Your city is losing another old house to a multiplex

There’s a quiet rhythm to Vancouver’s housing changes if you pay attention, especially to the building permits. We saw a few interesting ones issued on May 5th, but one in particular stands out. A permit was issued to demolish the existing Single Detached House at 2236 Kitchener Street—a home built in 1928—for $40,000. Right around the corner, at 2737 Grant Street, another 1937 house is also coming down.

It's a familiar sight on the East Side these days.

* **2236 Kitchener Street:** Original house built in 1928, now slated for demolition.

* **2279 E 19th Avenue:** A new permit for a "Multiple Dwelling 'Multiplex'" with two front units and two back units, valued at $1,050,000. This is the future replacing those older structures.

It’s part of a broader shift, a kind of architectural *shoganai* – "it can't be helped." The city is trying to build density, and these multiplex permits are part of that push. We’re watching to see if these new builds actually address the core affordability issues, or if they simply replace one type of expensive housing with another, slightly different, expensive housing.

Beautiful out here. Complicated in here. That's the coast.

Kenji Nakashima (@westcoastweird_yvr)

The MiTL team digs into this and more every morning – tune in at mornings.live.