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218 Keefer Street

218 Keefer Street, Vancouver, Colombie-Britannique, V6A, Canada

Reconnu formellement en: 1986/09/23

Exterior view of 218 Keefer Street; City of Vancouver, 2004
Front facade
Pas d'image
Pas d'image

Autre nom(s)

218 Keefer Street
Keefer Rooms

Liens et documents

Date(s) de construction

1912/01/01

Inscrit au répertoire canadien: 2005/03/29

Énoncé d'importance

Description du lieu patrimonial

The historic place consists of a tall, narrow, four-storey structure, with rooms on the upper three floors and retail space on the ground floor, located at 218 Keefer Street on the northern edge of Vancouver's historic Chinatown.

Valeur patrimoniale

Built in 1912, perhaps speculatively, by owners/designers/contractors Rogers and McKay, this building's heritage value is derived from its representative use and architecture. Like many other buildings in Chinatown, and the downtown area more generally, retail shops are located on the ground floor with small rooms or apartments located above. Over time the retail shops have changed, but the upper floors have been used continuously for housing since the building was constructed. In fact, the use of the site for housing predates the construction of the building. The existing building represents an intensification of density through the addition of height and the use of the entire lot. This adds to the overall heritage value.

The character of the housing is also an important aspect of the heritage value since it tells us about the type of accommodation available to poor Vancouverites in the 20th century. Up until 1974, this building contained 74 rooms. In the typical single-room occupancy facility, each room is approximately 10x10, residents share bathroom and, sometimes, cooking facilities. The number of rooms in this building was reduced to 45 in 1975; many single-room occupancy facilities reduced the number of rooms in the 1970s as a result of stricter by-law enforcement and urban renewal projects.

Additional heritage value is found in the use of the building by both Japanese and Chinese people. During the 1920s and 30s, there was a Japanese grocery on the ground floor and Japanese people occupied the rooms, suggesting that the ethnic composition of Chinatown, at least along the edges, was not homogenous.

One of the ground floor uses is also of heritage value: in the 1930s the building contained baths. This was a common feature of working class neighbourhoods in many communities where people did not have access to their own bathrooms. It may also reflect traditions of communal bathing in the Japanese and Chinese communities.

Source: City of Vancouver Heritage Conservation Program

Éléments caractéristiques

The character-defining elements of 218 Keefer Street include:
- Location at the northern edge of historic Chinatown
- Height of the building, especially relative to its neighbours, and use of the whole lot by the building
- Cornice and the brick detailing below the cornice
- Bay windows with one-over-one sash windows; and arrangement of windows within the bay on the upper three floors and the external details of the bay
- Side entrance and large sign advertising 'Rooms'
- Use of the upper floors for housing
- Use of the ground floor for retail purposes

Reconnaissance

Juridiction

Colombie-Britannique

Autorité de reconnaissance

Ville de Vancouver

Loi habilitante

Vancouver Charter, art.582

Type de reconnaissance

Répertoire du patrimoine communautaire

Date de reconnaissance

1986/09/23

Données sur l'histoire

Date(s) importantes

s/o

Thème - catégorie et type

Économies en développement
Commerce et affaires

Catégorie de fonction / Type de fonction

Actuelle

Historique

Commerce / Services commerciaux
Magasin ou commerce de vente au détail
Résidence
Édifice à logements multiples

Architecte / Concepteur

s/o

Constructeur

Rogers and McKay

Informations supplémentaires

Emplacement de la documentation

City of Vancouver Heritage Conservation Program

Réfère à une collection

Identificateur féd./prov./terr.

DhRs-448

Statut

Édité

Inscriptions associées

s/o

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