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Mount Pleasant was historically a working
class neighborhood centered around
breweries located on Vancouver’s near
northwest fringe. It is bounded by Cambie
Street to the west and Clark Drive to the
east and extends northward to the Great
Northern Way. King Edward Avenue and
Kingsway mark its southern edge. This
neighborhood’s history goes back to 1890
when streetcars first connected it to
downtown, making it one of Vancouver’s
first suburban communities. Mount
Pleasant is now served by the Sky Train
instead of streetcars and its shift from
working class to arts district began roughly
20 years ago. This transition has been on
steroids over the last five years. Nowhere
have the changes been more profound
than near the intersections of Main Street
and Broadway, which is ground zero for
this Cool Street and the nexus of the
neighborhood’s two primary retail arterials.
While much of Western Canada’s energy-
based economy has struggled over the
past 18 months due to falling oil prices,
Vancouver has felt little of that — not just
because of Vancouver’s more diverse
economic base (though that is a major
factor), but also as a result of a huge wave
of in-migration driven mostly by wealthy
Asian immigrants. Housing values for some
Vancouver neighborhoods have tripled
over the past decade and multifamily rents
skyrocketed, forcing many creative types
and millennials to Mount Pleasant and its
relatively cheaper rents (though these are
climbing rapidly as well). Trendy boutiques
and eateries running the gamut from fast
casual to upscale have followed.
We are currently tracking retail asking
rents ranging from $20 to $43 per sf, but
those rates are increasing swiftly. While
most retail sectors in Canada are currently
in flat or conservative growth mode, the
resilience of Vancouver’s local economy
has made the city a focal point of growth
for many. New retail corridors in the Mount
Pleasant market continue to emerge, but
Main Street remains the epicenter of
growth. Plentiful redevelopment
opportunities, continued strong retailer
demand, and competitive rents mean that
this up and coming Cool Street still has a
lot of runway left in its transformation.
31.3%
Millennial Population
$85,689
Average
Household Income
Mount Pleasant/Main Street:
From Working Class to Arts Class