Read our letter to Vancouver Mayor and City Council below. (Or view as a PDF file.)
17 February, 2016
Mayor and Council
City of Vancouver
453 West 12th Ave.
Vancouver, BC V5Y 1V4
RE: ST. JAMES COMMUNITY SQUARE
Dear Mayor and Council,
We are writing to express our strong support for the City’s decision to acquire St. James Square, an essential community resource and one of the few live-performance venues remaining on the local scene. As you may know, the Coalition has benefited tremendously through advice and support offered by the St. James staff and management in our ongoing efforts to preserve and reinvent the Hollywood Theatre as a landmark arts and culture venue. Indeed, hundreds packed St. James Square in November 2013 to launch our ongoing campaign to save the Hollywood Theatre.
Consequently, we are very pleased to know that the St. James will continue to be a key partner and advocate for the Hollywood’s preservation. And, to that end, we are simultaneously encouraged to know that the City is continuing to invest in public arts and culture capacity.
Regrettably, however, as much as sustainability for St. James avoids the west side’s further decline into cultural poverty, it fails to address the prevailing capacity deficit west of Granville.
Once again, we encourage the City to recognize the unique opportunity offered by the Hollywood to establish a broader and evolving arts and culture presence on West Broadway. The Hollywood is perfectly positioned and ideally suited to provide the critical mass required to see West Broadway become a vibrant and self-sustaining focus of creative expression and artistic enterprise.
We look forward to re-engaging with our elected representatives and city staff to exchange updates on the Hollywood and explore opportunities to build on recent good news at St. James Community Square.
Yours sincerely,
Save the Hollywood Theatre Coalition
Save Vancouver's Hollywood Theatre 