SkyTrain Station Renovations

[jlousa]

They are not legal, under current rules a rs-1 property if it meets requirements can have one basement suite, plus one laneway house for a total of 3 units on the lot. Developers build it with two because that is what purchasers are looking for to help with the mortgage (they will keep the pipes in the wall until final inspection and complete buildout at a later date, city is well aware of the problem but does not want to be seen targeting rentals). The current situation is ruining neighbourhoods as you have 3-4 units per lot and not enough parking, heck the two car garage ends up being used for storage and you have neighbours fighting over street parking, leaving garbage pails out in the road to save spaces. Neighbours don't talk to each other because of parking spats etc etc, and in the end the mortgage helpers haven't even helped as all that's happened is it's helped increase the total price as people count on that revenue and bid up the prices to want they could afford regardless. Hence why rowhouses w/o lockoff suites are much better neighbourhood builders even though rowhouses do not increase density over the current situation.

Back onto topic, are the current retails units in stations profitable? Some of them certainly don't appear to be, I would certainly love to see even token retail at all stations in the future. Even if they only provides insignificant revenue to Translink, the increase eyes on the street factor would be worth it from a commuter point of view.

[Waders]

Originally Posted by jlousa

Back onto topic, are the current retails units in stations profitable?

I doubt that. I think some are losing money. The Starbuck inside Granville Station don't even open on Sunday. And I have never seen the Ethical Bean Coffee at Granville Station opened. Not sure what happened.

[Millennium2002]

too much density causing parking problems? hmm... i guess people are building it inside the neighbourhood rather than near busy streets with local transit. now that's a bit... crazy. On the other hand if it's on a busy transit route i wouldn't mind so much.

As for retail outlets inside stations... they may seem great... but a lot of them appear to be food establishments... and i guess most people are wanting to comply with the warning signs stating no food or drink in trains in the case the police catches them... strangely though i haven't been stopped for eating or drinking on transit ever since I've started riding it... but that's usually because i generally clean up after myself without causing mischief.

Anyway, with the smart card contest underway, does anybody know anything more about skytrain station upgrades?

[Waders]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

Anyway, with the smart card contest underway, does anybody know anything more about skytrain station upgrades?

I don't have any inside information.
According to published schedule, the station construction work won't begin until Spring 2011. But I think the preliminary design work has started.
According to report from the Province, "Technical submissions from the three finalists for the Smart Card project are to be submitted next Wednesday. Financial submissions are to be in by late November.". Once a recommendation is made to Translink's board in December, the system design work for smart card/faregate will begin in Winter/Spring 2011. This would influence the station structure change required.
Another factor needs to be considered in the station change design is the future Expo Line expansion plan.

http://www.theprovince.com/Name+Tran...#ixzz12ImPpv1P

[SpongeG]

i noticed jugo juice has added Salads i assume to bring them business - they are always empty or closed when i see em

[SpongeG]

Originally Posted by twoNeurons

Almost every single new house built today in East Vancouver ( and I'm talking 95% ) have two suites in the back. They look like the grey house here:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&sour...207.58,,0,8.21

Two car garage, sometimes, a spot for a third car.
Two doors in the back for the two suites. Usually both two bedroom. Usually no laundry. It has a combined kitchen/dining/living room, usually tiled.

Here's a good example of one for $950:


source:
http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/va...001555983.html


Assuming you rent both suites, you bring in $1900. That's taxable, mind you. A laneway house will bring in $1200. A basement suite on top of it could bring in $800. Assuming you don't mind managing three suites and assuming a month or two per year where a suite is vacant... I'm assuming you could bring in $3000 / month avg.

i'm talking about basement suites you buy though - you don't rent them - my friend's friend looked at buying one - it was well under $300,000 and quite small like 500 sq ft - compared to what she could get for the same price elsewhere it was alright - I had never before heard of a basement suite in a house being sold as a condo before...

[aberdeen5698]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

too much density causing parking problems? hmm... i guess people are building it inside the neighbourhood rather than near busy streets with local transit.

There are huge sections of Vancouver where no house is more than a few blocks away from a bus route. And most of those are trolley routes with pretty frequent service.

[cabotp]

Originally Posted by jlousa

They are not legal, under current rules a rs-1 property if it meets requirements can have one basement suite, plus one laneway house for a total of 3 units on the lot. Developers build it with two because that is what purchasers are looking for to help with the mortgage (they will keep the pipes in the wall until final inspection and complete buildout at a later date, city is well aware of the problem but does not want to be seen targeting rentals). The current situation is ruining neighbourhoods as you have 3-4 units per lot and not enough parking, heck the two car garage ends up being used for storage and you have neighbours fighting over street parking, leaving garbage pails out in the road to save spaces. Neighbours don't talk to each other because of parking spats etc etc, and in the end the mortgage helpers haven't even helped as all that's happened is it's helped increase the total price as people count on that revenue and bid up the prices to want they could afford regardless. Hence why rowhouses w/o lockoff suites are much better neighbourhood builders even though rowhouses do not increase density over the current situation.

Back onto topic, are the current retails units in stations profitable? Some of them certainly don't appear to be, I would certainly love to see even token retail at all stations in the future. Even if they only provides insignificant revenue to Translink, the increase eyes on the street factor would be worth it from a commuter point of view.

Ya what you mentioned with RS-1 sounds right to me. I just assumed the rules have recently been changed. But I guess they haven't.

As for the parking problem I've seen it on the next street over. So far our street hasn't had that problem. Mostly because a few houses have at most 1 or 2 people living in the entire house.

[cabotp]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

i'm talking about basement suites you buy though - you don't rent them - my friend's friend looked at buying one - it was well under $300,000 and quite small like 500 sq ft - compared to what she could get for the same price elsewhere it was alright - I had never before heard of a basement suite in a house being sold as a condo before...

I don't think that what she bought is even legal.

Unless she was related or friends with the owner of the house. Then they would of just split the ownership up.

[Porfiry]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

I had never before heard of a basement suite in a house being sold as a condo before...

In 2004 I bought the basement suite (well, "garden" suite) of a house in Kitsilano. It was an old character house that had been stripped down, jacked up and redeveloped into two units, plus a laneway house. (This was in a Kitsilano RT-7 zone).

The legal structure was a strata corporation, just like a condo building.

[andcarne]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

As for retail outlets inside stations... they may seem great... but a lot of them appear to be food establishments... and i guess most people are wanting to comply with the warning signs stating no food or drink in trains in the case the police catches them... strangely though i haven't been stopped for eating or drinking on transit ever since I've started riding it... but that's usually because i generally clean up after myself without causing mischief.

Oddly enough, when I was on the SkyTrain the other day, this conversation came up between my and the other people I was with (oddly enough, heading to a tour of the OMC with a couple SkyTrain people). We looked around, but the signs seem to have been changed and no longer banned food/drink.

This was on an old Mk.1 car, so maybe the signs were just incomplete, but it also may be that the policy has changed.

[TransitJack]

Originally Posted by Porfiry

In 2004 I bought the basement suite (well, "garden" suite) of a house in Kitsilano. It was an old character house that had been stripped down, jacked up and redeveloped into two units, plus a laneway house. (This was in a Kitsilano RT-7 zone).

The legal structure was a strata corporation, just like a condo building.

Kitsilano had some wonky zoning changes a long time ago that was meant to encourage secondary suites and work towards legalizing them in this part of the city. Some of the zoning in Kits exists no where else in the city.

I can't think of them off hand but there are also a few other spots around Van that had "test" zoning, that allowed for legals secondary suites that were supposed to expire after only 10 years. In most cases this never actually reverted back.

I too, never heard heard anything about strata-izing the land. Even the current lane-way houses, I believe, are not permitted to be a strata lot.. they are meant to be part of the same property and can't be sold off individually.

[Millennium2002]

I think the policy's still in place, considering the fact that all or most buses have the labels... (for the buses maybe it's because their ride is considered rougher?) But as for its enforcement... eh... I'm guessing TransLink and its staff (bus drivers and SkyTrain attendants) has found the public to be quite compliant or otherwise cleaning themselves up after it and is therefore not enforcing it as stringently as they could be.

Certainly as this place grows the policy may have to be strengthened again... oh well... not like i eat on transit very frequently. =O

Is there a penalty or anything btw for food and drinks on transit?

[SpikePhanta]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

I think the policy's still in place, considering the fact that all or most buses have the labels... (for the buses maybe it's because their ride is considered rougher?) But as for its enforcement... eh... I'm guessing TransLink and its staff (bus drivers and SkyTrain attendants) has found the public to be quite compliant or otherwise cleaning themselves up after it and is therefore not enforcing it as stringently as they could be.

Certainly as this place grows the policy may have to be strengthened again... oh well... not like i eat on transit very frequently. =O

Is there a penalty or anything btw for food and drinks on transit?

Bus drivers don't mind people bringing drinks it seems, but with food and deserts its different.

[DKaz]

We can eat to our heart's desire on the West Coast Express.

[madmigs]

Originally Posted by allan_kuan

I think the policy's still in place, considering the fact that all or most buses have the labels... (for the buses maybe it's because their ride is considered rougher?) But as for its enforcement... eh... I'm guessing TransLink and its staff (bus drivers and SkyTrain attendants) has found the public to be quite compliant or otherwise cleaning themselves up after it and is therefore not enforcing it as stringently as they could be.

Certainly as this place grows the policy may have to be strengthened again... oh well... not like i eat on transit very frequently. =O

Is there a penalty or anything btw for food and drinks on transit?

No idea if there are any penalties, but it's unlikely they would enforce the issue with somebody eating on the train, unless they were making a mess, it was stinky, or they were eating like a pig(ie. grossing out other passengers). When I worked downtown and transferred, i quite regularly bought 2 slices of pizza and a coke and had them finished before I got to gilmore -> no need to cook dinner

[Mac Write]

I think as long as your clean, don't drink boos, etc they are fine with it. Use good judgement.

[cabotp]

Originally Posted by Mac Write

I think as long as your clean, don't drink boos, etc they are fine with it. Use good judgement.

I'd be rich everytime I've seen someone drinking booze on transit.

[Canadian Mind]

We're not allowed to eat on Skytrain? I honestly didn't know that. Do it pretty much everytime I'm in the Valley (pick up Subway just before catching the train downtown from Surrey). Must have done it over a hundred times.

[cabotp]

Originally Posted by Canadian Mind

We're not allowed to eat on Skytrain? I honestly didn't know that. Do it pretty much everytime I'm in the Valley (pick up Subway just before catching the train downtown from Surrey). Must have done it over a hundred times.

Your not supposed to eat. But most times they won't say anything. So long as your quiet about it and keeping the mess contained.

If you were slobbering and dropping food and rubbing your greasy fingers over everything. I'm sure you would have a talking to.

But just remember if any attendent has gotten up on the wrong side of the bed. They might be a little bitchy and give you a talking to.