Accounting: the expanded

Neighbourhood Amenities

Neighbourhood amenities play an important part in the fabric of Collingwood Village. These include three parks amounting to 27 percent greenspace in the development area, a baseball diamond, sports field, tennis courts and gathering places.

Special attention has been paid to ensure the roadways and walkways are pedestrian friendly. A community neighbourhood centre was built as part of the project, as well as a community policing office.

Collingwood Community Neighbourhood House

The 26,500-square-foot community neighbourhood house was completed in 1995.

Its mission is “to provide leadership, programs and services in response to the social, educational, economic, health, cultural and recreational needs of residents of Collingwood, and to promote the well being of the residents and the community as a whole” (Collinwood Neighbourhood House, 2003). The facilities include an 8,000 square foot indoor gymnasium and 7,000 square foot daycare centre for up to 69 children—the centre employs 40 full-time staff and 60 part-time staff with a budget over $3 million. A

$2 million endowment from Concert contributes to support operations and services.

Collingwood Community Policing Centre

The area in which Collingwood Village is located used to have the highest crime rate in its district; however, budget restraints did not allow for a police station to be located in the area. As a result, the Collingwood Community Policing Centre was started in 1994, the first of its kind in Canada, and located in Collingwood Village. The office operates in a rent-free space provided by Concert, and is run by the community. It is also supported in part by an endowment from Concert. The goal of the office is to bridge the gap between the community, the City, and the Vancouver Police Department, and to educate and empower citizens to take responsibility for crime in their community (Collingwood Community Policing Centre, 2006).

The success of the Collingwood Community Policing Centre is reflected in its strong volunteer involvement. In the year 2005, 219 volunteers contributed an estimated 25,202 hours, or based on a 35-hour week, the equivalent of 13.85 full-time staff equivalents. This represents 87 percent of the total activity hours. If a comparative market value is put on these hours, it amounts to $293,855, approximately 55 percent of all incoming resources.²⁵
All in all, this high density mix of market and non-market housing in proximity to rapid public transit, along with its community amenities and ‘Crime Prevention through Environmental Design’ features, earned Collingwood Village the Greater Vancouver Regional District’s (GVRD) Livable Region Award in 2002. It was noted as a “outstanding example of community-based planning” that contributes to the Livable Region Strategic Plan of protecting the green zone, building complete communities, increasing transportation choices, and achieving a compact metropolitan region (GVRD, 2002, p. 28). These features and the accompanying award have paid off in terms of condominium sales and low vacancy rates in rental buildings. As an example, one of the latest condominium buildings, a 27-storey tower, sold out completely within three weeks of being advertised.


²⁵ To calculate the estimated market value of the hours contributed by volunteers, the replacement cost method is used. This is the amount it would cost an organization if they had to pay someone to do the same tasks. An hourly rate calculated by Statistics Canada using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), is used. To assign a value to the contributions by Collingwood CPC volunteers, NAICS category sub-sector 5616, Investigation and Security Services, is applied. This sub-sector includes organizations engaged in providing guard and patrol services. The activities listed in this sub-sector fit well with the majority of the volunteer activities contributed by Collingwood CPC volunteers. The hourly rate for those involved in this category in British Columbia for the year 2005 was $11.66/hour. Using this figure, the estimated total value for the 25,202 hours, or the equivalent of almost 14 full-time staff equivalents (based on a 35-hour week) is $293,855.