The sound of hammering rings out from the Era condominium project on the north side of the 700 block of Yates Street while a classic Talking Heads tune plays across the street in the Patch clothing store.
This block of Yates Street — between Douglas and Blanshard streets — is recapturing its cool. Despite some empty spaces, a new vibe and new energy is evident.
One shop space is being readied for an outlet of Vancouver’s popular Meat & Bread restaurant. The Interactivity Board Game Café opened last year. The 16-storey Era will have 157 units and bring more residents downtown.
Vancouver developer Concert Properties took over the Era site and filled in a huge hole that had marked the block for years.
Chris Shurety, owner of the Patch store where racks of colourful clothing are displayed on the sidewalk, said that, over 15 years, he’s seen major turnovers among businesses and is keen to see stability among neighbours.
“I’m excited” about what is happening on the block, he said Tuesday.
Victoria Mayor Dean Fortin said the Churchill building, housing the Board Game Café, led the latest revitalization. The building was renovated with retail on the ground floor and rental units on upper levels.
“It is interesting to see how that street is revitalizing. We have blocks like that happening in the city. Obviously, the goal is to start to knit them together. As one comes, it just encourages the next. People are investing in our downtown again,” Fortin said.
Fran Hobbis, chairwoman of the Downtown Victoria Business Association, concurs, saying the Era is a sign of investor confidence. New services are offered as the downtown population grows, she said.
Projects like the Era are often a catalyst for other positive change, she said. “That’s the way we need to make changes — block by block. “This section of Yates is a little bit of a neglected block, I think. It needed a facelift and this [Era] will certainly contribute to that.”
From a restaurant perspective, “that whole area is becoming quite a foodie spot, right down to Blanshard,” Hobbis said.
Eateries include food outlets in St. Andrew’s Square, a high-end, $30-million office project by Victoria’s McColl family, which opened with a mid-block walkway in 1997 at 737 Yates St. There’s also Brickyard Pizza, Cenote Restaurant and Lounge, and Yates Street Taphouse. The mix includes a post office, banks, athletics studio, cellphone shop and Lyle’s Place, a destination for music lovers as well as a bulk food store, the Odeon Theatre and the Carnegie Library building.
The Dominion Hotel, now being converted into residential units, was one of the Pacific Northwest’s earliest hotels, opening in the late 1800s, expanding to meet demand from the Klondike Gold Rush. That building is now closed.
Yates Street has seen past revitalization projects, including coloured paving bricks, a mid-block crosswalk anchored with tall trees, and a burgundy-colour theme on lamp posts adorned with hanging baskets.
