Restored rail sheds at the Roundhouse Arts & Recreation Centre
5 DOWNTOWN EASTSIDE: VANCOUVER’S “OTHER” NEIGHBORHOOD
BOUNDARIES: Cambie St., E. Hastings St., E. Cordova St. Dunlevy Ave.
DISTANCE: ¾ mile/1¼ kilometres
DIFFICULTY: Moderate
PARKING: There is a parkade at the southeast corner of W. Pender and Cambie Sts, close to Victory Square. There is also metered street parking along Cambie St.
PUBLIC TRANSIT: The 10 and 16 buses stop at dozens of points along W. and E. Hastings St. and are your main link with the downtown core.
A surprisingly short walk from the city center and often referred to as Canada’s poorest postal district, Vancouver’s gritty Downtown Eastside comprises several blocks of once-handsome brick buildings long past their best. Centered on E. Hastings St., this skid-row thoroughfare was once the city’s most genteel commercial strip but has been a no-go area for decades, with a multitude of social problems transforming its character. Despite the poverty, noisy construction clamor shows that change is beginning to come to the district that time forgot. Strolling the streets today, you’ll find the initial shoots of this gentrification mixed with many reminders of the area’s vibrant past. Look beyond the paint-peeled façades and moldy shutters of long-closed buildings and you’ll see landmark historic banks, stores, and theatres as well as a “living museum” of heritage neon, the last remnants of a time when Vancouver was lined with flickering signs advertising its businesses. A word about safety: strolling the Downtown Eastside is not for those of a nervous disposition, but crimes against visitors remain rare here. Street smarts are essential, so stay on the main thoroughfares (especially avoid the back alleys) and keep your wallet well-hidden.
| • | Start your trek in the heart of “Vansterdam,” the two-store clutch of counter-culture businesses just before the intersection of W. Hastings and Cambie Sts. Nip inside the friendly Cannabis Culture Headquarters (CCHQ), signified by the oversized marijuana leaf paintings adorning its exterior. Home of the BC Marijuana Party, it serves to demystify, educate, and promote legal use of certain drugs: there’s a kaleidoscope of glass bongs and racks of quality hemp clothing for sale, plus a tiki-themed café at the back for hanging out with your new buds. |
| • | A few steps east along W. Hastings St., you’ll have your first taste of the grand buildings that once lined this area, originally the city’s main financial and commercial district. One of Vancouver’s most attractive heritage structures, the curve-topped 13-story Dominion Building was one of the tallest in the British Empire when completed in 1910. Initially the local headquarters of the Toronto Dominion Bank, its handsome red-brick exterior is now protected, while interior is home to a mishmash of offices and small businesses. |
| • | Step across W. Hastings here to take photos of the towering Dominion Building and you’ll come across Victory Square. Original site of an old courthouse, this is where locals signed up for active service in World War I. After the courthouse was moved, the area became a park and, in 1924, a cenotaph was built to honor the region’s war dead. Now the site for Vancouver’s main Remembrance Day services, the austere three-sided granite obelisk here is surrounded by a crescent of streetlamps topped with reproductions of the tin hats soldiers used to wear. Even though the park is a year-round 24-hour-a-day hangout, the memorial is respected and poppy wreaths laid here are never disturbed. |
| • | Cross over Cambie St. next and continue east along W. Hastings St. into the heart of the Downtown Eastside. You’ll immediately notice the increase in marginalized locals, many hanging around street corners or scoring deals in back alleys. But change is coming: on your left, the site of the old Woodwards department store—a landmark, multistory shop that thrived here for decades—is being transformed into a giant development of new housing, shops, and a university campus. Its arrival is touted as a major catalyst for regeneration. Immediately opposite, you’ll see just how much work still needs to be done: the block of weathered, boarded-up former restaurants and retail outlets is like a row of broken teeth. |
| • | Continuing east, cross Abbott St., passing the stale-smelling dive bars. Keep your eyes peeled: the leveling of decrepit flophouses and refurbishment of ancient structures here is uncovering some of the area’s history for the first time in years and you might see suddenly revealed old advertisements painted directly onto brick walls decades ago. You’ll also spot some of Vancouver’s best old neon signs, still winking their invitations to passers-by decades after their 1950s heyday. Among the finest is at Save-on-Meats on your left, where a jaunty pink pig holds up a big loonie. This historic butcher shop closed in early 2009 but hopes are high that the sign will be preserved by new tenants. |
| • | Continue east to the intersection with Carrall St., where W. Hastings becomes E. Hastings. Don’t linger at Pigeon Park, a grubby corner where the area’s sketchiest residents hangout day and night. Instead cross Carrall and head to the right-hand side of E. Hastings to check out the colorful seahorse-shaped neon sign of Only Seafoods Café, a legendary fish restaurant that was closed in 2009. Its sign, so far, remains intact. Keep the pace fairly swift here and stroll briskly uphill. For another snack option, drop into the Radio Station Café, on the left-hand corner of E. Hastings and Columbia, named for Co-op Radio, the volunteer community station upstairs that’s been a neighborhood fixture since the 1970s. Enjoy your java and a muffin while you peruse the goings on outside the windows—you’ll likely see industrious locals dragging giant sacks of cans and bottles to the nearby recycling center. |
| • | The café is a sign that businesses are beginning to return and thrive in this area. In fact, nip south along Columbia St. for half a block and you’ll find one that may indicate a bright commercial future. Occupying an old barbershop, Wanted—Lost Found Canadian is the kind of cool, artsy store often found in much trendier Vancouver neighborhoods. Dedicated to recycling, artist-owner Susan Schroeder transforms baseboard wood planks into cute collage blocks covered with butterfly prints, and vintage wool blankets into bird-shaped coin purses and artful new cushions. She’s always happy to chat about the challenges of the area and why she thinks things are slowly improving. |
| • | Returning to E. Hastings, turn right and within a few steps you’ll come to the site of the old Pantages Theatre. Built in 1907 at the height of Vancouver’s love affair with vaudeville, it had later incarnations as City Nights movie house and Sung Sing Theatre. Plans are afoot to give it yet another life. Across the street, you’ll spot the handsome, if worn, signage of the Balmoral Hotel. Originally an upscale inn, it’s not recommended as accommodation now, but its renovated ballroom has been colonized by Vancouver hipsters and cool up-and-coming indie bands. |
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Continuing uphill, you’ll soon
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