Sally's Cake House

This is another older shot taken back in 2012. Empty storefronts are an ever increasing problem in Vancouver's Chinatown these days. A look with Google Street View reveals Sally's was probably closed as far back as 2009. Changing demographics, skyrocketing real estate prices, and zoning changes from City Hall all seem to threaten the fabric of Chinatown. Before Christmas the National Post had an excellent article which had an in depth look at Vancouver's Chinatown. Today we're seeing an influx of new businesses which is a good thing but at the same time the charm of the area is slowly disappearing.





























The space at Sally's was vacant for many years but in the summer of 2016 it was taken over by Klaus's Kaffee Haus. If you read the National Post article Klaus took great strides to try and fit into the neighbourhood. Unfortunately much of the new construction the City has recently allowed doesn't really fit in with the rest of the neighbourhood. Parts of Main Street now look more like Yaletown than Chinatown. Only time will tell what the future holds for this historic part of the city.

Neptoon Records

This colourful storefront is on Main Street at East 20th Avenue. Neptoon is Vancouver's oldest independent record store and has been around since 1981. The teal colour of the building has been around long before Neptoon moved in though. When I first arrived in Vancouver in the late 80's I remember this as the location of Exotic World which was a personal museum for Harold and Barbara Morgan. Somehow I never visited the place but saw it later on when the contents were taken over by Alexander Lamb Antiques down at Main and 17th Avenue. You can read an old article about Exotic World by The Tyee here. Makes you think how much cooler Main Street would be if Exotic World was still around!

Penny Grocery

Poor old Penny Grocery at 2934 Kingsway is another old corner store that didn't make it. From what I can figure it probably closed its doors back in 2010. No doubt the Town Pantry at the Chevron station right next door sealed its fate. A one stop shop for drivers getting gas was probably just more convenient than having to walk and extra 20 feet to buy something at Penny.

What is remarkable about the store is its old 7up sign which is still there today. Although there are a few old Coke signs still left around Vancouver there aren't many 7up signs. This is one of only three left around town. The others are the former Olympic Grocery at 16th and Heather Street and Cardero Grocery in the West End. The sign is most likely from the early 1960's but the 7up logo with bubbles dates from the 1950's. The owners of the property might not realize it but signs of that vintage are selling in the $650 range per side!

The Nelson Cafe

This is an older photo from the summer of 2009 and shows yet another piece of old Vancouver that's just a memory now. The building was at 655 Nelson Street just South East of Granville behind the old Kripps Pharmacy. Both were torn down as there was a push to remake Granville Street before the arrival of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Looking back in the City Directories the building that housed the cafe had many occupants over the years. In 1932 it was the Belmont Cleaners (no doubt servicing the Belmont Hotel just across the street), in 1940 it was the location of Dom Taxi Ltd, and in 1952 it was the home of Dey's Glass Works. If you look at this link in Google Street View the new building is more modern and functional but is incredibly bland and characterless. This is an all too common problem with many new buildings in the city.

Fields on Fraser Street

This is another older photo taken shortly before the store closed back in 2012. Fields was part of a discount department store chain that was owned by the Hudson's Bay Company. In late 2011 HBC decided to shutter all 141 of its Fields stores across Canada. Too bad as the store was kind of unique to Vancouver with it's retro styled triangular plastic letters! Today the store is a Fruiticana produce shop which is part of a chain which operates in BC and Alberta.

Joe's Cafe

After reading about the impending closure of Wonderbucks it got me thinking about some of the older establishments on Commercial Drive. One of the more iconic places is Joe's Cafe that first opened back in 1976. But if you walk down The Drive today you'll notice one thing missing from Joe's, the younger generation. It seems that younger folk are happier in the more upscale and zen like Cafe Moja just down the street. Times are changing on The Drive. After having a look at The Drive via Google Street View I came up with a short list of shops that have disappeared in recent years including The Peg, Drive Organics, Dream Designs, Latin Quarter, Urban Empire, Florida Market, the Kitchen Corner, Leiria Cafe, Renzo's Tailors, and most recently Bikes on the Drive. Hopefully Joe's will continue to hang in there as The Drive just wouldn't be The Drive without Joe's Cafe!

Wonderbucks

Good old Wonderbucks is a bit of an institution on Commercial Drive. But I recently came across some bad news in an article in the Vancouver Sun. Due to skyrocketing rent the owner is going to close the store in early 2017. The rent is almost doubling from it's present level and will be over $27,000 a month. This is really bad news for Commercial Drive as it will probably mean that more independent retailers will likely have to move on. Another reason to worry that was mentioned in the article is the City approving the Grandview-Woodlands Community Plan. This allows for much higher density which is already driving up property values along The Drive. The CBC also did a story on Wonderbucks.





























Hopefully who ever takes over the space at Wonderbucks will leave the exterior tile work alone as years ago the store used to be the Crystal Dairy. The image was taken in 1946 by photographer Don Coltman. Vancouver Archives CVA 586-4178.



Update : This photo was taken in late January of 2017 just a few days before Wonderbucks closed for good. I went in for a last look around but there wasn't much left. Sad times on The Drive!