A CLOSER LOOK
/DELAYED ROBERTS ANNEX CLOSURE NOT IMPACTING
SUBSTATION CONSTRUCTION TIMELINE
Will The Elementary School Be Replaced?
FUTURE WEST END SUBSTATION POWER LINE ROUTES (BC HYDRO MAP)
by John Streit
(click images to enlarge)
Despite a delay in the permanent closure of the Roberts Annex at Nelson Park due to delays in the opening of a new elementary school at Coal Harbour, BC Hydro is still planning on working to start construction on the West End Substation in November of next year.
The provincial utility says it understands from the Vancouver School Board that “the new school at Coal Harbour will be open by September 2026 in time for the new school year.”
After that, expect fencing to start going up around Roberts Annex as construction is expected to take five years.
This as we’re learning more details from BC Hydro about what is actually going where on the expansive Nelson Park site in coordination and development with the City of Vancouver. Hydro tells The West End Journal (TWEJ) that it will be installing two new high-voltage power lines to deliver electricity to the new West End Substation. “Route 1 will connect to an existing power line in Gastown, and Route 2 will connect to the existing Cathedral Square Substation. We will simultaneously put in place infrastructure needed to enable installation of a third power line in the future, when additional electricity is required. This will reduce future construction impacts on the community,” according to the utility.
POWER LINE ROUTE 2 TO NELSON PARK (BC HYDRO GRAPHIC)
Route 1 from Gastown will basically travel under Pender Street, up Burrard, make a right up Barclay, left on Thurlow, and a right into Nelson Park connecting to the new substation.
Route 2 will travel south under Richards Street from Cathedral Square, make a right on Davie Street, another right on Burrard, left on Comox in front of St. Paul’s Hospital, and right on Thurlow before heading into Nelson Park.
Route 3 would eventually head west down Pendrell Street from the new substation.
EXAMPLE OF AN UNDERGROUND DUCT BANK UNDER CONSTRUCTION (BC HYDRO PHOTO)
BC Hydro says you’ll be seeing sections of streets carefully removed during the underground power line portion of construction. “This involves installing protective conduits to house the power lines and restoring the surface once the trench is backfilled. Later, the lines are pulled through the conduits using specialized equipment. In the downtown area, construction will typically advance in manageable sections of 10 to 35 meters per day. To limit disruption, most work will take place on weekdays during daytime hours. We are committed to maintaining safe work zones, minimizing traffic disruptions and ensuring that residents and businesses are informed throughout the project,” the power company tells TWEJ.
Some West End residents have expressed concerns over BC Hydro’s plans, including Quentin Wright, the executive director of the Mole Hill Community Housing Society. “Throughout the consultation process I repeatedly gave my opinion that the power lines should be routed directly to the street at the closest point, and follow the street, rather than cross the park. I am sure most members of the public who gave an opinion said the same thing,” he says.
QUENTIN WRIGHT OF THE MOLE HILL COMMUNITY HOUSING SOCIETY
BC Hydro says “the power line routes have been developed in coordination with the City of Vancouver, based on technical and safety requirements, which will ensure the new lines work safely and reliably for decades with least impact to people living and working in, and travelling through downtown Vancouver.”
Wright says he doubts most people are well informed about what is going on. “This information is only what BC Hydro chooses to share. There has been continuous misinformation from BC Hydro about the rebuilding of a school on the site. This has been presented as a solution to "ageing infrastructure" (as they call poorly maintained public buildings) and also a technological marvel - as if building a school on top of a substation was some kind of modern feat of ingenuity when it actually it makes little sense. Throughout this whole period replacing the school has been the persistent message, despite the fact that there is absolutely no evidence that it would happen,” he says.
Wright also tells the TWEJ he’s received confirmation from Vancouver School Board Chair Victoria Jung that “the plan to rebuild a school on the site is not supported by the BC Ministry of Education & Child Care.”
SUBSTATION AND SCHOOL SITE MAP (BC Hydro rendering)
We reached out to the VSB on November 24 for clarification and it responded “following BC Hydro’s completion of the new substation, a new elementary school will be built on the existing annex site. Full funding to complete the Roberts Annex replacement project is still required and was identified in the 2026/2027 five-year capital plan submission to the Ministry of Infrastructure.”
If the province pulls support for a new school, this would be a stunning development as the substation plan has always been contingent on a replacement elementary school and field at Nelson Park. The West End Journal has reached out to Education Minister Lisa Beare and the Ministry of Infrastructure for more details.
Wright also questions the future look of now mainly green Nelson Park once the West End Substation is complete. “Maintenance of the site will be the responsibility of BC Hydro, rather than either the Vancouver School Board or the Parks Department, so I doubt there will be much to look at when the project is completed. The only public space I know of that BC Hydro maintain is Cathedral Square which is designed as a low maintenance space which is both neglected by the operator and avoided by the public,” he says.
BC Hydro says it’s continuing to refine the design of the substation project. “We expect to share an update with the public in spring 2026. The cost of the project will also be refined as the project and planning progresses, and we will have more information to share in the weeks and months ahead,” it says via email.
Wright isn’t a fan of BC Hydro’s consultation process with the community (Hydro held three open houses in November). “The purpose is to contrive an outcome where it can be said that the community was "listened to". I am not aware of anything that the community said that has affected the original plans. Specifically, I heard a lot of feedback regarding vehicle access to the construction site and routing of the cables which opposed BC Hydro's plans. In the end, BC Hydro's final plans are virtually identical to their original proposals,” he says.
FUTURE NELSON PARK WITH SCHOOL AND SUBSTATION BUILT (BC Hydro rendering)
BC Hydro says it’s committed to founding a Community Construction Liaison Committee early next year before construction of the substation starts to share plans and gather feedback.
“Through our community engagement thus far, the most common questions we've been asked about the project are related to traffic impacts on Nelson Street, impacts to the dog park and whether Nelson Park will be closed during the substation's construction,” the utility says
Hydro says more details about the traffic situation over the five-year substation construction timeline are coming in the spring. “We are currently working to procure a general contractor to support construction activities and will work with them to advance construction and traffic management plans. We expect the dog park to remain open throughout construction activities. And Nelson Park to also remain fully open for most of the construction period. However, at some point during construction, we will need to close two areas within the park to construct power line duct banks, but expect this work to take less than or up to three months. We have committed to completing this work during the winter months, when the park is used less and the farmers market has ended for the year,” the utility tells TWEJ.
BC Hydro says once the West End Substation is operating, it will work quietly and all you'll see are the vents, a small entrance and workers visiting from time to time, adding that the alternative would be an above-ground substation that would occupy almost half a city block.
For more details on the West End Substation project, go substation project page on the BC Hydro website here and sign-up to receive project emails.
West Ender John Streit has been a B.C. radio, TV and online journalist
for more than 25 years. You can listen to John anchor
Global News weekday mornings on 730 CKNW Radio in Vancouver.
