Hidden Gems of West Southlands

Noteworthy housing

• Three neighbourhood houses are on the city's inventory of heritage buildings:

  • 3522 W 47th (designed by and for John Honeyman, Arts and Crafts style, built 1913)

  • 6376 Collingwood (designed by GP Bowie, Craftsman style, built 1915)

  • 6275 Dunbar (designed by and for Barry Downs, West Coast Modern style, built 1959) 

• Other notable architects who have built homes in the neighbourhood include Peter Oberlander and landscape architect Cornelia Oberlander (6029 Olympic Avenue, built 1958), and Fred Dalla-Lana (6290 Collingwood Street, built 1976, and 3691 West 48th Avenue, built 1997).

• Several homes reflect the distinctive mid-century West Coast architectural style that echoes the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, but with a British Columbia flare: bigger windows, more skylights and deeper overhangs. 

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The largest structure in West Southlands is the Highbury Interceptor,

a 4.2 kilometer sewer main that carries sewage from Vancouver and parts

of Burnaby to the sewage treatment plant on Iona Island, near the airport. 

The treatment plant opened in 1963 and is currently in the process of a

$10-billion upgrade to tertiary treatment standards. The 3-meter diameter

pipe is at ground level as it runs through the Musqueam Marsh and then

dips underground as it goes under the north arm of the Fraser River.
In 2019, an air management facility was added to the Interceptor to

reduce sewer gas emissions. This building is on the west side of

Musqueam Park and includes a washroom open during the day,and benches facing the park. 

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Crown Street, south of SW Marine Drive, Vancouver's first

"sustainable street”

The street does not have curbs or gutters and impermeable surfaces were

kept to a minimum allowing storm water run-off to flow into shallow ditches.

Ditch vegetation filters grease, oil, and other pollutants before the water

flows into Musqueam Creek.

Green spaces dominate the neighbourhood 

• A  park-like wooded entrance to West Southlands is located at the corner of Dunbar and Southwest Marine Drive. The triangle with indigenous dogwoods, flowering current and Oregon Grape is maintained with the help of volunteers.

• Musqueam Park is a 24-hectare park at the centre of the neighbourhood. A major portion is covered with a second growth forest of red cedar, Western hemlock, alder, cottonwood, and maple forest replacing the original forest that was cleared more than 100 years ago. Trails and a bridle path weave through the forest, and provide lots of opportunity to see birds and other urban wildlife. The park also has irrigated soccer fields on the eastern edge and, on the western portion, an off-leash area for dogs. As recently as the 1960s, the area was occupied by horse stables and vegetable farms.

• Musqueam Marsh Nature Park is directly south of Musqueam Park. These wetlands of less than one hectare are easily accessible by trails and a bridle path. 

• June's Pond In 2003, the West Southlands Ratepayers Association restored a pond in Musqueam Park where frogs and even a muskrat have been seen. The pond serves as a drainage tank for the adjacent fields. The Save Our Parkland Association dedicated the pond to June Binkert for her work to preserve the area from development.

• Two golf courses Musqueam Golf Academy, which is open to the public, and the members-only Point Grey golf course abut the neighbourhood. Facilities at both locations can be booked for special events.

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The acidic soil throughout the neighbourhood is excellent for rhododendrons, azaleas, camellias and other acid loving plants.  Early settlers farmed the land for vegetables and fruit, but the farms disappeared years ago as housing expanded. A few old fruit and hazelnut trees remain on some properties and in Musqueam Park. Two of the neighbourhood's wonderful gardeners have been slowly developing a fruit, vegetable, and flower garden on the edge of the Park at the foot of Olympic Street. A little library was added near the garden in 2022.