THE TALK OF THE TOWN

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What Do We Have For You This Month?

Welcome to “The Talk of The Town” for April, 2026. Click on the following links to find:

  • West End News & Notes: An update on the campaign to “Stop 2030 Barlcay”, the passing of a community legend, no Car Free Day for us this year, and more.

  • West End Street & Lane Names: Vancouver’s streets and lanes each has their own history. Here’s the story of Broughton Street.

  • Word On The Street: Who’s opening, who’s closing, and who’s on the move.

  • West End Moments: Our community has many talented photographers, and we share their images that capture our lives and time.

  • Hidden Treasure Hunt: Be the first to email us identifying the location of this West End “Hidden Treasure” and win your choice of a $50 coffee shop gift card.

  • West End / Coal Harbour In The News: In case you missed it, here’s a round-up of news stories from our community.

West End News & Notes

THE CAMPAIGN TO STOP 2030 BARCLAY
Council Sends Rezoning Back To Staff For Consultation

After three lengthy hearings at City Hall the Marcon Developments rezoning application, to build a 25-story hotel at 2030 Barclay Street, was referred back to City staff for further consultation with the developer, to address the numerous issues raised by the “Stop 2030 Barclay” campaign. The grassroots campaign launched by local residents gathered more than 6,000 signatures on a petition, set up an information table on Denman every Sunday for months, and held two rallies in front of City Hall. They also had more than 70 people sign up to speak at the public hearing, obliging Council to extend the hearing to those three sessions.

artists rendering of the planned hotel for 2030 barclay.

Protest organizers posted on their website: “By sending the application back to the developer with a directive to consider significant adjustments, Council has shown a commitment to ensuring that new developments truly respect the character and safety of our neighbourhood. This is a win for community engagement, and it reinforces that the West End is a vibrant, resident-focused community.

“This means Marcon will need to withdraw this application and start over. A resubmission timeline is not clear and depends a little on how long it may take to draft a new application package. With this deferral, we are hopeful for a new chapter in this process and look forward to opportunities for meaningful community engagement. Our goal has always been to see a proposal that aligns with the West End Community Plan, and we welcome the opportunity for a project that balances development with the needs of the people who live here.”

Find more information and to view the last public hearing session at the Stop 2030 Barclay website here.

COMMUNITY CENTRE PARKING PERMIT KIOSK CLOSED
Rose Rowell Takes A Well-Earned Retirement

Rose Rowell closes the gate at the community centre’s parking permit counter for the last time.

On March 24 the West End Parking Permit counter in The West End Community Centre closed permanently.

Rose Rowell who has run the pemit counter for years, has been serving the West End since the early 80s, starting as a youth worker at the community centre. Rose, a long-time West End resident, has now retired and is looking forward to spending more time with friends and enjoying the amenities of our neighbourhood and the community support work she is well-known for.

Residential parking permits can now be purchased by phone at 311, online, in in person at City Hall. For more information visit the City’s website here.

THE WEST END LOSES A BELOVED ICON
Farewell To Sister Diversity Rains

Vancouver's LGBT+ community is mourning the loss of cherished local activist and elder Dan Wurzer, more widely known as Sister Diversity Rains, who died March 8 at the age of 82.

Sister diversity rains.

As Diversity Rains, Wurzer was the Reverend Mother of the Vancouver chapter of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, the Abbey of the Long Cedar Canoe, and was known as a key figure in the community, supporting HIV/AIDS causes.

”We've lost an icon in the community,” another longtime community advocate Barb Snelgrove told CBDC’s On The Coast, “and that's never easy for anyone to grab a handle on.”

The charity has a long history of supporting people living with HIV and AIDS and supporting other community causes. In recent years they supported work to alleviate and end homelessness,

Snelgrove said the sisters often referred to Wurzer as the "Energizer Bunny nun. If there was a community event, if there was a rally, if there was a drag show, if there was an opening, you know, an artist opening, if there was a march — Dan was there.”

He was an amateur photographer who could always be relied upon to attend and document community events across Metro Vancouver, attending nearly every drag show, flag raising, fundraiser, barbecue, or rally taking place along or around Davie Street.

The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence is a charitable, protest, and street performance movement founded in San Fransisco in 1979 that uses drag and religious imagery to satirize issues of sex, gender, and morality and fundraise for charity. The original organization has grown throughout the U.S., Canada, Australia, Europe, and South America.

NO LIFEGUARDS THIS SUMMER
Two West End Beaches Lose

Sunset and third beaches will not have lifeguards in attendance this summer.

Vancouver Park Board staff have cut lifeguard coverage at five of the city's ten staffed beaches, including the West End’s Sunset and Third beaches, and some water safety groups expressing concern about the effects on public safety.

The park board said in an emailed statement that the reduction "allows our lifeguard staff to be deployed where they have the greatest impact, including increased capacity at outdoor pools."

In addition to the two West End beaches, Spanish West, Spanish East, and Trout Lake, will no longer be covered.

The change will not result in layoffs, but lifeguards will be "reallocated to other beaches and outdoor pools where demand is higher." The number of auxiliary lifeguard staff will be reduced during the summer season.

The City said the move is part of aligning park board services with the approved 2026 budget.

CAREFREE DAYS SAVED
But Not On Denman Street

Following the recent cancellation of Car Free Days due to funding shortfalls and increasing costs, last month Vancouver City Council approved a $30,000 one-time grant for the organizers of the festivals on Main Street and Commercial Drive. However, many West Enders will be disappointed to learn that the grant does not include the annual Denman Street Car Free Days.

There will be no car free day crowds on denman this year.

In motion that was passed unanimously by council the city will now provide $30,000 in funds to stop the cancellation — as long as a satisfactory financial plan is provided by organizers.

OneCity Councillor Lucy Maloney, who proposed the urgent motion along with COPE Councillor Sean Orr, said it would have been a shame to lose the two festivals this year.

"I think that it's an indication that we take arts and cultural organizations and events and festivals for granted," Maloney told CBC News.

Neither the announcement nor the Car Free Days Vancouver website make any mention of the Denman event. The website states “While we have a path forward for 2026, we are still working hard to ensure the long-term stability of the festival. We’re continuing our conversations with local representatives on how to better support not-for-profit festivals like ours.”

Word On The Street

denman market is just one of many west end storefront businesses that have closed recently and/or are listed for sale on realy sites.

CH-CH-CHANGES …

Storefront businesses in the West End, especially restaurants and cafes, have been opening and closing at such a rate in recent months that it’s been a challenge to keep up. For our May issue The West End Journal will endeavour to compile a complete (or nearly so) listing of what we’ve lost and what we’ve gained in the last few months.

In the meantime, in looking into the recent closure of Denman Market, at Denman and Barclay, we discovered that the store was for sale at $200,000 … and to our surprise that it was just one of some 37 West End businesses currently listed by realtors. These include:

  • Spirit Nails on Robson ($188,000);

  • Blenz on Denman at Barclay ($299,000);

  • An undentified Dollar store on Davie ($78,000);

  • Gringo on Robson ($199,000);

  • Marble Slab Ice Cream on Denman ($399,000);

  • Master Donair on Davie ($258,000).

And that’s just a small selection. Obviously there’s a lot going on in the local storefront retail and hospitality industry. We’ll dig into it in our May issue.

West End Moments

Our community is blessed with many avid photographers, documenting moments that alarm, amuse, and inform. Click on each photo to see the story. Send your latest photos to editor@thewestendjournal.ca.

West End Street & Lane Names

West End street names were established when Lauchlan Hamilton laid out the street grid in the late 1800s, and, while some are contemporarily contentious, they have remained. In 2017 the City named eight of the lane ways that run east and west through the West End in honour of notable Vancouver citizens, recognizing their achievements and contributions to our community.

BROUGHTON STREET

Lieutenant Commander William Robert Broughton

Another case of a West End street being named by surveyor L.A. Hamilton after a body of water named after an English explorer. Broughton Strait and the Broughton Archipelago off the north coast of Vancouver Island, were so named in 1792 by Captain George Vancouver after Lieutenant Commander William Robert Broughton (1762 - 1821) who captained the Chatham, the second ship in Vancouver’’s small fleet. His father, Charles Broughton, was a Hamburg merchant and his mother, Anne Elizabeth, was the daughter of Baron William de Hertoghe. Broughton began his naval career at the age of twelve.

The Chatham arrived near Point Grey in 1792 after some exploring in the South Pacific, to find the Spanish already there. Broughton played a key role in the dispute between the British and the Spanish over the Pacific coast region and was the British representative who, along with the Spanish Admiral Quadra and his men, brokered courtesy 13-gun salutes to each other’s flags. This show of civility between Broughton and Quadra was in marked contrast to the hostilities between their political masters. Following his BC coastal explorations, Broughton was given command of HMS Providence, a ship formerly commanded by Captain Bligh of Mutiny on the Bounty fame, crossed the Pacific, and began a four-year survey of the Asian coast including the Kurile Islands, Japan, Okinawa, and Formosa.

In 1821, while in Florence, Broughton suffered an angina attack and died two days later. He is buried in the English burial ground in Leghorn, Italy.

Hidden Treasure Hunt

IDENTIFY THIS PHOTO …
And Win A $50 Coffee Shop Gift Card

Have you seen this unique feature? Tell us where! (click image to enlarge)

The first reader to contact editor@thewestendjournal.ca and correctly identify the location of this image will win a $50 gift card to their choice of Blenz, Delaney’s, Melriche’s, Waves, J.J. Bean, or Greenhorn Cafe.

So if you recognize this unique piece of art write in now! Only the winning response will be notified.

The answer, and the clue to the next contest, will appear in our May issue.

The photos and the information in the answers were originally published in TWEJ several years ago as part of our “Hidden Treasures” series by Vancouver author Dianne Maguire.

Egyptian infused minimalism at the Cielo apartment building. (Dianne Macguire Photo)

LAST MONTH’S WINNER IS …
Congratulations Terriu Chabot!

Two golden orbs shaped like Christmas tree ornaments top a black and white granite plinth set firmly in the pavement in front of 1205 West Hastings, the Cielo building.

This striking piece of public art is by artist Alan McWilliams, known for his award-winning Royal Canadian Navy monument in Ottawa. His bold designs reflect the minimalist movement of the 1960’s combined with a flare for Egyptian influence in design and choice of materials - hence the black and white granite paired with the gold leaf on the decorative ornaments or, as someone has suggested – perfume flasks.

West End / Coal Harbour In The News