Suzanne Fournier
Province
Would a 250-seat, open-air patio restaurant atop the glamorous Opus Hotel enhance Vancouver‘s livability reputation or would it turn Yaletown into Yelltown?
Many Yaletown residents opposed the plan over hours of public hearings in the last month. The hearings finally ended late Tuesday when a majority of the outgoing city council voted against the seasonal outdoor restaurant. But John Evans, general manager at Trilogy Properties, which owns the Opus Hotel chain, promises they’ll be back.
Residents said they accept Yaletown’s “vibrant street scene” but don’t want it moved seven floors higher.
“Residents of Yaletown, or Yell-town as it is becoming known because of the party noise we are subjected to seven nights a week, are very concerned that a rooftop bar would tip the balance that has made Yaletown vibrant and sustainable and render it just an entertainment district,” said Brad Zembic of the Yaletown Residents Association.
Zembic said that residents of his building on the 200-block Davie Street can already hear conversations held at street level, because patios are surrounded by canyons of highrise apartment buildings that funnel sound directly upward.
The Opus Hotel, with 97 rooms in the 300-block Davie Street, is a luxury boutique hotel with trendy restaurants and bars.
“There are many residents who support the plan, and, of course, city planning and its urban design panel unanimously supported us, so it’s interesting the elected officials chose to go against staff advice,” said Evans.
Evans said Trilogy has not abandoned the rooftop restaurant plan. “We could have addressed the residents’ concerns about privacy and noise during the development stage,” he insisted.
Zembic feels, however, that “council killed the application, full-stop.”
© The Vancouver Province 2008
