Welcome to the VANCOUVER IS SPECIAL neighbourhood project

Vancouver is Special is a unique Vancouver city neighbourhood project. Anyone can help build their neighbourhood by adding photos and information about it's history, community events, shops and more.

Our goal is to work with our neighbours to create a website that gives the essence and flavour of each neighbourhood by the people that live in it. To add to your neighbourhood, go to the smart phone graphic to your left to start.

Our good neighbour program is a great way for local businesses to get a free ad in exchange for giving a gift that we will hand out for free to people as a way to encourage them to visit your neighbourhood.

Do you want to host a video? We are working on creating one minute videos of each neighbourhood and we need hosts to do the talking. This is great for local business owners and fun for anyone that likes to be in front of the camera.

We would love you to contribute to building this one of a kind website. It's free, but have a few simple rules that you have to follow so that the website remains truly community oriented.

Right now we are beta testing this website and we will be starting with a few neighbourhoods then expanding….so please come back often….and help us build Vancouver is Special!

Please feel free to link to our page and you can even put a window within your website linking to Vancouver is Special, but please do not take photos and videos from Vancouver is Special.


Brookswood Burnaby Coal Harbour Commercial Drive Dunbar East Vancouver
False Creek Island Homes Kerrisdale Kitsilano Mount Pleasant North Vancouver
Point Grey Shaughnessy South Surrey Southlands Strathcona The Burbs
UBC West Vancouver White Rock Yaletown



Coal Harbour is the name for a section of Burrard Inlet lying between Vancouver, Canada's downtown peninsula and the Brockton Peninsula of Stanley Park. It has also now become the name of the neighbourhood adjacent to its southern shoreline, which was redeveloped as an upscale high-rise condominium district in the 1990s.


Commercial Drive is a roadway in the city of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada that goes through the neighbourhood of Grandview-Woodland. However, the neighbourhood is so dominated by the businesses, cultural facilities, and residents along Commercial Drive that the area is far better known as "The Drive" than by the civic boundaries.


Dunbar is a mature community of quiet, residential streets lined with grand old trees, serene parks, convenient Dunbar Village shopping area, and the lovely McCleery Golf Course. Dunbar is home to the Musqueam First Nation land, as well as the unique urban country neighbourhood of Southlands. This area is in the southwestern section of the city, north of the Fraser River and east of the University of British Columbia and Pacific Spirit Regional Park.


False Creek is a short inlet in the heart of Vancouver. It separates downtown from the rest of the city. Science World is located at its eastern end and the Burrard Street Bridge crosses its western end. False Creek is also spanned by the Granville Street and Cambie bridges. The Canada Line tunnel crosses underneath False Creek just west of the Cambie Bridge. It is one of the four major bodies of water bordering Vancouver along with English Bay, Burrard Inlet and the Fraser River. The False Creek area is an eclectic group of neighborhoods with very different urban planning and architectural techniques/styles. South False Creek went from being an industrial park, in the late 1800s and early 1900s,to being the populous residential area that it is today. The north shore of False Creek, on the downtown peninsula, has undergone multiple stages of development from BC Place to the the accompanying high-density residences and commercial retailers.


Kerrisdale is primarily a residential area, and has many long-time residents. Its residential streets are lined with sweeping, grand old trees. Kerrisdale Village is the main shopping area, and one of the first to introduce specially designed street furniture to beautify the main shopping streets. Kerrisdale is in the south-western section of the city, sloping down to the Fraser River.


Kitsilano, known locally as Kits, is synonymous with famous Kits Beach, named one of the "top 10 best city beaches in the world" by international travel magazines, and perfect for outdoor fitness. Kitsilano is one of the city's organic-food hubs, and has extensive restaurants and retail along West 4th Avenue and West Broadway. Kitsilano runs along the south shore of English Bay, between popular Granville Island and Point Grey.


Mount Pleasant is a vibrant and eclectic area known for its unusual stores, heritage buildings, artistic residents, and arts-focused festivals. The area is popular with first-time homebuyers, urban professionals, and families. Mount Pleasant runs from False Creek southeast and up the slope toward the busy Mount Pleasant shopping district, where Broadway, Kingsway, and Main Street meet.


Point Grey is one of Vancouver's older neighbourhoods, with many long-time residents. The area is known for two of the city's popular beaches, Jericho Beach and Spanish Banks. Both beaches are great for watching the sunset, over English Bay and the mountains. Point Grey Village serves as the area's shopping district, where many independently owned businesses contribute to a village-like atmosphere. Point Grey runs along English Bay, between the University of British Columbia and Kitsilano.


Shaughnessy is largely residential, with a higher-than-average proportion of heritage houses from the first half of last century. Several major arteries and the Canada Line subway serve this otherwise serene area. Local residents enjoy shopping areas in Arbutus to the west and Cambie Village to the northeast. The eastern side of this area has two hospitals and the gorgeous VanDusen Botanical Garden. Shaughnessy is the city's geographic heart, between Queen Elizabeth Park and Arbutus.


Southlands is a neighbourhood populated by upscale mansions and horse farms. It is also the home territory of the Musqueam Indian Band. Southlands borders on the north by West 16th Avenue and on the south by the Fraser River; it stretches from the University Endowment Lands on the west to Mackenzie and Blenheim Streets in the east.

Archaeological finds indicate that people have resided in the Southlands area for centuries, with some estimates placing the first settlement of the area by First Nations around 400 BC. The first European settlement was recorded in 1863 when the first homesteaders, Fitzgerald and Sam McCleery, constructed a farm in the area. Logging cleared much of the land in the area, which was held by the Canadian Pacific Railway and the province, and in 1912 a subdivision was started for residences to serve the soon to be built University of British Columbia just to the west. By 1927, Dunbar was served by three streetcar lines and featured a number of unique homes, thanks to bylaws introduced in 1922 regarding lot sizes and placement of buildings on the lots. Many of these homes are still standing today, with 21 structures on the City of Vancouver's heritage register.

The Southlands Riding Club, formed in 1943, is a highlight of the area; its clubhouse was a former net drying hut for fishermen on the Fraser, and was disassembled and carried to its present site by members on horseback. The area also boasts a number of public and exclusive private golf courses that have hosted major Canadian and international events in the past.


Strathcona is Vancouver's oldest residential neighbourhood. It is bordered by Chinatown to the west, Clark Drive to the east, Burrard Inlet on the north, and Canadian National Railway and Great Northern Railway (now BNSF Railway) classification yards to the south.


University of British Columbia and area.


Yaletown is an area of Downtown Vancouver approximately bordered by False Creek, Robson, and Homer Streets. This is Vancouver's trendy and upscale renovated warehouse district. This fresh urban neighbourhood is just an easy walk from the centre of downtown Vancouver or a quick ferry ride from Granville Island. Yaletown's converted heritage buildings are home to some of the city's top fashion and design shops, as well as cutting edge restaurants and bars. Old loading docks act as giant sidewalks and create a unique setting for wandering, shopping, or lounging at one of the many outdoor patios. The marinas, parks, high rise apartment blocks, and converted heritage buildings constitute one of the most significant urban regeneration projects in North America.
         

Vancouver is Special
Contact: Amy
Amy@VancouverIsSpecial.com