Urban Vancouver

For our inaugural contest we present to you DIPT. This is one of many giveaways we are working on for the loyal readers of Vancity Buzz.

Contest details:

• Grand prize: vancity original hat
• Secondary prizes: vancity original t-shirts - 2 large, 2 medium, 2 small
  

Shout-out to Jeff of DIPT for the hook-up.

Please send us your name, address, phone number and shirt size to vancitybuzzcontest@gmail.com. Contest closes December 15.

The City of Vancouver officially declared November 28th AC/DC day. The bands latest release Black Ice went straight to number one. I think the high sales for the band was a direct result of its fan base being to old and unable to to download via i Tunes or Limewire etc...They recorded their 15th studio album right here in Vancouver at the legendary Warehouse Studios as they did with their previous album Stiff Upper Lip. Vancouver is their home away from home in away.

AC/DC's widely anticipated Black Ice World Tour will open on October 28th and continue with a string of arena shows, followed by a number of stadium performance in summer.

They touch down at GM Place on Friday November 28th. The show time is 7:30 pm. Tickets? Good luck as old business men who work at Bentall Five are willing to pay thousands for them.

The Markets have been rattled the last few days as it continues to circle jerk traders on trading floors across this planet. The VIX (volatility index or fear index) once again is approaching its highs and 3 more banks may possibly fail, C being one of them. For you non-traders that is Citigroup. No one saw this amount of bloodshed coming and ultimately C might not fail.

The big 3 automakers (can they be still referred to as big 3?) are looking for a $25 billion bailout, ultimately delaying the inevitable, chapter 11. What's funny is that the CEOs arrived in private jets to pitch their case in front of congress. Egregious. One of them (the companies) needs to die and the industry will be much stronger. Raul made an excellent point in my comment section for the Detroit is dead piece, take a look at it.

Back home in Vancouver layoffs have started at construction sites as developers are delaying projects or downright canceling them. See those stalled/cancelled projects here, here and here.

On second thought, fuck it, C is too big to fail and to big to bailout. What is one to do? The prince of Saudi Arabi is increasing his stake and word is they have secured $50 billion in private funding. This means I'll be doing some heavy buying today, around 5000 or shares of C hoping to make a quick buck to pay my maid/servant bills for the month. I'm off to go make money for the day. How much $$$? I guess I'll just have to wait and C if my gamble pays off.

Update: C is moving on up. I'll look to flip it shortly and take my winnings.

Update 2: Post was submitted by UD, his computer is down so it was posted by us, the administrators. He has informed us that he has sold C at $5.90 for a nice profit and repurchased near the days lows.

Continuing with our focus on Christmas events in Vancouver, today we will talk about Christmas on Grouse Mountain. There probably isn't a more picturesque sight for Christmas activities than Grouse Mountain. The lush trees and snow capped mountain provides the perfect backdrop for a fun day with the family.

Bring your family to Santa's Workshop and meet reindeer, or take a sleigh ride* through our mystical alpine forest. You can also experience the tranquil beauty of skating on our 8,000 square foot mountaintop Ice Skating Pond, surrounded by snow-topped trees.

Learn more about Santa's reindeer at our daily ranger interpretive talks or have a digital photo taken with Santa to keep a memento of your Peak of Christmas visit!

Visit the Theatre in the Sky to enjoy classic Christmas movies on our large high-definition screen. Or listen to joyful Christmas carols sung by the enchanting voices of Vancouver choirs.

Visit the spectacular SOS Children's Village Parade of Trees in the Spirit Gallery.

Make a day of it as the Peak of Christmas has a day full of activities for the whole family. It runs from November 29 to December 24, 2008 (closes at 4pm on Christmas eve). All of these activities are complimentary with your lift pass, winter pass, Grouse Mountain admission or annual membership.

This epic battle will culminate in May leaving one party scratching their heads in bewilderment. If recent polls are any indication both the NDP and the Liberals are going to win, both by a wide margin, huh? I guess one of the polls had a slightly higher ratio of lazy union workers and the other hard working professional. Nonetheless, ignore those polls for they are inaccurate, the only poll that matters is the Vancity Buzz poll (our provincial election poll will up after New Years, there is too much other stuff going on right now).

In the mean time, the NDP "leader" Carole James continues her assault on our beloved premier, the honourable Gordon Campbell. How you ask? Yep you guessed it, that god damned carbon tax. Somebody please tell this imbecile leader that gas is now hovering around 90 cents and that the tax is revenue neutral. Maybe she just doesn't have the cranial capacity to comprehend such simple economics. However, she did throw in a blurb about social issues, and that may be her best tactic as for all the Liberals did they took a bit long to implement some of their social initiatives. Regardless she lacks in many areas and I can not envision her as the face of BC when the Olympics roll into town.

While Carole gripes with asinine stuff, the premier is busy attending opening ceremonies for a fancy new spinal cord research and care centre. As he stated in the Province today:

"The Blusson centre is the world's largest, most advanced and most comprehensive facility devoted to spinal-cord research and patient care,"

Upon reading that quote our very own resident blogger Money J Skeets was overheard in halls saying (as he wiped away a tear)," The noblest spirit embiggens the smallest man," taken from none other than Jebediah Obadiah Zacharaiah Springfield himself. Actually Gordo is above average in height, but now I'm just being picky and we all know not to expect to much from Skeets anyway.

Called the Blusson centre, it is a shining example of what BC should be. A leader in the world, not a follower. That is what this current government is all about, promoting the good that BC has to offer the world. Something naysayers will ignore in their ever attempt to overthrow the government. Asshats.

The Canada Line, convention centre (with a Federal Liberal convention on its way), Olympics, BC Place renovations, new art gallery, bridges etc... are championed by the Liberals, so thank Gordo for that. He is also working on building social housing see for example on the corner of Main and 1st. Not too shabby. That is just the beginning.

So to the NDP and its union backers,bring it on. This will no doubt be a tight race for control of British Columbia and Gordo and his troops are ready.

Well it looks as though the nimbyfication of city hall has started early as the City decided against allowing a rooftop restaurant at the illustrious Opus Hotel.

Thank you Nimby's for your selfish ways, this is one of the times you were dead wrong. Instead of working with the hotel to come up with a viable solution to the a legitimate privacy issue for the people on the 8th floor of the adjacent condo, the city just voted it down. The only support came from a few NPA councillors, while the rest succumbed to Nimby pressure. Vision is off to a great start.

This begs the question, what is wrong with a high end restaurant atop a hotel roof? The hotel was willing to put up a barrier in order to deal with the privacy issue. Also, if you want privacy move to the burbs and not downtown. Egregious asshattery at its finest.

About a month ago we did a profile on The Bachelor Plan. The response was overwhelmingly positive. It was during our interview with the ladies of The Bachelor Plan that we found out about a calendar they would be putting out for 2009. A calendar full of classic pin-up models, what more can one ask for.

Well they have teamed up with Shimona Henry (sole proprietor of Pin-up Perfection Photography and Bringing Burlesque into the 'Burbs) along with local make up artist Nicole Buckley to bring together some of Vancouver's finest burlesque beauties for a two hour show featuring Diamond Minx, Burgundy Brixx, Darla Devine and KT Couture.

Attendees will have an opportunity to experience a night of classic burlesque in a relaxed environment and have the chance to view local artist and have a taste of the lower mainland's growing burlesque scene as well as browsing local vendors including Pin Me Up Designs, Polished Beauty, Kitty Nights, Pin-up Perfection, Party Gras, the Bachelor Plan, and Luscious Creations Inc. The evening will include a silent auction from talented local painters and artists as well as raffle prizes.

All proceeds from the event will go to the Surrey Food Bank in hopes to help stock the shelves for some of the 14,000 people that utilize the food bank per month; 42% being children and babies. Partial calendar sales will be donated to various charities in the community as well.

The Bachelor Plan's 2009 Calendar Release Party will be held at the historic Sullivan Hall at 6306 152nd Street on November 29th 2008. Doors are open at 7pm, the show will start at 9pm. Tickets will be available at the door or at thebachelorplan.com/payment. Tickets are only $10.

If there is ever a reason to head out into the valley, this is it. Come on its for a good cause and there will be a bevy of burlesque beauties, need I say more.

Well since the news broke out a few weeks ago that The Ritz Carlton Vancouver hotel/condo development is having issues, rumours were abound of its immediate cancellation. Hell, even the website wasn't working thus adding fuel to the fire. Hipsters were seen rejoicing with their drug of choice, cocaine at local underground bars. In the meantime yuppies saddened by the news resorted to retail therapy. Don't fret Burberry is opening up soon at the Shangri-La.

Now I'm hearing rumblings that an application to city hall has been sent by the developer to increase the number of hotel floors. This makes a lot of sense because since the inception of this project Ritz Carlton wanted more hotel floors. At that time the condo market was still red hot and they opted for more condos, however fast forward 6 months and more floors for the hotel component makes a helluva a lot more sense.

For development junkies it is not exactly time to celebrate, not yet. In this economic climate there are no guarantees that this project will be completed. Until I see this thing reach above grade I won't be celebrating.

The Fifth Annual Rogers Santa Claus parade takes place on December 7, 2008 at 1pm in Downtown Vancouver. Last years parade was a huge success and this promises to be even bigger and better. This is a definite hit with young and old.

Not only will you get a chance to see jolly old Saint Nick, you'll also be able to catch a glimpse of Tigger, Winnie the Pooh, Frosty, Rudolph and his crew and a whole slew of other holiday favourites.

According to the official site, the best viewing areas are:

• On both sides of Georgia Street on the slope between Bute and Broughton
• At the Vancouver Art Gallery
• At Robson Square on Howe Street

Crowds have been growing for this parade every year and to accommodate the growing crowds organizers have increased the route. See the map for the entire parade route.

Also if you are able to, make a donation to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank Society. They could always use your help and not just around the holidays.

photo courtesy of The Vancouver Sun.

We provided you with the most extensive coverage on the Halloween events in and around Metro Vancouver. Now we shift our focus on Christmas.

Whether you've been naughty or nice it doesn't matter, as these events don't discriminate (as long as you purchase your tickets of course). So we urge you to get away from the holiday shopping madness and stick to the true meaning of Christmas, spending time with loved ones. For many Christmas is their favourite time of the year, a time in which one looks forward to spending with family and friends. These events will open up soon, so in the mean time here is a list of the must see events going on in Vancouver for Christmas:


1. Rogers Santa Clause Parade: Will post more information later on today. I attended this last year and had an amazing time. Definite must see for Vancouverites.

2. VanDusen Botanical Garden Festival of Lights. For more information, click here.

3. Christmas on Grouse Mountain: Visit Santa's workshop, go on a sleigh ride and go outdoor skating at the peak of Vancouver. Check out Vancity Buzz later on for more complete information on this event.

4. A Heritage Christmas in Burnaby: Even Burnaby is getting in on the Christmas action. Go out and visit the Burnaby Village Museam for some Christmas activities.

5. A Christmas Story on Granville Island: A play based on the film "A Christmas Story". More info later.

6. Bright Nights at Stanley Park: A family tradition for 20 years. I will post more information later this week.

7. A Pioneer Christmas (in Surrey): This is really strictly for the little ones. I will post more information on this at a later date.

8. A Christmas Carol Event: The folks over at the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre turn in a masterful performance of a Charles Dickens classic.

9. Santa Shuffle: Nothing says Vancouver living more than a fun run and walk. This event will go a long way in helping The Salvation Army in assisting families during the holidays. I will have more details on this at a later date.

So there you go 9 wonderful events for the whole family to enjoy. Who knows it might even snow in Vancouver and it will really start to feel a lot more like Christmas. Check back with us for complete information on the above listed events.

The impact of a bankruptcy of one of the big 3 auto makers in North American will be devastating to say the least. It is not a question of if, but when? Ford, GM will probably be bankrupt by the end of this year and thus finishing off the economy of Detroit, which is hanging by a thread. Windsor, you are dead as well.

The question is should the government bail out the automakers? Absolutely fucking not! Why, because they make cars that no one wants. Sure you have idiots out there like Money J Skeets who insist on driving a Hummer. Mind you these are the same people that then have the nerve to complain about the pain at the gas pumps. Egregious. If you bail them out, then the restaurant industry and retail industry will follow.

Simply put they do not have a business model that works. No one wants their bullshit cars at the price that they are offering them to us. For the same price I can get a more fuel efficient Import. I mean they've only had 20 some odd years to make a decent car. Let them die.

Now of course there is all this chatter of an "industrial crisis", fuck it. I say that if any business pegs itself to GM and Ford, they deserve to go to. Anyways, I'm sure Toyota and Honda will fill the void.

Make no mistake about the blow to the industrial waste...err heartland of our country known as Central Canada. Layoffs will be abound, signaling the start of a vicious cycle as individuals bank accounts dwindle to Sean Orr levels.

In other news house prices in Detroit have fallen to a $25,000 in some neighbourhoods. In Vancouver that amount of money would provide a place for your garbage bin.

Every year around Christmas time the VanDusen Gardens hold its Festival of Lights. This is a great family event and a wonderful way to get into the Christmas spirit. If you haven't been here, I highly urge you to go and give it a try. It's also a great place to take a date. Here is some information from the city website:

Dates and times

4:30 to 9 p.m. every night, December 5, 2008 through January 4, 2009 except December 25th when the Garden is closed.

Highlights include

• Santa's Living Room: Dec. 5 - 24 with Santa appearances 5:30, 6:30, 7:30, 8:30 p.m.
• Svend and Jens, our Scandinavian Christmas Elves appear nightly in the Centre Court
  
• Magician David Wilson: Dec. 26 - Jan. 4, in Santa's Living Room at 5:30, 6:30, 7:30, 8:30 p.m.
• Dancing Lights on Livingstone Lake: 15 minute show every half hour on the half hour starting at 5:30 p.m.
• Gingerbread Wood
• Golden Chain Walk
• Community Choir Concerts on the Deck at 6:30 and 7:30, dates and choirs TBA
  
• Make-a-Wish Candle Shrine
• Candy Cane Lane
• Candy Cane Tree in the Centre Court
• Candy Cane Express model train across from Santa's Living Room

Food services

• Dinner nightly at Shaughnessy Restaurant, reservations required 604-261-0011
• Dr. Waffle serving up fresh-made sweet and savoury waffles, real apple cider and Thomas Haas Hot Chocolate
• Hot Chestnut booth

On a side note, the VanDusen Garden's is set to receive a major upgrade. I shall post photos as soon as I can get my hands on some.

Tickets are available at the gate or the Garden Shop: Adult $11, Seniors (65+) and Youth (13-18) $8, Children (6-12) $6 and Children under 6 are free.

VanDusen Botanical Garden
5251 Oak Street (37th & Oak St.) See map.
Vancouver, British Columbia
V6M 4H1

A new day is upon us in Vancouver as Gregor Robertson is now the mayor of our fair city. What this means to Vancouver and how it will change is yet to be seen, but he promises to act immediately to quash homelessness. My buddies on the east side are ecstatic, west side not so much. However, I could care less who the mayor is as long as he governs and takes this city to the next level and brings the majority of Vancouverites increased prosperity.

This is what I would like to see: continued densification, more transit (possibly LRT's?), continuing of the green revolution, more arts and festivals, more support for business and of course solve the homeless crisis. Possibly a look at Portland's solution to homelessness should be looked at?

Lets get away from politics for a minute as VcB has been all over the civic election. This past week their was another battle brewing. You know the epic battle between Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston. I'll take them both, but if I have to choose one it would be Angelina for the shear fact that she is absolutely wild.

I'd like to thank Chantel and Kimberly for taking the time to do interviews. The response was overwhelmingly favourable. All three interviews can be viewed here, here and here. On that note, I'm definitely looking forward to VFW's next season.

Looks like the Liberal convention will be taking place in the brand spanking two times the budget new convention centre. Is someone losing their prophetic powers? Or is this someone just another turdburgler masquerading as a hipster prophet? I think its the latter.

The Canucks beat the lowly Leafs. To all the Leafs fans out there, go screw yourselves.

With the municipal election done, Vancity Buzz will now shift our focus on provincial politics. Our disdain for Carole James will be hard to put aside, however I shall give it my best to provide an unbiased view. I make no promises. Besides the Maverick is the unbiased one on this blog.

It definitely lived up to the exciting match-up it was expected to be on Saturday. Both teams played hard but it was the Vancouver Canucks who found their scoring touch and beat the lowly Leafs, 4-2, even after facing more shots. Obviously, that meant Roberto Luongo was nothing short of stellar. The 2 goals allowed were due to lazy Canucks shifts. It would've been the 4th shutout in 5 games but the players in front of Luongo let him down, just for a minute. Perhaps I'm too hard on the 'Nucks, but it just hurts to let in goals which shouldn't have gone in.

The atmosphere in the garage was electric, filled with "Leafs suck!" chants. I must admit, however, Toronto Maple Leafs fans had a strong presence... but that didn't stop the Leafs from sucking! They're team is as crappy as their city, with no identity and over-hype!

We told you that Vancity Buzz has the most accurate polling data out there as we predicted the next mayor of Vancouver. Just like in real life it was a tight race and Gregor Robertson now has the unenviable task of being Vancouver's Mayor. Bye-bye right wing corporate cronies and hello left wing tree huggers!

Congratulations to Mr. Robertson. Let's hope that you govern this city and bring a cultural revolution to the city of Vancouver.

Even though our bloggers are more right/centre when it comes to the political spectrum, they love their city more than most of the residents and want to see it succeed. No judgments will be made, yet.

It's voting day everybody! Make sure you use our comprehensive guide (for Vancouver) and get out and vote in the 2008 Municipal Elections.

The good folks at the Daily Seagull have gotten their hands on the new John Mayer single. It's a short catchy little ditty. Enjoy.

Another one bites the dust...?

It looks as though another tower is being put on hold due to the ongoing credit calamity the world is in. Frances Bula wrote in a special to the Globe & Mail that the luxury condo development known as Jameson House (116m 37 floors) will possibly remain nothing but a 21 metre hole in the ground for the foreseeable future. The reason being? You guessed it a major lender has backed out of the project. The lender is a Canadian Bank. No names were mentioned in the article, but if I were to venture a guess I'd say CIBC.

What is more disheartening (to skyscraper junkies like myself) is that 73% of the condos (ranging %500,000 to $5.3 million) were sold and most of the office space for the project was leased. The sales office also saw a steady stream of people up until the project being put on hold. But that was not enough as the developer has halted work on the site for fears of running out of cash to pay the bills. He is also looking to find another lender to step in with the $180 million shortfall. Rumours in development circles were abound that Concord Pacific had stepped up to the plate, however those were merely just that, rumours.

So the Ritz Carlton is on the fritz (apparently they are having neighbour issues and once that is resolved the project is a go), the Jameson is on hold, and Olympic Village is still going through its political debacle. We will welcome the world with numerous open pits alongside shiny new condos. What will be of the Private Residences tower? Is it the next to fall?

One thing is for certain, this is a world wide issue as projects all over have been stalled, halted, or cancelled. Take for example The Bow in Calgary.

Use this comprehensive guide to assist you with your selection for council and mayor:

Vancouver Civic Election 2008
"Yesterday two former mayors came to the aid of the current mayor by stating that the $100 million loan is not an issue that taxpayers should be worried about. This got me thinking, are everyday taxpayers equipped with handling a situation such as this? Would they be able to comprehend the legal and financial jargon that is in the contracts? The fact is the civic election is days away and people need to focus on the real issue at hand, homelessness. Here is what the candidates will do to fight this."

Vancouver Mayoral Race Ends November 15, 2008
"Update: It appears as though the NPA is up to their old tricks as an Independent candidate by the name Greg Robertson has entered the race. Hmm somewhere out there in obscurityville James Green would be proud. "

Vancouver Olympic Village sees $100 million Bailout?
"I am not worried at all that the city is going to lose any money. Why? Well they have a trick or two up their sleeve via retaining ownership of the land. Hence, they will get their money back.
Millennium will have to take the hit (if any) as currently it's about 7% over budget. Further, being over budget is nothing new to developers, especially with the escalating commodity and labour costs that we've experienced the last few years."

Message to Gregor Robertson: Just Pay The $173 Fine
"What we need is a discussion on homelessness, density (to deal with rising population), office development, cultivation and support of a great arts scene, nurture small businesses, the whitecaps waterfront stadium, etc... What we don't need is a discussion on $173 fine. As a mayoral candidate Mr. Robertson just pay it and lets talk about the important issues."

Vancouver Mayoral Debate: Round 3, Vancouver's Homeless
"The purpose of the [homeless] rally was to highlight the plight of the homeless, In short here is what they want:

1. Keep public lands for public use
2. Invest in the Property Endowment Fund to develop social housing
3. Ensure 20 percent of new developments are for low income families
4. Build more social housing in the DTES
5. Enforce maintenance bylaws for social housing"

Mayor Debate: Robertson vs. Ladner Round 2
"The first debate for Mayor of Vancouver was held at Langara College last week. The issue of homelessness and Insite took centre stage were of primary focus. Those issues are assumed to be Robertson's strong suit, however, at the debate Ladner tossed out some good ideas of his own. Ladner's idea of jointly working with the feds and provincial governments to tackle homelessness in our fair city seems like a good idea. I think its only fair since we seem to have an abundance of French speaking housing challenged individuals on the streets. Thank our mild climate for that. Further, Robertson was for more safe injections sites, whereas, Ladner was not and the debate went on."

Vancouver Mayor Race...
"Personally, Gregor Roberston is far too left and Ladner is far to right. Take for example Robertson's stupid idea of taxing vacate condos. Say goodbye to international investment then asshole. I'm no fan of empty condos, but international investment is needed and will continue to be need for the foreseeable future. Or do you want to go back to the good old days of the 90's. Remember those days in which an exodus of head offices to Calgary and other parts of the country took place. We have finally reversed that in this city and now we might go back in time. What the fuck.
Then there is Ladner. He is cut from the same cloth as Sam Sullivan, need I say more."
Gregor Robertson vs. Peter Ladner
"Firstly, running for Vision Vancouver is Gregor Robertson. His four main ideas for change, as from his website are the following:

1. Ending homelessness and fostering a boom in "affordable housing" (Sean i'm sure you're all over this one), see Portlands strategy or this comedic solution .
2. Targeting pollution, gridlock and public safety to improve overall quality of life.
3. Make Vancouver the greenest city in the world.
4. Making Vancouver a creative capital.

On the other hand we have Peter Ladner running (or should I say cycling) as the NPA candidate, he is also running on the back of four ideas, as from his website they are:

1. Make Vancouver a safe city
2. Make Vancouver a green city, hmmm... where did I see that before?
3. Make Vancouver a globally competitive city
4. Make Vancouver an affordable city. I'd be interested to see how he will acheive this."