Over the past number of years Concert has been planning for a mixed-use, master-planned community on its twelve-acre waterfront site known as Harbourside in the City of North Vancouver that will entail new retail, office as well as rental and condominium homes. Planning is underway for phase one of the development and Concert is proud to be concurrently spearheading a unique initiative that will bring more people down to the site to help jump start the creation of an authentic ‘sense of place’.
Concert has worked with Chris Jerome, the creative mastermind behind the wildly-popular Hawkers Market series of foodie events in Vancouver, to create something unique to Harbourside known as Hawkers Wharf. Inspired by the growing demand for artisanal food within the Lower Mainland, Hawkers Wharf will serve as an incubator for local food-based businesses, drawing visitors from across the North Shore and beyond. The initiative will provide these businesses with commissary kitchen space, a platform for food sales to the public as well as food-related special events. Concert will be making a significant investment into the infrastructure required for this initiative, including custom fabricated shipping containers and landscape planning that will help transform a currently vacant lot into a vibrant and animated destination.
The Hawkers Wharf initiative ties into the long-term vision for Harbourside as an artisanal food destination. The intention is for a more permanent version of Hawkers Wharf to be integrated within the completed Harbourside development. Furthermore, some of the new retail spaces constructed at Harbourside may one day become occupied by some of the small businesses that became established through Hawkers Wharf. Importantly the initiative will also serve to bring more people down to Harbourside to experience this unique and enviable waterfront location. Perhaps some of these visitors will ultimately find themselves working or living at the new Harbourside one day!
A “Temporary Use Permit” for Hawkers Wharf was approved by the City of North Vancouver in late April. Planning work is now well underway and the public launch of Hawkers Wharf is targeted for spring 2016.