Vancouver, a tale of two inner-cities

During the Olympic Games Vancouver is under the microscope as no Canadian city has ever been before.  Those glancing through the lens will see an inner-city challenged by drugs, poverty and homelessness but those who look closer will also see an inner-city filled with innovative social enterprise, where the pulse of Vancouver’s artistic heart is found, and where bold individuals and organizations are doing new things in new ways.

How many times will the headline “Vancouver, a tale of two cities” appear in some national or international paper? Nobody knows, but I can assure you it will be more than once…it already has been. And while some would love to write or read another beauty and the beast story about Vancouver, there must be somebody out there who will take the time to sit back and really look at the DTES in a more complete way. How about an article with the title “Vancouver, a tale of two inner-cities”? That sounds good.

It sounded so good I made it the title of this post. (see above…)

In fact, I’ve talked to a few visiting media about the DTES and they’ve been honest about their reluctance to dive into a more critical and thorough assessment of our historic and infamous inner-city. Apparently the public can’t handle anything more than a 2 dimensional story. Three dimensions is too much, minds will explode. So when you look at it that way it’s more about public safety than about selling a sensational story about Vancouver, the cosmopolitan vixen with a dirty secret. Like millionaires who slum it for fun, or a banker with a gambling problem, it’s easier to write about this Vancouver; the most livable city in the world with its dark, drug riddled skid row. So if that’s the kind of story you prefer, read no further for fear of having a mental overload. There is far more going on in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside than drugs, poverty and crime. (I hope no heads accidentally exploded)

In fact, no part of Vancouver offers as complete a tale of this dynamic and fascinating city as its famous Downtown Eastside. The challenges this young city deals with today carry with them a legacy of transformation, tension and renewal that has been condensed into decades not centuries, and that story begins here. This wasn’t always Canada’s poorest postal code and it won’t always remain that.

Within its first few years our historic part of the city burned to the ground in a matter of minutes, only to be rebuilt immediately. This neighbourhood is no stranger to challenges and changes. Challenges and changes are perhaps what define it more than any other part of Vancouver. On the front lines of this change today are the numerous non-profit societies, businesses, community groups, and individuals that have refused to allow this treasured and storied corner of Vancouver to be relegated to the sidelines of this city’s future. The DTES leads, it innovates and it rises to new challenges in new ways. Now the world has an opportunity to see this firsthand, but my concern is that they won’t.

While negative stories about Vancouver and our DTES roll off the press, innovative social enterprise like W2 Culture and Media House, SOLEfood Inner City Farm, Potluck Catering and Tradeworks Training society are empowering residents in the DTES with opportunities for personal and professional development while socially and environmentally responsible companies like The Cleaning Solution, Eclips Awards, Saul Good Gift Co and many others provide opportunities and support to the individuals and other businesses in our community every day. Our Social Purchasing Directory has hundreds of these companies and is steadily adding more as our urban economy grows- sustainably, responsibly, and innovatively.

This is where the pulse of Vancouver’s artistic community is found, where the DTES Artwalk and Eastside Culture Crawl happen. This is where bold individuals and organizations are doing new things in new ways. From the city’s first major community benefits agreement to the first all women’s pharmacy in North America, Vancouver’s inner-city  innovates and creates.

From cutting-edge award winning companies like Biro Creative, Nitobi and Invoke Media to the greenest residential development in North America the edgy neighbourhoods just east of Cambie continue to help make Vancouver an international leader. This is a place where others look for inspiration and ideas, but too often is portrayed as anything but.

The Downtown Eastside isn’t just some dirty secret that a pretty city is trying to hide. That would be a kid’s story, a two dimensional fable relying on a tragic and obvious  irony. The challenges and changes in our historic inner-city make it the most intense and dynamic part of Vancouver and an engine for innovation of every kind. Innovation in economic thinking, social theory, innovation in planning, in the arts, in food and dining, architecture and entrepreneurialism. Look a little closer and anyone would be amazed at what you see here.

If the international community misses out on the opportunity to see this inner-city then they miss out on an opportunity to really know and experience Vancouver. What a shame that would be after coming all this way.