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Vancouver is a Canadian city in the province of British Columbia. It is the largest metropolitan centre in western Canada and the third largest in the country. Vancouver is one of the cities of the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) and of the larger geographic region commonly known as the Lower Mainland of B.C. The Port of Vancouver is significant on a world scale, and Vancouver is also the third largest film production centre for US-based productions in North America after Hollywood and New York.

The city's population is 545,671 and that of the metropolitan area 2,186,965 (2001 census). A resident of Vancouver is called a "Vancouverite." The current mayor is Sam Sullivan.

Geography

Vancouver is adjacent to the Strait of Georgia, a body of water that is shielded from the Pacific Ocean by Vancouver Island. It is in in the Pacific Time Zone (UTC-8), and the Pacific Maritime Ecozone. The city itself forms part of the Burrard Peninsula, lying between Burrard Inlet to the north and the Fraser River to the south. Those unfamiliar with the region may be surprised to learn that Vancouver is not on Vancouver Island. However, both the island and the city (and its U.S. counterpart) are named after Royal Navy Captain George Vancouver of Great Britain, who explored the region in 1792.

Vancouver has an area of 114.67 km² (44 sq. miles), including both flat and hilly ground. Vancouver has a wet climate and is surrounded by water; while early records show that there may have been as many as fifty creeks and streams in the area, currently only four are left.

Climate

Vancouver's climate is unusually temperate by Canadian standards; after Victoria, it is the second warmest major city in Canada during the winter, with temperatures rarely dropping below 0°C. Precipitation varies from about 1,100 mm (43 inches) at Point Grey to 3,500 mm or more (137 inches) near the north shore mountains. Summer months are generally sunny and dry, with moderate temperatures. The daily maximum averages 22°C in July and August, however temperatures often rise above 30°C during the summer months. Thunderstorms are rare, with about four to six per year. Rainfall is frequent in winter.

A diverse range of plants and trees, by Canadian standards, can be found growing throughout Vancouver and South-Western British Columbia, lending to the city's year round greenery. Various species of palms have proven to be hardy to this climate, and are a common sight.

Scenery

Vancouver is internationally renowned for its scenic setting. Vancouver has one of North America's largest urban parks, Stanley Park. The city has all the urban amenities, but also affords easy access to the Pacific Ocean and the Coast Mountains. The North Shore mountains dominate the city landscape, and on a clear day scenic vistas include the dormant, snow-capped volcano Mount Baker in the State of Washington to the southeast; Vancouver Island across the Strait of Georgia to the west and southwest and the Sunshine Coast to the northwest. The views of the city and its surroundings have made it renowned for its beauty.

Air pollution

While many believe that air pollution is increasing, air quality in the city has improved over the last several decades, largely due to actions by various levels of government (e.g., improved automobile efficiency, cleaner fuels). The British Columbia Lung Association reported[3] that between 2001 and 2003, Vancouver had lower particulate matter pollution than other cities in British Columbia, including Victoria, Prince George, and Kelowna. Despite this, challenges may remain because the region's population and economy are expected to grow. Air quality measurements for Downtown Vancouver are updated and published every hour online by the Greater Vancouver Regional District.

History

Archeological records indicate the presence of Aboriginal peoples in the Vancouver area for at least 3,000 years. The traces of several settlements around Vancouver, indicate a food-gathering people with a complex social system.

The arrival of ships captained by Jose Maria Narvaez of Spain in 1791 and George Vancouver of Britain the following year, heralded great change for the lives of the First Nations. The first European settlement was established in 1862. The sawmill established at Moodyville (now North Vancouver) in 1863, enabled expansion of lumbering, long a staple industry.

The settlement of Gastown grew up around the tavern established by “Gassy” Jack Deighton in 1867. In 1870, the colonial government surveyed the settlement and laid out a townsite, renamed “Granville.” This site, with its natural harbour, was selected as the terminus for the Canadian Pacific Railway. Completion of the railway was the precondition for British Columbia joining confederation in 1871. The City of Vancouver was incorporated on April 6, 1886, the same year that the first transcontinental train arrived.

A fire that year destroyed most of the city, which was quickly rebuilt. Due to the advent of the railway, the population increased rapidly from 5,000 in 1887 to 100,000 in 1900. During the first decade of the twentieth century, Vancouver's population tripled and along with it came a construction boom. Automobiles were scarce due to the distance from the industrial centres of eastern North America. To meet the demands for transportation, BC Electric ran a fleet of over one hundred streetcars in the city and on interurban lines.

Social fabric

Vancouver is considered to be a relaxed city, particularly by North American standards. There is a lively cultural scene, many diversions, and year-round access to outdoor activities such as hiking, cycling, boating, and skiing. Some have called it a "city of neighbourhoods", each with a distinct character and ethnic mix. The city is consistently ranked at or near the top of the best cities in the world in which to live.

Increasingly, however, this popularity comes with a price. Vancouver can be an expensive city, with the highest housing prices in Canada. A recent survey comparing median house prices to median incomes found Vancouver was the most unaffordable city for housing in Canada -- and the fifteenth worst in the world, just marginally better than London.[5] [6] The city has adopted various strategies to reduce housing costs, including cooperative housing, legalized secondary suites, increased density and smart growth. Nevertheless, as with many other cities on the west coast of North America, homelessness is a concern, as is the growing gap between rich and poor. The city’s residents are generally thought to be affluent, a perception reinforced by the number of luxury vehicles on city streets and the rate at which residential properties sell -- despite the exorbitant housing costs. In stark contrast to this, however, the Downtown Eastside district of Vancouver is one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Canada.

Vancouver's population density on the downtown peninsula is as high as 20,000 people per square kilometre. The density of the city itself is third highest of any metropolitan centre in North America, after New York City and San Francisco. (It should be noted that a handful of cities in the New York Metropolitan Area are more densely populated than Vancouver). City planners in the late 1950s and 1960s deliberately encouraged the development of high-rise condominium towers in the West End downtown neighbourhood, which has resulted in a compact, walkable and transit/bike friendly urban core. A major and ongoing downtown condominium construction boom began in the late 1990s, financed in large part by a huge flow of capital from Hong Kong immigrants prior to the 1997 hand-over. This has resulted in real estate values gaining as much as 10-15% per year.

Crime

As of 2005, Greater Vancouver (the metropolitan area including its suburbs) had the second-highest crime rate among major Canadian cities (500,000+ population) [7] ; second only to Winnipeg. Vancouver's overall violent-crime rate is moderate[citation needed] but its property-crime rate (partially a consequence of drug addiction centred in the Downtown Eastside) is particularly high; ranking among the highest rates of property crime for major cities in all of North America.[8] One of the most common property crimes in the Vancouver area is automobile break-in; thus visitors are advised to conceal all items left in their car, and to use auto-theft protection devices. Some have criticized the justice system for being too lax on sentencing of criminal offenders.

Demographics

Vancouver is home to people of many ethnic backgrounds and religions. Chinese are by far the largest visible ethnic minority group in the city. Vancouver has one of the most diverse Chinese-speaking communities, with several dialects of Chinese being represented. Vancouver contains the second largest Chinatown in North America (after San Francisco Chinatown), but probably has more diversity in the authentic Chinese cuisine made available to consumers. There are also many multicultural neighbourhoods, such as the Punjabi Market, Little Italy, Greektown, Japantown, Commercial Drive, and a series of Koreatowns. Bilingual street signs can be seen at these centres of ethnic concentration.

Many immigrants from Hong Kong made Vancouver their home following the transfer of sovereignty of that former British colony from the United Kingdom to China. This continued a tradition of immigration from around the world that had already established Vancouver as the second most multi-ethnic of Canada's cities (after Toronto) before the Hong Kong influx began. Other significant Asian ethnic groups in Vancouver are South Asians (mostly Punjabis, usually referred to as Indo-Canadians), Vietnamese, Filipino, Cambodian, and Japanese.

Non-visible minorities, such as newly-arrived Eastern Europeans and the new wave of Latin American arrivals, are also a feature of the city's ethnic landscape. Prior to the Hong Kong influx of the 1980s, the largest non-British ethnic group in the city was German, followed by Ukrainian and the Scandinavian ethnicities. Most earlier immigrant groups are fully assimilated or intermarried with other groups, although a new generation of East Europeans form a distinct linguistic and social community.

There is also a sizable community of aboriginal people in Vancouver as well as in the surrounding metropolitan region, with the result that Vancouver constitutes the largest native community in the province.

Religion

About half the population is of Christian background, one of the lowest rates in the country. The vast majority of them are technically Protestant[citation needed], although Vancouver, like the rest of British Columbia, has a very low rate of church attendance compared to the rest of the continent and the vast majority of the population does not practise religion seriously. [9] [10] Around 5% are Sikh, 3.7% Buddhist, 2.6% Muslim, and 1.4% Hindu. Within the growing Muslim population, there is a large contingent of Ismaili Muslims of Indian ethnicity who have settled in the area due to the hostile environment that has arisen in Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania.

Lifestyle

The city of Vancouver has developed a reputation as a tolerant city that is open to social experimentation and alternative lifestyles as well as being willing to explore alternative drug policies. The city has adopted a Four Pillars Drug Strategy, which combines harm reduction (e.g. needle exchanges, supervised injection sites) with treatment, enforcement, and prevention. The strategy is largely a response to endemic HIV and hepatitis C among injection drug users in the city's Downtown Eastside neighbourhood. The area is characterized by entrenched poverty, the commercial sex trade, and an AIDS epidemic that in the 1990s became the worst in the developed world. Some community and professional groups—such as From Grief to Action and Keeping the Door Open—are fostering public dialogue in the city about further alternatives to current drug policies. The former mayor, Larry Campbell, came to office in 2002 in part because of his willingness to champion alternative interventions for drug issues, such as supervised injection sites. Although it is technically illegal, Vancouver police generally do not arrest people for possessing small amounts of marijuana. Police have, however, been involved in raids on cafes that openly sold marijuana (such as the Da Kine Cafe) and have aggressive programs to shut down hydroponic marijuana growing operations in residential areas.

While not completely free of racial tension, Vancouver is known for having more harmonious race relations than most large multiethnic cities.  One result is a relatively high rate of intermarriage; trans-ethnic couples are unremarkable in any neighbourhood. Sushi is one of the most popular foods in the city, with more than 300 sushi restaurants in the metropolitan area. Both the annual Dragon Boat Festival and Lunar New Year's Day Parade are well attended by residents of all ethnic backgrounds. Vancouver has a large music and arts scene, and one of the largest gay communities in North America.

The influx of Hong Kong immigrants in the 1980s led to the popularization of a brag invented by new-immigrant Chinese youths from Hong Kong, who dubbed the city "Hongcouver" [12]. It was largely a media phenomenon and was never in wide usage among Vancouverites (who preferred their own name for their city), although it may have become current in other cities and areas of BC for a short time because of the media coverage.

Rankings

Vancouver consistently ranks in the top five in worldwide rankings of quality of life. Most recently, the city ranked first (2002, 2005) in a worldwide quality of life survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit. In a similar survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Vancouver ranked second (2002, 2003) and third (2004). Vancouver has tied for first with the cities of Salzburg and Oslo among the UN chosen cities for highest living standards the last 4 years running. Condé Nast Traveler magazine named Vancouver the "Readers' Choice #1 City in the Americas" for 2005. The city generally ranks first when compared to its Canadian and U.S. peers.

The City of Vancouver also maintains a running public record of the complete list of city awards that Vancouver has won.

Economy

With its location on the Pacific Rim and at the western terminus of Canada's transcontinental highway and rail routes, Vancouver one of the nation's largest industrial centers.

The Port of Vancouver, Canada's largest and most diversified, does more than $43 billion in trade with over 90 countries annually. Port activities generate $4 billion in gross domestic product and $8.9 billion in economic output.

Vancouver is the headquarters of forest products and mining companies. In recent years, Vancouver has become an increasingly important centre for software development, biotechnology and a vibrant film industry.

The city’s scenic location makes it a major tourist destination. Visitors come for the city’s gardens, Stanley Park and a combination of mountains, ocean, forest and parklands surrounding the city. The city's numerous beaches, parks, waterfronts, and mountain backdrop, combined with its cultural and multi-ethnic character, all contribute to its unique appeal and style. Over a million people annually pass through Vancouver en route to a cruise-ship vacation, usually to Alaska.

Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is Canada's second busiest airport and the second largest gateway on the west coast of North America for international passengers.

The 1986 World Exposition was held in Vancouver.

Government and politics

Vancouver is governed by the ten-member Vancouver City Council, a nine-member School Board, and a seven-member Parks Board, all elected for three-year terms through an at-large system.

Historically, in all levels of government, the more affluent west side of Vancouver has voted along conservative or centre-right lines while the working-class eastern side of the city has voted along left-wing lines. This was reaffirmed with the results of the 2005 provincial election.
Vancouver City Hall with the 2010 Winter Olympics Flag.

Though polarized, a political consensus has emerged in Vancouver around a number of issues. Protection of urban parks, a focus on the development of rapid transit as opposed to a freeway system, a harm reduction approach to illegal drug use and a general concern about community based development are examples of policies that have come to have broad support across the political spectrum in Vancouver.

Municipal representation

In the 2005 Municipal Election elections, City Council moved back to the right after a term dominated by the leftist Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE). Sam Sullivan of the centre-right Non-Partisan Association (NPA) narrowly defeated Jim Green for the position of mayor and was joined by 5 of his party's members on Council. The moderate left Vision Vancouver (VVN) brought 4 members to Council with the final seat going to COPE. The NPA also won 6 of 9 School Board seats and 5 of 7 Parks Board seats, while the remaining Board seats were won by COPE. Former Mayor Larry Campbell chose not to run for re-election and was subsequently appointed to the Senate of Canada.

Provincial representation

In the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Vancouver has ten constituencies: in the 2005 provincial election, the BC Liberal Party and the BC New Democratic Party each won five seats.

Federal representation

In the Canadian House of Commons, Vancouver has five constituencies: in the 2004 federal elections, the Liberal Party of Canada won four seats, while the New Democratic Party won one. In the 2006 federal elections, all the same MPs were re-elected. However, on February 6, 2006, David Emerson of Vancouver-Kingsway defected to the Conservative Party, giving the Conservatives one seat in Vancouver. As of February 2006, the Liberals hold three seats, and the NDP and the Conservatives hold one each.

Transportation

Municipal bylaws and geography have protected Vancouver from the spread of urban freeways, and the only major freeway within city limits is Highway 1, which passes through the eastern edge of the city.

TransLink, the Greater Vancouver Regional District transportation authority, is responsible for roads and public transportation within region. It provides bus service, a foot passenger and bicycle ferry service (known as SeaBus), a two-line automated metro system called SkyTrain, and the commuter rail West Coast Express.

Inter-city passenger rail service is operated from Pacific Central Station by VIA Rail to points east; Amtrak Cascades to Seattle, Washington; and Rocky Mountaineer rail tour rotes. The city is also served by two B.C. Ferries terminals. One is to the northwest at Horseshoe Bay, West Vancouver, and the other is to the south, at Tsawwassen.

Vancouver is served by Vancouver International Airport (YVR), located on Sea Island in the City of Richmond, immediately south of Vancouver. HeliJet operates scheduled air service from YVR and the harbour. Several float plane operates also operate from the harbour.

Schools

Vancouver is served by the Vancouver School Board, the second largest school district in British Columbia [2]. As in other parts of the province, numerous independent schools are also eligible for provincial funding - including religious schools, non-denominational schools, and special-needs schools, nearly all of which also charge tuition.

Colleges and universities

Vancouver is served by the Lower Mainland's two major public universities, the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Simon Fraser University (SFU). UBC and SFU have satellite campuses within the city, as does the British Columbia Institute of Technology which provides polytechnic education and grants degrees in several fields. Vancouver Community College and Langara College, along with other colleges in surrounding communities, provide career, trade, and university-transfer programs for Vancouver residents. Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design grants certificates, diplomas, and degrees in art and design.

Architecture

Notable buildings within the city include Christ Church Cathedral, the Hotel Vancouver (now part of the Fairmont chain, originally a Canadian Pacific hotel), the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia (with a world-class collection of Native American art including work by Bill Reid), and the Vancouver Art Gallery (notable collections include several paintings by Emily Carr). There are several striking modern buildings in the downtown area, including the Vancouver Law Courts and surrounding plaza known as Robson Square (Arthur Erickson, architect) and the Vancouver Library Square (Moshe Safdie, architect), reminiscent of the Colosseum in Rome. The original BC Hydro headquarters building at Nelson & Burrard Streets is a modernist high-rise, now converted into the Electra condominiums. Another award winner was the "concrete waffle" of the MacMillan-Bloedel building on Burrard at Thurlow. A prominent addition to the city's landscape is the giant tent-frame Canada Place, the former Canada Pavilion from Expo '86 and including the Trade and Convention Centre as well as a Cruise Ship Terminal and the Pan-Pacific Hotel.

A collection of Edwardian buildings in the city's old downtown core were in their day the tallest buildings in the British Empire. These were, in succession, the Province Building, the Dominion Building (1907. both at Cambie & Hastings Streets), and the Sun Tower (1911, Beatty & Pender Streets. The Sun Tower's cupola was finally exceeded as the Empire's tallest by the elaborate Art Deco-flavoured Marine Building in the 1920s (even though its absolute elevation was lower than the Hotel Vancouver and other more uptown buildings). The Marine Building is known for its elaborate ceramic tile facings and brass-gilt doors and elevators, which make it a favourite location for movie shoots. Another famous Edwardian building in the city is the current Vancouver Art Gallery building, designed by Francis Mawson Rattenbury who also designed the provincial Legislature and the original and highly decorative Hotel Vancouver (torn down after WWII as a condition of the completion of the "new" Hotel Vancouver a block away).

Currently topping the list of tallest buildings in Vancouver is One Wall Centre at 150 m and 48 storeys. This will likely be eclipsed by new skyscrapers in the coming years, including the new 196 m tall, 60 storey Living Shangri-La residential tower and hotel, currently under construction.

Skyline

There are three different skylines in Vancouver, each with many high-rise buildings. The two most prominent skylines, often featured in postcards, are the view of southern shore of Burrard Inlet and the view of the northern shore of False Creek. The southern shore of Burrard Inlet includes Coal Harbour and buildings along the Waterfront Road. It has some of the city's most recognized buildings such as Canada Place, Harbour Centre, the Marine Building, and Shaw Tower. The northern shore of False Creek includes the southern portion of the West End, the three bridges connecting to Downtown Vancouver: Granville, Cambie and Burrard, and Yaletown. This area also has attractions such as General Motors Place and TELUS World of Science. The third and less noted skyline in Vancouver includes buildings along the Broadway corridor to the south of False Creek. This section of the city, although much more "mid-rise" than Downtown (average building height ranging from 50-80 m), contains some of the city's largest institutional buildings, such as Vancouver General Hospital (23rd tallest hospital in the world) and the art deco-styled Vancouver City Hall. The Bowmac Sign, once North America's tallest free-standing sign, is also in this stretch. In the future, False Creek south will play a more important role as the emptied industrial land in Southeast False Creek is developed.
Skyline of the northern shore of False Creek

Although Vancouver has more high-rises, per capita, than any other city in North America, the city's skyline is relatively "mid-rise" by Canadian standards. Most buildings in the downtown have a height of around 90m-130m, with the tallest skyscrapers around 150 m tall. This is the result of a strict height restriction to protect mountain views.

The View Protection Guidelines were approved on December 12, 1989 and amended on December 11, 1990. The guidelines established view corridors in the downtown with height limits to protect views of the north shore mountains from a variety of locations south of the downtown peninsula. Over the years, the view protection guidelines have succeeded in preserving mountain views. However, some find Vancouver's skyline flat and lacking in visual interest. Many agree that there is a need for some taller buildings to reflect Vancouver's contemporary image. Others are concerned about proposals for much higher buildings. Many believe that the natural setting and, in particular, views of the north shore mountains may be hindered as tall buildings grow in number. In response to these concerns, Council commissioned a "Skyline Study."

In 1997, the Downtown Vancouver Skyline Study concluded that Vancouver's skyline would benefit from the addition of a handful of buildings exceeding current height limits, to add visual interest to Vancouver's skyline. This led to the General Policy on Higher Buildings. The 1997 study noted that the opportunities for such buildings were restricted due to a limited number of large development sites in the downtown. There were at least five sites identified where buildings exceeding the 450 foot height limit are possible and at least two sites in the northwest corner of the central business district where heights up to 400 feet (exceeding the 300 foot limit) might be considered. Eight years later, five of the seven identified sites for higher buildings have been developed or are in the development application process. The tallest of these new buildings is the Living Shangri-La hotel/residential tower, which when completed in 2007 will stand 197 m tall (61 storeys).

Currently, an Urban Design Panel has been set up for the purpose of reviewing building proposals and rezoning applications in the downtown area (especially those that significantly exceed the current height limits).

The Greater Vancouver Alliance for Arts and Culture

In 1986, Greater Vancouver’s cultural community created the Alliance for Arts and Culture to provide a strong voice for the sector and an avenue to work together. This coalition now numbers more than 320 arts groups and individuals. The Alliances mission is to, "strive towards an environment that recognizes, respects, and responds to the contribution our sector makes to society’s well-being."

Music

Vancouver is a major regional centre for the development of Canadian music. The city's musical contributions include performers of classical, folk and popular music. Vancouver's large Chinese population has a significant music scene, which has produced several Cantopop stars. The city also played an important role in the development of punk rock, perhaps most famously including the band D.O.A., and the seminal industrial outfit Skinny Puppy. Vancouver was also where the punk movie "Terminal City Ricochet" was filmed; the movie's name comes from a hockey team called the Terminal City Ricochets (who were played in the movie by the very fine hockey players of the band D.O.A.)

Vancouver also hosts an annual International Folk Music Festival that includes folk music from around the world.

Vancouver is home to two major orchestras: to the world-renowned CBC Radio Orchestra and the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. It is also home to a major opera company, the Vancouver Opera, and numerous regional opera companies throughout the metropolitan area.

Marijuana

Greater Vancouver has become a haven for marijuana growers. Vancouver in the past twenty years has become a mecca for recreational marijuana smokers around the world. Change has been driven by many individuals including Marc Emery, a marijuana activist, who has opened several pot smoking friendly shops in Vancouver.

Vancouver was recognized as the best pot spot in the world to smoke pot, beating out other cities including Amsterdam.[citation needed]

Sports and recreation

The mild climate of the city and close proximity to ocean, mountains, rivers and lakes make the area a popular destination for outdoor recreationists.

Vancouver has over 2,700 acres (11 km²) of parks, with Stanley Park being the largest. The municipality also has several large beaches, many flowing into each other, with the largest groups extending from the coast of Stanley Park before reaching False Creek, and on the other side of English Bay, starting in the Kitsilano neighbourhood all the way to the University Endowment Lands, which are separate from Vancouver. The generous coastline provides for every type of water sport, and the city is a popular destination for boating enthusiasts.
BC Place Stadium, home of the BC Lions.

The nearby North Shore mountains are home to three ski hills - Cypress Bowl, Grouse Mountain, and Mount Seymour - each within 20 to 30 minutes of downtown Vancouver. Mountain bikers have created world-renowned trails across the North Shore. Three rivers - Capilano River, Lynn Creek, Seymour River - each within 20 minutes of downtown provide opportunities to whitewater enthusiasts during periods of rain and spring melt.

Nightlife in Vancouver had, for years, been seen as restricted in comparison to other cities, with early closing times for bars and night clubs, and a reluctance by authorities to allow for further development. However, in the past few years, Vancouver has experimented with later closing hours and relaxed regulations, and an effort has been made to develop the Downtown core even further as an entertainment district, especially on and around Granville Street.

Professional sports teams
GM Place, home of the Vancouver Canucks.
Club  Sport  League  Stadium  Logo
Vancouver Canucks  Ice hockey  National Hockey League  General Motors Place
British Columbia Lions  Football  Canadian Football League  BC Place Stadium
Vancouver Canadians  Baseball  Northwest League  Nat Bailey Stadium
Vancouver Giants  Ice hockey  Western Hockey League  Pacific Coliseum
Vancouver Whitecaps  Soccer  United Soccer Leagues (men's)
W-League (women's)  Swangard Stadium

Former sports teams
Club  Sport  League  Stadium  Logo  Status
Vancouver Grizzlies (1995–2001)  Basketball  National Basketball Association  General Motors Place   Memphis Grizzlies
Vancouver Millionaires (1911–1926)  Ice hockey  Pacific Coast Hockey Association  Denman Arena   Defunct
Vancouver Ravens (2001–2004)  Lacrosse  National Lacrosse League  General Motors Place   Defunct
Vancouver Voodoo (1993–1996)  Roller hockey  Roller Hockey International  PNE Agrodome   Defunct

Other names

Vancouver is referred to by a number of appellations. Recently (since the late 90s) the name has sometimes been shortened to "Vancity", or "the 'Couve" (which rhymes with "move").

    * The traditional nickname for Vancouver is "the Terminal City" which dates back to the earliest days when the city was the terminus for the trans-national railroad. Though rarely called that in colloquial speech, it is a name which recurs time and again in Vancouver's history, having been applied to gentlemen's clubs, movies, magazines, radio shows, restaurants and probably many other little-known things in its history.
    * People from other parts of Canada sometimes refer to Vancouver as "Lotus Land" (a reference to the Lotophagi of Greek legend) because of the attractive and easygoing lifestyle in the city.
    * It is called "Hollywood North" by the film industry and its boosters, a nickname it shares with Toronto.
    * It is also often called "Vansterdam" by drug tourists and local pot-smokers for its laissez-faire attitude to marijuana use.
    * The city is also sometimes known as "Hongcouver" which comes from its large Chinese population (in particular a large influx of Hong Kong immigrants as a result of the 1997 Hong Kong reversion to Chinese sovereignty).

Sister cities

The City of Vancouver was one of the first cities ever to enter into an international twinning arrangement when, in 1944, it twinned with the city of Odessa, which at the time was part of the Soviet Union. This was based on aiding the allied port city during World War II. Since then, the City of Vancouver has created special arrangements for cultural, social and economic benefits with the other following cities:

    * Busan, South Korea
    * Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
    * Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
    * Kaohsiung, Republic of China
    * Los Angeles, United States
    * Melbourne, Australia
    * Odessa, Ukraine
    * Yokohama, Japan

Nuclear weapons free zone

In 1983, the City of Vancouver was one of the first cities in the world to declare itself a "Nuclear Weapons Free Zone". City Council has amended its policies and erected signage to this effect [15]. This is mostly a symbolic declaration, as Canadian municipalities have no jurisdiction over what can and cannot be brought into city limits.

Municipalities in Greater Vancouver

There are 21 municipalities in the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD). While each of these has a separate municipal government, the GVRD oversees common services within the metropolitan area such as water, sewage, housing, transportation, and regional parks.

Surrounding municipalities
Northwest: West Vancouver, Bowen Island, Lions Bay, Squamish  North: City of North Vancouver,
District of North Vancouver  Northeast: Belcarra, Anmore
West: Strait of Georgia, University Endowment Lands, Nanaimo  Vancouver  East: Burnaby, Port Moody, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge, Mission, Chilliwack, Agassiz, Hope
Southwest: Gulf Islands, Victoria  South: Richmond, Delta (Ladner, Tsawwassen), Point Roberts (USA), San Juan Islands (USA)  Southeast: New Westminster, Surrey, White Rock, Langley (Fort Langley), Abbotsford, Blaine (USA)