Time to get out and about in the spring sun. Take in the latest issue of the Renfrew-Collingwood Community News to find out all the great things happening in the neighbourhood.
Beaver and Dodge Lodge art installation by Still Moon Arts
They, They, & It: Reflections on Trans Identity – new exhibit at the Italian Cultural Centre until July 5
Collingwood Corner: Connaught School, now Sir Wilfred Grenfell
Consider acupuncture for seasonal allergies
Crow’s Nest – free little art gallery on the edge of Renfrew Ravine
Read On! Victoria and Victoria Day
Grandview-Collingwood Branch 179 legion updates
Do you have a local story to tell or an event to share? We’d love to hear about it! Email rccnews-editorial@cnh.bc.ca.
The deadline for the June 2024 issue is May 10.
We welcome story submissions from 300 to 400 words long. Accompanying photos must be high resolution in a jpg file at least 1 MB large and include a photo caption and the name of the photographer.
Loretta Houben and her young son watching the demolishing of the warehouses on Wellington Avenue, 1992. Photo by John Williams
Do you remember a train whistle blowing late at night in the 1960s and 1970s when the freight train would arrive at the back of the large warehouse complex located on Wellington Avenue and Joyce Street? The train used the former interurban tracks from the east. I lived on Monmouth Avenue and the sound would comfort me in the middle of the night.
The warehouse was opened in March 1957 at 3450 Wellington Avenue and owned by Robert K. Arkley. For many years it was McGregor Warehouses Ltd., until it came under new management in 1973 and was changed to Vancouver Distribution Centres Ltd. The owner at the time was George A. Carey, and the general manager was Harvey Allen. The warehouses were a huge facility consisting of 120,000 square feet. Some of the businesses located here were Castrol Oils, Nestle Canada, DuBois Chemicals of Canada and Johnsons Wax.
Looking north from behind the warehouses from the SkyTrain tracks, 1992. Photo by John Williams
It was difficult gleaning this information from online newspapers at Newspapers.com. Not much has been written about this complex, which was in the Collingwood neighbourhood from 1957 until 1992, a period of 35 years, when it was demolished to make way for townhomes and condos. The area was rezoned in 1988.
The warehouses were torn down in 1992. The apartments and townhomes were sold from 1992 to 1994, advertised in the Vancouver Sun for as low as $4,000 down payment. Apartments started at $74,500 and townhomes started at $210,000, from VLC Properties. Eventually, the area included Wellington townhomes on Wellington Avenue, with the Avalon and Connaught townhomes behind them. Also included were two high rise towers, the tallest in the neighbourhood at the time: the Regent Court and Queen’s Court.
My dad, John Williams, took the two photos included with this article. I inherited my love of old buildings and documenting neighbourhood changes from him. These are the only two photos I have seen of the warehouses on Wellington.
The one thing I remember about this area is the beautiful green lawn in the front, with picnic tables for the staff. McGreer Street was once an unnamed gravel lane, running along the west side of the property.
Do you have memories or photos of this warehouse complex? Please get in touch with the editor, Paul Reid, if you do, at rccnews-editorial@cnh.bc.ca.
Spring is finally here! Take in the latest issue of the Renfrew-Collingwood Community News to find out all the great things happening in the neighbourhood.
CNH’s RISE Community Health Centre wins BC Quality Award
Collingwood Corner: Demolition of Vancouver Distribution Centres
Buzzing like bees at Still Moon Arts Society this spring
Neighbourhood Small Grants accepts applications through April 18
The Welcome Pole Project by Indigenous carvers
Applications due for the Ann and Jo-Ann Sobkow Award on April 30
Plus, spring photos by Penny Lim and Gail Hirst
Do you have a local story to tell or an event to share? We’d love to hear about it! Email rccnews-editorial@cnh.bc.ca.
The deadline for the May 2024 issue is April 10.
We welcome story submissions from 300 to 400 words long. Accompanying photos must be high resolution in a jpg file at least 1 MB large and include a photo caption and the name of the photographer.
Renfrew-Collingwood Community News 