Latest news with #Kerrisdale
Globe and Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
How one Vancouver family plans to live under three roofs on one property
Alison Lee's parents own a big house in Shaughnessy, a neighbourhood in Vancouver, where she and her siblings grew up. Ms. Lee lives in a bungalow in Oakridge with her husband and kids, and her brother lives downtown in a condo with his kids. The family plans to sell off their properties and converge in a multiunit strata property they are planning to build on a large lot they purchased in Kerrisdale. The Lee family decided a side-by-side duplex and a coach house will suit their needs, but they are still in the design stage. They will apply to the city to build the three legally separate units as a multiple conversion dwelling (MCD), so that Ms. Lee, her parents and her brother have their own homes but a shared outdoor courtyard where the family will gather. 'My brother is in a condo. My parents are in a house that's much too large for them. And my husband and I are in quite a small house that's a bit too small for our family,' said Ms. Lee. 'The reason we are doing this is because everything is so unaffordable, but I'm hoping we can make lemonade out of lemons and design a space comfortable for us and for my parents as they age, and that allows us to take care of our kids, and our parents when that time comes. Just to be able to make sure they are okay, to be around if they need help, it makes a lot of sense.' Across Vancouver, the low-density strata building, where multiple individuals own units within a single property, is gaining in popularity as boomers get older and their millennial kids look for better housing options. High-rise living doesn't suit their ground-oriented lifestyle, and the detached house is too pricey or too big. And it's taking hold in neighbourhoods where it was at one time, not so long ago, unthinkable to redevelop or convert a big house into a multiunit residence. Ideally, Ms. Lee's family would live in houses near each other, but that wasn't financially possible in pricey Kerrisdale, she says. So, she came up with the idea of a multiunit strata that would allow her family around 2,500 square feet, and her parents and brother 2,000 square feet each. They also want a lot big enough to allow for off-street parking. Rezoning Vancouver industrial lands will cost jobs and economy, planners say Their builder, Suraj Jhuty, said applying for a conversion is preferable to tearing down and building new, because starting from scratch would have meant being required to build four units on the 50-foot lot. The Lee family doesn't need the fourth unit, so they are applying as an MCD and retaining the façade of the character house. Applications for the multiunit strata model have been increasing in Vancouver neighbourhoods since the city prezoned single-family house neighbourhoods two years ago to allow three, four or six legally separate units. The building type is popular with small developers who have traditionally built duplexes. Mr. Jhuty is one of many builders developing their own properties to sell on the market or on behalf of clients such as Ms. Lee. Last month, city council approved a motion for staff to review extending the multiplex zoning to lots without lane access, or smaller lots. The review would also look at streamlining the approval process and perhaps follow Burnaby's example, which allows four floors, three above-grade. David Eger, real estate appraiser and vice-president of Western Canada for Altus Group Ltd., did the math on a fourplex on the west side of Vancouver, for a standard 50- by 120-foot lot. If the purchase price was $2.75-million, a builder could expect to earn a profit of around $173,000 per unit, he said. That would be based on a sale price of around $2-million per unit. He added that it would be difficult to find a west-side property below $3-million. He said in an e-mail: 'It may not be a grand slam, homerun in terms of making excessive profits, but it would create attractive and well-built homes for family members wishing to downsize and remain in the neighbourhood.' Mr. Eger, a long-time adviser to the development industry, said the multiplex isn't a panacea to the housing affordability crisis, but it does have its place, because of the high cost of construction and the complexity involved. 'I think the potential for building multiplexes on single-family lots should be more focused as an estate planning, family planning, early inheritance option, as opposed to a solution for creating a number of new affordable homes within the community,' he said, in an e-mail. If affordability is the goal, he advised assembling three single-family lots and constructing 40 to 50 multi-unit rental units with secured underground parking. Vancouver developers lay off staff, sell off assets as condo industry decline continues Real estate consultant Sam Sharma said that the lack of parking is one of the problems with the current multiplex zoning. He counts 1,691 strata multiplex units in process with the city right now, and of those, he said 790 do not have parking spaces. But the applications to construct the building type are across the city, with a few dozen in west side neighbourhoods Kerrisdale, Kitsilano, Dunbar, Shaughnessy and West Point Grey, and many more on the east side, in Hastings Sunrise, Kensington Cedar Cottage and Victoria Fraserview. Mr. Sharma's Amira Realty Consulting is helping his builder clients find properties. He specializes in small-scale developments in areas with a lot of demand and believes the new multiunit strata buildings will open up a housing market that was closed off because the properties were restricted to big, detached houses that few could afford. And the alternative ground-oriented duplex had become increasingly expensive, he said, because so few of them were getting built. The demand for ground-oriented small-scale strata is the fuel behind the multiplex, with 75 under construction right now, he said. The two demographics driving the trend are the downsizers who are living in oversized houses, and the young families in need of yard space and storage. 'I always tell my builders, 'Don't do anything less than 1,400 or 1,500 square feet. Three bedrooms, two levels, if possible. And if you can, build a garage. A garage is storage. They want yards.' 'With the multiplex, you will get young families and animation on the streets, and that's what the west side is missing.' Ms. Lee, who is new to building a home, has advice for those homeowners who might be looking to transfer their equity into a multigenerational strata project. 'You need a very good relationship with all your family members, otherwise there is a lot of opportunities where there can be conflict,' she advised. 'Everyone has to be on the same page, and want to do this, because again, it is a lot of work, a lot of unknowns, and a lot of added stress, compared to something already built, where you don't have to make all the nitty gritty decisions.' How a Vancouver family multiplied their 'single-family' home As for the affordability of it, and whether it will be a good move for future resale, she said that remains an unknown. 'The numbers haven't shaken out yet. Our hope is that it will, and it should be, more affordable to do it this way – by how much, I'm not sure.' She wouldn't advise homeowners to take on such a complex project for an investment. It works better as a long-term family project. 'We would like for this place to be the home we stay at for a long time. We are not building this to develop and sell.'
CBC
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBC
Sculptor Martha Sturdy appointed to Order of B.C.
Acclaimed artist Martha Sturdy, who grew up in Vancouver's Kerrisdale neighbourhood in the 1950s, has had her sculptures featured in Vogue and other renowned fashion magazines. The latest highlight in her six-decade-long career was being appointed to the Order of B.C. this week. She advises aspiring artists to be true to themselves as they start their careers.
CBC
23-06-2025
- CBC
Vancouver senior shares harrowing story of necklace, bracelet robbery
Hairstylist Richard Jeha was in his home neighbourhood of Kerrisdale when someone walked up to him, spoke very fast, and took his valuable cross necklace and bracelet. The thieves sped off in a car. Vancouver police Const. Tania Visintin said her heart breaks for Jeha. It comes as the Lower Mainland experiences a rise in "distraction thefts."
Yahoo
22-06-2025
- Yahoo
Police warn 'heartbreaking' distraction thefts could rise in the summer
Police in the Lower Mainland are warning the longer, brighter days of summer mean distraction thefts, in which robbers quickly try to confuse victims while stealing from them, are expected to increase. Jewelry, valuables and money are often stolen in the thefts, which have been a problem for years, according to the Vancouver Police Department (VPD). Richard Jeha, a hairstylist and owner of Richard Jeha Salon, said he was robbed of treasured jewelry — a bracelet from a loved one and a cross on a gold chain — that he was wearing, while walking his dog in Vancouver's Kerrisdale neighbourhood earlier this month. Jeha said it was still light out when he was approached by a woman offering him a strange-looking ring. She proceeded to ask him for the bracelet he was wearing. It was a gift from a loved one in Lebanon, Jeha told CBC's On the Coast. The woman said her husband, waiting in a nearby car with a small child, would pay for Jeha's bracelet. "I said, 'No, no, no, I don't want any of that.' ... Anyway, she came from behind me, grabbed my elbow and pushed it into his window." The man in the vehicle grabbed Jeha's hand, which the woman was holding, and slid his hand under the bracelet. "He put his finger and just yanked it off me," Jeha said. The man also stole Jeha's cross necklace, which he had had since he was five years old. Jeha tried to yell at the couple, but to no avail. "It wasn't more than a minute or so that she's in the car, and they took off." Two boys helped Jeha call 911 after the incident. Police concerned about distraction thefts The VPD said the incident is very similar to other distraction thefts, however sometimes people aren't even aware they're being robbed. "This has been going on for years and years and years. It's a very sophisticated group that's doing this," Const. Tania Visintin said. About 70 cases of distraction theft have been reported to VPD since the beginning of the year, according to Visintin. She said distraction thefts commonly occur in residential areas; the south and southeast parts of Vancouver are particular hotspots for this type of crime, possibly because there are more homes. Visintin said a common strategy the robbers use is to approach a victim with a sob story. She noted they can come up to victims in yards or even on porches or patios. "It's not just one group; it's several groups, so it does make catching them very difficult for us. But because there's such an increase right now, we're doing a lot of work, especially behind the scenes, a lot of covert things that I can't unfortunately speak about," Visintin said. "We're taking this as a priority because these are innocent people that are getting targeted, and it's very heartbreaking to see." Police in other Lower Mainland cities have also sent out warnings about distraction thefts. Burnaby RCMP said three thefts in recent weeks have resulted in two victims losing family heirlooms. In March, Surrey Police Service noted there had been more than a dozen incidents of distraction theft in the first three months of the year. If you are approached by a stranger and feel uncomfortable, police recommend yelling and making noise to try attract the attention of others nearby. Jeha said he wished he would have not visibly worn his cross over his shirt. "That was something, a well-learned lesson." But Jeha said the incident hasn't changed how he feels about his neighbourhood and that he continues to feel safe walking in his community.
CBC
22-06-2025
- CBC
Police warn 'heartbreaking' distraction thefts could rise in the summer
Social Sharing Police in the Lower Mainland are warning the longer, brighter days of summer mean distraction thefts, in which robbers quickly try to confuse victims while stealing from them, are expected to increase. Jewelry, valuables and money are often stolen in the thefts, which have been a problem for years, according to the Vancouver Police Department (VPD). Richard Jeha, a hairstylist and owner of Richard Jeha Salon, said he was robbed of treasured jewelry — a bracelet from a loved one and a cross on a gold chain — that he was wearing, while walking his dog in Vancouver's Kerrisdale neighbourhood earlier this month. Jeha said it was still light out when he was approached by a woman offering him a strange-looking ring. She proceeded to ask him for the bracelet he was wearing. It was a gift from a loved one in Lebanon, Jeha told CBC's On the Coast. The woman said her husband, waiting in a nearby car with a small child, would pay for Jeha's bracelet. "I said, 'No, no, no, I don't want any of that.' ... Anyway, she came from behind me, grabbed my elbow and pushed it into his window." The man in the vehicle grabbed Jeha's hand, which the woman was holding, and slid his hand under the bracelet. "He put his finger and just yanked it off me," Jeha said. The man also stole Jeha's cross necklace, which he had had since he was five years old. Jeha tried to yell at the couple, but to no avail. "It wasn't more than a minute or so that she's in the car, and they took off." Two boys helped Jeha call 911 after the incident. Police concerned about distraction thefts The VPD said the incident is very similar to other distraction thefts, however sometimes people aren't even aware they're being robbed. "This has been going on for years and years and years. It's a very sophisticated group that's doing this," Const. Tania Visintin said. About 70 cases of distraction theft have been reported to VPD since the beginning of the year, according to Visintin. She said distraction thefts commonly occur in residential areas; the south and southeast parts of Vancouver are particular hotspots for this type of crime, possibly because there are more homes. Visintin said a common strategy the robbers use is to approach a victim with a sob story. She noted they can come up to victims in yards or even on porches or patios. "It's not just one group; it's several groups, so it does make catching them very difficult for us. But because there's such an increase right now, we're doing a lot of work, especially behind the scenes, a lot of covert things that I can't unfortunately speak about," Visintin said. "We're taking this as a priority because these are innocent people that are getting targeted, and it's very heartbreaking to see." Police in other Lower Mainland cities have also sent out warnings about distraction thefts. Burnaby RCMP said three thefts in recent weeks have resulted in two victims losing family heirlooms. In March, Surrey Police Service noted there had been more than a dozen incidents of distraction theft in the first three months of the year. If you are approached by a stranger and feel uncomfortable, police recommend yelling and making noise to try attract the attention of others nearby. Jeha said he wished he would have not visibly worn his cross over his shirt. "That was something, a well-learned lesson."
