Change is inevitable—But forgetting our past is not. 

January 2024

Dear Community Member,

I am writing on behalf of the Riley Park/South Cambie Heritage Committee.* The Committee is engaged in a process of both documenting and publicizing the history of important civic locations in our area as well as telling people’s stories from the past.

As you are aware, this area of Vancouver is undergoing significant change. Major housing redevelopment is underway along all of our major streets: Oak, Cambie, Main and Fraser from 16th to 41st. As well, five major sites within our area are being repurposed and densified –  Oakridge Transit site, Heather Lands, Balfour site, Little Mt. Housing site and Oakridge Municipal Town Centre.  Riley Park/South Cambie is being physically transformed at a rapid pace and much of what we once knew has been demolished and rebuilt, or soon will be.

What we are doing
Our goal is to awaken interest in all who want to learn more about Riley Park/South Cambie, its people and history. As a local community group with deep roots in the area, we think that it is important to preserve some of the fascinating history of this part of Vancouver for future generations. We are in the process of researching and developing materials that we plan to publish on a website that will be accessible to the pubic. The site will  enable people to appreciate the history associated with buildings, businesses, institutions and people of this distinct part of the city.

What we are asking
There are many important stories from our past that remain untold. If you know the history of a particular place, a local business, a group or person and would like to share it with our community, we invite you to contact us to discuss how we can work together to tell that story.

What you can do
You might want to talk to members of your organization, family and friends to let them know about this project. If you have materials, stories and photos that you would like to share with us, please let us know. If you have an idea for a local history story that you think needs to be researched, please tell us. 

We encourage you to join our group and work to keep our history alive. Please feel free to contact me at the address below. I would be happy to discuss the work of the RPSC Heritage Committee with you.

With kind regards,

Norm Dooley   

norm.dooley@gmail.com

RSPC Heritage

* Riley Park/South Cambie Community Visions Committee was established in November 2005 by Vancouver City Council as part of City Plan. As RPSC has evolved over these past 18 years, it has been recognized as a credible community watchdog with a strong institutional history. A few months ago, RPSC established a Heritage committee and we are now reaching out to the community for its input.

What is Heritage?

Heritage is the full range of our inherited traditions, monuments, objects, and culture.  Most important, it is the range of contemporary activities, meanings, and behaviors that we draw from them.

Heritage includes, but is much more than preserving, excavating, displaying, or restoring a collection of old things.  It is both tangible and intangible, in the sense that ideas and memories–of songs, recipes, language, dances, and many other elements of who we are and how we identify ourselves–are as important as historical buildings and archaeological sites.

Heritage is, or should be, the subject of active public reflection, debate, and discussion.  What is worth saving?  What can we, or should we, forget?  What memories can we enjoy, regret, or learn from?  Who owns “The Past” and who is entitled to speak for past generations?  Active public discussion about material and intangible heritage–of individuals, groups, communities, and nations–is a valuable facet of public life in our multicultural world.

Heritage is a contemporary activity with far-reaching effects. It can be an element of far-sighted urban and regional planning.  It can be the platform for political recognition, a medium for intercultural dialogue, a means of ethical reflection, and the potential basis for local economic development.  It is simultaneously local and particular, global and shared.

Heritage is an essential part of the present we live in–and of the future we will build.

Source: University of Mass. Amherst, Center for Heritage and Society