Bright lights, big city: Vancouver looks to change its sign bylaws
The city is looking for public feedback on business signs in an online survey
By Roshini Nair, CBC News Posted: Aug 23, 2016 5:00 PM PT Last Updated: Aug 24, 2016 7:10 AM PT
Civic historian John Atkin says the vertically placed signage on Granville gives Vancouver its distinctive night district. (Downtown Vancouver Business Improvement Association/YouTube)
There are few things more iconic to Vancouver's urban identity than its street signs — like the Orpheum Theatre on Granville Street or the Save-on-Meats sign on Hastings Street.
Save on Meats
The iconic Save-On-Meats sign on Hastings Street in Vancouver. (Ben Cappellacci/Flickr)
Now, the city is looking to make some big changes to its sign bylaws — the first major update since 1989 — and it's looking for your help through an online survey.
Randy Pecarski, the assistant director of planning, says one reason for the update is that the current bylaws are too inflexible and don't reflect advances in technology.
"It doesn't allow certain kinds of signs to apply to the city, like digital signs. There's a huge interest in doing that from the community and from industry, so we need to make provisions for that."
A colourful history of street signs
Civic historian John Atkin is excited by the prospect of a new sign bylaw.
Atkin has studied the history of signs, particularly on Granville Street, which was once known as "The Great White Way" because of the neon signs decorating every possible space.
People came to Vancouver just to drive down the brightly lit thoroughfare, he says, and at one point the city had one of the highest concentrations of neon signage in the world.
Vancouver Granville Street 1965
Granville Street in 1965 was affectionately dubbed the "Great White Way" due to the high concentration of neon signs. (George Weinhaupl)
But Atkin says that changed in the 1970s, when the city pushed back against the gritty, industrial look and adopted a more green, natural aesthetic.
"We went through the 1974 bylaw that outlawed everything from projecting signs, twirling signs, signs above the roofline, etc."
It wasn't until 2000 that the city started re-evaluating its bylaws to revitalize the street.
"They rewrote the sign bylaw for Granville Street, and you see the results today. At nighttime, this is a very active, busy and lively street."
That's not to say Atkin would like to see every street look like Granville.
"I think this is an opportunity to bring back some interesting stuff in retail areas where somebody might want to put out a projecting sign and put a sign above the roof and have it spin."
More signs, more problems?
Not everyone is on board for more bright lights, however.
In May, for example, the city banned a floating billboard company from displaying its electronic advertisements in False Creek after residents complained it was "crass".
Burke Billboards
A promotional illustration on the Burke Billboards website shows a now-banned floating billboard on a boat in Vancouver's False Creek, in front of Science World. (Burke Billboards)
Atkin says he knows people tend to react to signs with less enthusiasm than he does but says there's a powerful relationship between signage, successful streets and a vibrant city.
"We are a city that has more cloudy days than any other place in North America. We are a place that has long nighttimes ... The opportunity to create great signs that then throw that light onto the street — that gives us a much, much better city."
With files from Margaret Gallagher
Article:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/britis...laws-1.3732818
Some streets need brightening up, too
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