Opinions from detached home dwellers are not being heard

I would like to see the April 24 deadline for the Vancouver Plan survey extended by a couple of months. Reason: I don't think the City of Vancouver has done a good job of getting the more detailed information to 52 per cent of the area of the city, the detached homeowners. That area will see the biggest changes to lifestyle and livability under the proposed new draft plan.

We just saw the finished draft as of early April. It was the first chance I was aware of to translate the general ideas I'd heard about into specific ones for my East Vancouver area, including things like: “What, up to six storeys will be allowed on my block? One block away from us, up to 12 storeys will be allowed? Up to 12 storeys between Main and Fraser? Transit hubs and corridors up to 20 storeys?”

In this plan there appears to be hardly any detached homes left. Around the existing detached houses there is a lot of green space. That green space now helps to regulate temperature, and includes gardens and bird and insect habitat. Under the Vancouver Plan it looks like that green space will be lost — covered up by larger developments.

I asked city staff at a drop-in information session about how many responses to the survey they had received from people living in detached homes and what percentage of the total responses were from people in detached homes. They didn't know, politely took my info and haven't yet responded to my questions.

I did an informal survey of our block. Of the 10 people I asked, none were aware of the height of buildings proposed for our area. None were aware of a survey where they could express their opinion. One thought they might have received a postcard from the city about the Vancouver Plan that city staff told me was mailed out to all residences in the fall, but the rest on my block couldn't remember the postcard at all.

I asked the city staff for a copy of the postcard, and haven't received that yet either. There is now not enough time before April 24 to get the word out, and it seems not fair to people who have worked hard for their homes, contributed to their communities and hope to still live in them for another 20 to 30 years. Mary Boulanger, Vancouver