The potential loss of parking spaces in Yaletown may have ripple effects that are felt as far away as Los Angeles.
“This is a serious production issue that will impact our entire industry. Yaletown is a valuable film location that we cannot afford to lose,” say Kendrie Upton, executive director of the B.C. chapter of the Directors Guild of Canada, and DGC locations caucus representative Jina Johnson in a press release.
They are encouraging people in Vancouver’s film and television community to attend a rally at the Roundhouse Community Centre on Thursday afternoon. The goal is to help the Yaletown BIA convince the City of Vancouver not to drastically reduce the number of parking lots on Yaletown’s two busiest commercial streets.
The two streets — Mainland and Hamilton — are in a heritage area of the city that provides an attractive backdrop for films, television shows and commercials, including scenes shot at Bar None for Fifty Shades Freed.
I just took a pic with Luke! @yvrshoots ❤️ pic.twitter.com/IUEfYejWLy
— Lorena (@loantunes_) May 13, 2016
However, the former warehouse district for the CPR wasn’t designed to accommodate parked cars on both sides of the one-way streets as well as provide easy access for emergency vehicles. The Vancouver fire department says that its trucks have a difficult time travelling the narrow streets.
The city responded by saying it would remove parking on both sides of the two streets. The Yaletown BIA, recognizing there is a problem for emergency vehicles, is proposing a compromise that would see parking removed on only one street.
In the meantime, the Directors Guild of Canada says that a few years ago, its local locations caucus met with BIA executive director Annette O’Shea about the BIA’s concerns about lost revenue when the streets are filled with production trucks. The DGC says the BIA estimates a single parking spot in Yaletown is worth an average of $10,000 in consumer spending within the area per day. “Merchants were understandably concerned about losing parking to film vehicles,” the DGCBC press release says. The locations caucus has been successfully working with the BIA’s executive director Annette O’Shea to deal with those issues.
“Annette is very appreciative of our support,” Upton and Johnson’s letter says. "However, if they aren't successful at getting the city to engage, the BIA could take steps to stop filming in Yaletown as a result of the lost parking. Thus our efforts to generate support."
The Feb. 22 rally starts at 2 p.m. at the Roundhouse — the exact location of the city’s open house on the issue from 2 to 8 p.m.
