‘A lot of bureaucracy’: Kitsilano homeowner blames city for renovation delays

A Kitsilano homeowner, criticized for allowing a store astatine the backmost of his location to collapse, says helium has wanted to bash a monolithic renovation but the dilatory gait of Vancouver’s City Hall is frustrating matters.

The location is located connected Arbutus Street, valued conscionable nether $4 cardinal and crossed from Kitsilano Beach.

Aaron Chan, who presently lives successful Taiwan, grew up successful Vancouver, got his MBA successful New York, past worked successful Hong Kong and India earlier Taipei.

But Vancouver has ever been home.

“We inactive person a batch of household successful Vancouver and we typically bring our kids to to Vancouver successful the summertime, you know, but for the pandemic years,” Chan told Global News.

He and his woman purchased the location successful 2021. Chan said the location is 100 years aged and they ever planned to renovate it.

They started communicating with the City of Vancouver successful aboriginal 2022 and Chan said they hired an architect.

“We were fixed a database of things that we request to do,” helium said. “And we were precise diligent and we tried to beryllium cooperative and comply with immoderate the metropolis wanted. And each clip we submitted what was requested and we ever inquire the question, ‘Is this the list? Is that it?’ And I deliberation the reply has ever been, ‘Yes, this is if you bash ABCD, this is what we request from you.'”

Chan said that contempt pursuing what the metropolis requested, they would proceed to get emails asking them to bash more.

“I person been doing skyscrapers successful New York, successful Hong Kong, Taipei, Tokyo,” Chan said.

“You know, I’m comparing (this) to immoderate developed country, immoderate large metropolis successful the world. And truthful I thought to myself, if I could grip doing large improvement successful those cities, and the codes and regulations are very, precise stringent, this is simply a woody structure, this is simply a house, a tiny house, actually. I thought I could easy grip that, but I conjecture I was precise incorrect astir it.”

Chan said they lone received the demolition licence for the store this week from the City of Vancouver — 2 years aft starting the process.

“This is simply a location successful dire request of immoderate loving and caring,” helium said. “And I’m an experienced existent property developer. We’re talking astir a three-storey woody structure. I ne'er expected this to beryllium this hard by immoderate planetary standards.”

Chan said they inactive don’t person the permits successful spot to hole the house.

‘When we started that process, determination were inactive a batch of COVID protocols,” helium said. “The responses were not quick. You know, the hurdle that we had to spell done was a lot. So, yeah, we’re blessed to respond to immoderate petition from the city. But determination is simply a batch of bureaucracy.”

In a connection to Global News, the City of Vancouver said that successful 2022 the homeowner for the location submitted a pre-submittal exertion for projected interior and exterior alterations.

The improvement licence exertion was submitted connected Dec. 7, 2023, according to the city, with fees paid connected Dec. 19, 2023.

Once the fees were paid, the metropolis initiated the reappraisal process.

“On April 16, 2024, City unit issued a deficiency database to the applicant, outlining required revisions and providing comments from our Building Review Branch (BRB),” the metropolis said.

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“These revisions are indispensable to conscionable the City’s requirements. Since then, unit person been successful regular connection with the applicant to supply enactment and reply questions. However, the applicant has not yet submitted the revised plans addressing the identified deficiencies.”

The metropolis said the delays successful this lawsuit look to beryllium related to incomplete revisions and outstanding requirements connected the portion of the applicant.

In June 2023, the City of Vancouver adopted the 3-3-3-1 licence support model to fast-track applications.

Targets see 3 days to o.k. location renovation permits, 3 weeks to o.k. single-family location and townhouse permits, 3 months to o.k. permits for professionally designed multi-family and mid-rise projects wherever existing zoning is successful spot and 1 twelvemonth to o.k. permits for a high-rise oregon large-scale project.

“As you know, this is simply a large enactment and it takes a small spot of time,” Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said connected Thursday.

“What I tin archer you is we person astonishing radical and they person been moving diligently, truthful we person a batch of anecdotal grounds of our permitting process being sped up.”

Sim said portion determination is much enactment to do, the programme has been successful.

Chan said helium understands his location is 100 years aged but his acquisition has been acold from successful.

“I privation I was fixed a database of things that we request to comply and do,” helium said. “And erstwhile we were fixed that list, it could beryllium fixed to america successful 1 petition alternatively than piecemeal.”

Chan said it does not halt his family’s tendency to determination to Vancouver.

“However, erstwhile we bought the location astatine the extremity of 2021, our program was to determination the household backmost successful 2023,” helium said.

“And present we’re sitting present successful 2024. We anticipation that our kids tin be a schoolhouse twelvemonth successful 2025. I don’t deliberation that’s happening present due to the fact that we haven’t adjacent started the renovation of the house.”

Chan said helium wanted to talk retired astir the concern to pass and not to criticize.

“I deliberation this is the accidental to truly look astatine the system,” helium said.

“It’s broken. And past I deliberation we conscionable request to amend it.”