by children playing with fireworks. Lonsdale needs renewal Report recommends heritage conservation NORTH VANCOUVER City planner Gary Penway said Tuesday’s public meeting on how to revitalize the central and lower Lonsdale Avenue areas was held to identify area problems and establish goals aimed at making them more Avenue” was that heritage con- commercially viabie. Penway added that the city and the provincial government have each allocated $10,000 for phase one of the project and that a fur- ther $15,000 each from the city and Victoria has been set aside for phase two. The first phase is expected to be completed in November A consultant team made up of John Talbot and Associates, Har- ris Hudema Market Analysts and Davidson Yuen Architects will lead the first pnase of the project. Penway said the city wants to hear the comments of ali mer- By Sur} Rattan News Reporter chants, managers and property owners in the central and lower Lonsdale areas. On June 24, 1991, city council received a consultant’s Historic Lonsdale Design Guidelines study. It subsequently adopted a reso- lution stating that the study be referred to the city’s advisory planning commission, advisory design pane! and heritage advisory NEWS photo Mike Wakotictd | ARCHITECT EDWARD Maifredi, left, and engineering consultant Bill Lewicky examine work in | progress at St. Thomas Aquinas school in North Vancouver. : St. Thomas Aquinas school expands NORTH VANCOUVER’S St. Thomas Aquinas private school is undergoing a major expan- sion that will add a two-storey, 550,000—square-foot addition to the existing 541 West Keith Rd. complex. Architect Edward Maifredi said the school was originally built to accommodate 200 stu- _ dents in 1959. : The school’s population, he said, has now doubled to 400. ‘"We had in the past few years to cope with an increase in portables. The school will now be able to comfortably accommodate the 400 students by retaining the portables,’’ said Maifredi, He added that the new ex- pansion plans will include two new classrooms to be built on the lower level of the new two-storey building, while a. Rew library resources centre -will occupy the upper level of the building. An expansion of the school’s cafeteria and other existing classrooms is also planned. “The new building is promi- nent on Keith Road, and it is being designed to reflect some of the character of the heritage convent building,’’ said Maifredi. . The expansion plan began in July and is expected to be completed in November. committee for reports. Penway said a key component ef the consultant’s recommenda- tions for ‘‘Historic Lonsdaie servation should be pursued in conjunction: with a general eco- nomic revitalization of the central and lower Lonsdale areas. “This ig a much broader issue than simply the form and design of buildings,”’ said Penway. “It contemplates an examina- tion of the .area’s economic viability, linkages with other parts of the city, the treatment of street right-of-ways, merchant initia- tives, etc.”” Penway said. the lower and cen- tral Lonsdale areas have been considered as being in competition with one another, and the two have been dealt with separately by the city. “While there are clear ‘areas of competition between the’. two, there . are also similarities and _compiementary - forces which should be considered. . “Both are pedestrian- -oriented : shopping districts in competition with malis and other antomobile- a reliant’ shopping .areas,’’ . said Penway. “Both are situated on Lonsdale. Avenie separated by high-density: housing. Together they form - the: spine of the Lonsdale Regional : Towncentre and the heart ‘of. the- city of North Vancouver. | . “Businesses in both are + ap-- parently experiencing financial. difficulty.’” . Penway added - that high turn- over-vacancy rates and the general ance of the storefronts sug-~ he ‘need for a° Lonsdale : revitalization. He''said the first step: towards revitalization is the preparation of a downtown strategy that would . involve a broad assessment: of the existing condition of the area,-in- cluding physical and economic considerations. He added that the next step would be to develop a “‘concept plan”’ to achieve the goals. and - resolve the problems that” have been identified. “A downtown revitalization ini- tiative for historic Lonsdale ‘and central Lonsdale could do a great deal to improve the city’s two pe- destrian-oriented shopping districts,’ said Penway. “I¢ would. allow for the coor- dination of public and private ini- tiatives in the area and provide.a context for the city’s proposed design guidelines in each area.””