Beresford: Burnaby’s Next Great Street

Comments 346 by Rebecca Bollwitt

The City of Burnaby and Intracorp are working together to rejuvenate Beresford Street, located across from Metrotown and directly South of the SkyTrain line. The first phase was the MetroPlace development and the second is Silver, a 38-storey tower. The City’s plan is to make Beresford the next “Great Street”.

A Great Street, as outlined by the Project for Public Spaces includes:

    Beresford Street Scene

  • Attractions & Destinations
  • Identity & Image
  • Seasonal Strategies
  • Diverse User Groups
  • Traffic, Transit & the Pedestrian
  • Amenities, Management
  • Protects Neighbourhoods
  • Active Edge Uses (human-scaled to allow for interaction between indoors and out)
  • Blending of Uses and Modes (ground floor uses and retail activities should spill out into the sidewalks and streets to blur the distinction between public and private space)

With the current plan, Silver’s community on Beresford gets a Walk Score of 97. They would love to know what you would like to see on Beresford as well. Public spaces, gardens, community events, retail, cafes, and more. To get the creative juices flowing for neighbourhood ideas, they have offered up a $250 Metropolis at Metrotown gift card for one Miss604.com reader. Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment naming what you would love to see on a “Great Street” (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win $250 to spend @MetropolisatMet from @IntracorpCanada #SilverLiving & @Miss604 http://ow.ly/9LZ86

I will draw one winner at random from all entries next Tuesday, March 27, 2012 at 12:00pm.

Update The winner is Manuel!

Dining Out For Life 2012

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

Dining Out For Life, an annual fundraiser for AIDS service organizations, is happening in Vancouver on Thursday, March 29, 2012.

Over 215 restaurants across the 604 area code will be contributing 25% of sales that day to A Loving Spoonful and Friends for Life. Search the list of participating restaurants to see if they are offering lunch and/or dinner for Dining Out For Life and make your reservations today.

Follow DineOut4LifeVan on Twitter or Facebook for more information.

Since it started in 1991, Dining Out For Life has grown to be a North America-wide event with over 3,000 participating restaurants in 60 cities.

Archives Photos of the Day: Theatres

Comments 15 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Vancouver is only going on 126 years old but despite its infancy compared to most other world-class cities, it had a community that supported the arts right off the bat. I dug around the Vancouver Archives to find evidence of everything from Vancouver’s vibrant vaudeville days to its fanatical film-going culture, in neighbourhood theatres to Theatre Row.


1911 – Avenue Theatre. Archives item# CVA 99-121. Photographer: Stuart Thomson.

Status: Closed.


1919 – The Rex Theatre. Archives item# CVA 99-240. Photographer: Stuart Thomson.

Status: Closed. When it opened in 1912, it was described as “the most modern movie house in the world.” Continue reading this post ⟩⟩

Heritage Vancouver Walking Tour & Beer Tasting

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Both Heritage Vancouver and the Vancouver Heritage Foundation host fascinating walking, neighbourhood, and housing tours around Vancouver. One upcoming event that caught my eye, aside from tomorrow night’s dinner in the Marine Building penthouse, is a walking tour with twist.

Salt 2
Photo credit: davefisher99 on Flickr – Submitted to the Miss604 Flickr Pool.

Walking Tour & Beer Tasting: Industrial History of South East False Creek
When: Saturday, March 31, 2012 tour at 1:00pm, tasting at 3:00pm
Where: Meet on the SE Corner of West 1st Ave and Crowe St
Tickets: $40 ($35 for Heritage Vancouver members)

Presented by Heritage Vancouver and the City of Vancouver Archives, Historian Isaac Vanderhorst will lead the walking tour of the historic South East False Creek district: “One of the outstanding stories you will hear is the pivotal role played by over 3000 men and women involved in the shipbuilding industry on this site during the First and Second World Wars. This area became the Olympic Village Site and is now being transformed into the Village at False Creek.”

After the tour you’ll loop back to Legacy Liquor Store on West 1st where you’ll enjoy the beer tasting, salty snacks, and the photography of Leslie Hossack from her exhibition: “Vancouver’s Village 2008-2011”.

Tickets are currently available online. Follow @heritagevan on Twitter for updates, more event information, and local history tidbits.

Magic Monday: Camilo The Magician

Comments 37 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Breaking away from the standard Music Monday theme, today it’s Magic Monday – another artform that entertains and dazzles. I have actually been contacted by several local slight-of-hand masters and illusionists lately so I have dedicated the next few Mondays to promoting their upcoming shows. The first is Camilo — whom you might recognize from the popular Said the Whale song.

This musical namesake is presenting a new show called “Snooker” at the Vancity Culture Lab at The Cultch from March 28-31 and April 4-7, 2012. All shows start at 8:00pm and tickets are $20. The show is presented in conjunction with the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Camilo The Magician: Snooker

Camilo was born and raised in Colombia, discovering a passion for magic at the age of three. Today, he is known for his unique approach; blending humor, and a charismatic and heartwarming personality with masterful agility. Using only his hands and a deck of cards, he aims to provide audiences with a truly original and intimate experience

At fifteen, he was given the opportunity to move to Victoria, Canada. He attended Belmont Secondary School, where his magic quickly became a staple of the year-end reunions and hallway meetings. After graduating high-school, Camilo moved to Vancouver where he began his psychology degree at Langara College, and subsequently, the production program at Studio 58.

If you would like to see Camilo in action, I have a pair of tickets to give away to “Snooker”. Here’s how you can enter to win:

  • Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
  • RT to enter to win tickets to see @CamiloTMagician from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/9KFfM

    I will draw one winner at random from all entries on Thursday, March 22, 2012 at 12:00pm. The winner will be able to select their show date.

    Update The winner is Tracy!