On January 25th, Vancouver City Council voted unanimously to support seven recommendations for False Creek South (FCS), which will:
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Develop Terms of Reference to guide a community planning process in FCS
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Develop affordable housing options for all FCS residents to remain in the community
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Produce a framework for resolving lease issues
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Evaluate land governance options
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Initiate building condition assessments
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Approve False Creek South principles for community engagement
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Include financial support for all of these tasks

Gil Kelley, General Manager of Planning, Urban Design and Sustainability, spoke positively about the community’s early history in the 1970s and 80s in his opening comments to Council, describing FCS’ evolution “as a very thoughtful and passionate experiment that has turned out to be very successful.”
In *RePlan’s response to Council, following the City’s presentations, Chair Richard Evans thanked City staff for their hard work on the report and expressed support for specific components, such as developing affordable housing options for people to remain in the neighbourhood and recognizing the False Creek South Neighbourhood Association’s (FCSNA) leadership role in the community.
Strata Leasehold Subcommittee Chair Anne Kaye emphasized the urgency of resolving lease issues: “We believe new leases are enablers for a successful community plan and for affordable housing options for all residents – in co-ops, non-profits and stratas.”
By approving the recommendations, City Council agreed to simultaneously:
In their closing comments, Councillor Andrea Reimer and Mayor Gregor Robertson spoke of both the past and future of the City’s work with the FCS Neighbourhood Association and *RePlan:
“When the City originally established this neighbourhood [on city-owned land], it made a legislative requirement for a neighbourhood association, which is unique in Vancouver. They [FCSNA] have an independent but related status to the City, so it was our feeling … they should be treated the same way as an advisory committee.” Councillor Andrea Reimer
“A big thanks to staff and everyone at *RePlan for the work to get us to where we are today. A ton of progress is now being made and a sense of achievable timelines for all these complicated pieces to converge is in front of us.” Mayor Gregor Robertson
*False Creek South co-op leases are addressed in a separate report concerning co-ops on city-owned land city-wide. Click here to see a summary of that report (approved by council February 8, 2017) prepared by the Cooperative Housing Federation of BC.
WATCH False Creek South at City Council: Part 1, Part 2
READ the Report: False Creek South Report Back and Next Steps
READ the Minutes: January 25th , 2017—Strategic Committee of Council on Policy and Strategic Priorities
*RePlan’s 2016 Achievements
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Raised over $200,000 in financial support from our neighbours and supporters for legal and strategic advice, communications, and administrative support
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Convinced COV to establish the False Creek South Project Team to meet regularly with *RePlan
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July 13: Won unanimous support from the Mayor and Vancouver city
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Built framework for developing strategies and communicating with our neighbours
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Successfully opposed COV’s request to the Province to change the Strata Property Act
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Encouraged new thinking on how False Creek South land is governed to support affordable housing goals
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Began working with the City team on building condition assessments
*RePlan’s Goals for 2017
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Significantly increase two-way communications with our neighbours
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Continue our research into alternative governance models and affordable new lease options
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Participate in regular meetings with the City’s False Creek South team