Burnabyism: Envisioning 52,600 people in Brentwood (Gilmore SkyTrain Station)
WHEN: May 6, 2017, 2:30 PM,
LENGTH: 2 Hours
About This Walk
The population of Metro Vancouver continues to grow, and each municipality has its own approach to accommodating that growth. Vancouverism gets a LOT of attention, but there are interesting changes under way in the region’s other municipalities *right now*. These new neighbourhoods are the physical manifestation of a city’s politics, history, and their residents’ attitudes towards others, and these influences are plainly apparent at street level, if you know where to look.
For decades, Brentwood has been an established suburban neighbourhood, anchored by a suburban shopping mall. In 2002, a futuristic SkyTrain station was plunked right in the centre of the community, and that patch of land immediately gained rapid, frequent access to downtown, and the rest of the region.
Regional plans encourage placing residents and jobs close to rapid transit, and each municipality interprets those targets in different ways. Brentwood’s population growth target is to grow from 10,500 in 2011 to 52,600 in 2041. Burnaby has translated this target into some of the tallest buildings in BC.
Let’s walk around to take a first-hand look at the decisions made in the building of Brentwood, the history behind them, and the lessons they might hold for other communities.
But most importantly, let’s gawk at construction sites and use our imaginations to picture a Brentwood radically transformed.
Walk Route
- Gilmore SkyTrain Station – Start at ground level just at the foot of the staircase
- Brentwood Station – End of Tour
How to find us
I’ll be the tall nerdy one standing at the foot of the stairs outside Gilmore Station.
Accessibility
This will be a brisk walk with lots of stops for talking and pondering. Burnaby is deceptively hilly, so be prepared to climb.
Route May Contain
- Curbs and steps
Steep hills
Other Notes
- Dogs welcome
- Bicycles welcome
- Taking Public Transit
- Take the Millennium Line to Gilmore Station.
About the Walk Team
Denis Agar – Walk Leader
I’m early in my career as a transportation planner, and I currently work for a notable regional transportation agency. I have a voracious curiosity for cities and have visited 50-ish countries in search of different ways of doing things. I am originally from small-town Eastern Ontario and spent some formative years studying urban planning at Ryerson University in irrepressible downtown Toronto. The lure of the ocean (and a job) brought me out to Lotusland four years ago. I live with my lovely wife (who is also hosting a Jane’s Walk) in a 100-year-old building in Coal Harbour.
