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Once upon a time in Vancouver, it was common to stroll to a nearby street corner to pick up some groceries, candy, or even some compressed gas for fuel.<\/p>\n
In fact, today there are only a few such shops tucked into single-family neighbourhoods. Places like the Mighty Oak<\/a> in Riley Park, Le March\u00e9 St. George<\/a> in Mountainview, or the beloved Benny\u2019s Market in Strathcona, now in its 102nd year of business.<\/p>\n They\u2019re delightful anomalies in the urban landscape, but why? Well, because such a thing became technically illegal in the late 1920s.<\/p>\n For almost a century, the city didn\u2019t approve such shops under its zoning bylaws, because they \u201churt the appearance of a good many residence streets\u201d\u2014a classic NIMBY response that called for more lawns instead.<\/p>\n Vancouver non-profit Urbanarium<\/a> and urban video whiz Uytae Lee have teamed up again to investigate the undeserved vitriol. Who wouldn\u2019t want a pick up a carton of milk (or perhaps even some weed) from the shop around the corner?<\/p>\n You might remember the team\u2019s video on the \u201cmissing middle<\/a>,\u201d which explains why our region has so many houses and towers but lacks in the low- and mid-rise department.<\/p>\n This time, they\u2019re answering why there isn\u2019t more \u201cmixing middle\u201d \u2014 commercial use welcomed into residential neighbourhoods.<\/p>\n Check it out here:<\/p>\n