THE TALK OF THE TOWN

/

What Do We Have For You This Month?

Welcome to “The Talk of The Town” for August 2023. Scroll through the following features to find:

Our Lead Story

YES PLEASE, WATER THE TREES!
New Water Restrictions Don’t Apply

On July 28, it was announced that Metro Vancouver will be moving to Stage 2 water restrictions for the first time since 2015, as the province continues to grapple with persistent drought conditions. The restrictions take effect Friday, August 4 and ban watering lawns, washing impermeable surfaces like driveways, and filling aesthetic water features such as fountains.

Click to enlarge.

This restriction will put recent controversies around the several West End water features on hold until next year, giving the Park Board and the City a year to upgrade non-working fountains and develop clear policies around their use.

In the meantime, one of allowed water uses, as shown in the chart on the right, is the watering of residential area trees. West End Journal contributor Glenda Bartosh has the following advice and information.

WATERING TREES IS STILL ALLOWED

by Glenda Bartosh
B.C. is now in Level 4 or 5 drought conditions, the highest rating. Vancouver received no rainfall for more than a month, until the July 24 downpour, and Metro Vancouver has been on watering restrictions for weeks. For automatic irrigation systems, that means they can only be on once a week for two hours: Sunday mornings between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m. However, we can all water trees by hand any time — and it’s all hands on deck. In these new sizzling conditions that will only get worse until we substantially drop the carbon content in the atmosphere, trees are some of our best friends. They can lower air temperatures by as much as 10 C!

But when trees sense drought, they store as much water as they can in their trunk system. If they can’t transpire enough moisture through their leaves, the excess weight from the water can make them fail structurally. That’s when they split, topple over, and drop branches, as we saw throughout the West End in the summer and fall of 2021.

Keep your eyes peeled for yellowing, light-coloured, droopy or wilted, and dropped leaves (like the huge catalpa trees on Nelson Street across from No Frills). These are all signs of stressed trees.

I’ve also made a website on watering trees, called — you guessed it! Yes, please water trees. It consolidates best practices from the cities of Surrey and Vancouver about watering trees.

In Vancouver, report stressed trees by calling 311, or by downloading the city’s VanConnect app to get them watered. Or, do it yourself if you can. And please share this info with anyone you know in other buildings, in the West End and beyond, who might be interested in watering trees to help them help us.

RELATED LINKS

West End News & Notes

PRIDE IN OUR PIONEERS
Leadership Takes Many Forms

By Spencer van Vloten
(click images to enlarge)

It was inevitable. 

In writing about LGBTQ trailblazers for the last edition of The West End Journal, names were bound to be omitted. 

It would take hundreds, if not thousands, of pages to mention all of the West End trailblazers who paved the way for a more inclusive city. But we can always try.

So let me continue by noting five more: Gordon Price, Alan Herbert, Laura McDiarmid, Duncan Wilson, and Alan Fetherstonhaugh.

Gordon Price.

Gordon Price: It would be an understatement to say that Gordon Price made an impact on the city. Arriving in Vancouver in 1978, Price quickly became active in the West End community. In 1983, along with Noah Stewart, Price co-founded AIDS Vancouver — the first AIDS service organization in the country.

AIDS Vancouver not only provided essential support to people living with HIV and AIDS, serving them when other organizations turned them away, but also powerfully battled stigma and advocated for greater access to high quality healthcare for the community.

In 1986 Price entered a new chapter of his life, becoming the first openly gay member of Vancouver's city council. He would spend six terms — spanning three decades — on council, championing urban renewal and a greener city, while continuing his advocacy for the LGBTQ community.

Price finished his tenure on council in 2002, but his work was far from over. He started writing and lecturing on city planning, and to this day AIDS Vancouver serves thousands of people each year, furthering his vision of a world without barriers for people with HIV and AIDS.

Alan Herbert: Gordon Price's story intertwines with that of another West End trailblazer, Alan Herbert.

Having tested positive for HIV in the early 80s, Herbert began working with AIDS Vancouver, serving as chair in an era of overwhelming stigma, in which scores of gay men were dying. Herbert's leadership was critical in securing funding for the organization, with one of the most memorable fundraisers he organized being a production of the musical Cats.

Like Price before him, Herbert would take a step into the political world, being elected in 1996 to Vancouver's city council. As councillor, he was essential in securing a liquor license for the Fountainhead pub, Vancouver's first gay bar, but his outspoken personality led to issues with the NPA, who refused to renominate him for the 1999 election.

Herbert did not slow down once his political career was over, and instead put his leadership skills to use in several roles, including being chair of the Vancouver Pride Society.

Alan Herbert passed away in May of this year, but his legacy lives on with as much vigour as he did.

Laura McDiarmid
(photos of Duncan Wilson and Alan Fetherstonhaugh were not available at press time.)

Laura McDiarmid, Duncan Wilson, and Alan Fetherstonhaugh: The same year Alan Herbert was elected to council, a local trio made a splash. In 1996, Laura McDiarmid, Duncan Wilson, and Alan Fetherstonhaugh were elected together to the city's Park Board. 

During their time as municipal representatives, several important measures were taken for Vancouver's LGBTQ community.  

These included the building of an AIDS memorial at Sunset Beach, the addition of a gay youth worker as part of the staff of the Park Board, and a memorial tree for Tony McNaughton, a gay man and West End Starbucks manager who died protecting a co-worker from an estranged spouse trying to stab her.

Their work, along with that of Price and Herbert, helped lay a stronger foundation for inclusion in the city and reaffirm the importance of having members of the LGBTQ community in office.

MORE TO NAME

There are far more people — such as Tim Stevenson, Barb Snelgrove, and Spencer Chandra Herbert — who I would like to profile in this article, but space is limited so let me close with the following:

Despite all the amazing views and delicious culinary experiences the West End has to offer, perhaps the biggest strength is its people and their indomitable spirit. 

This is a neighbourhood built on resilience, where people come together to support and celebrate each other, and there is no better place to be.

Bike, Shop, Beach, Eat, Repeat!

PARK FREE & SHOP SMALL

Bike, shop, beach, eat. Repeat.

Park your bike for free at the West End BIA’s Bike Valet at Morton Park (by the Laughing Men statues) on select Saturdays throughout summer while you’re “shopping small” from 12 noon to 8 p.m.

Ride your bike to English Bay, enjoy lunch or dinner at one of the many great restaurants in the area, take in some rays on the beach, and “shop small” — anything you can carry home on your bike.

Confirmed dates are Saturdays August 5 and 26 and September 2 and 9.

West End Moments

Click any image to enlarge.

The West End - Coal Harbour In The News