Grey Stations: New Strategies for Senior Housing in Vancouver, BC

Abstract

This thesis proposes a strategy to capitalize on the abundance of derelict service stations in Vancouver, BC, as a means to address the current crisis of seniors’ housing and services. Vancouver’s glut of vacant service stations reflects a widespread trend of service station closures across North America. As former service stations, these sites are commonly contaminated and have to undergo remediation before they can be rezoned for other uses. However, this network of sites has great potential for long term development. The goal is to create an alternative to the homogeneous seniors’ home currently available and establish a network of ‘Community Stations’ spread throughout the city. These sites will act as nodes to provide housing and services for seniors in the local community. The design is a phased development which will allow time for the site to remediate as well as, through community involvement, establish value and ownership.