Collingwood
Neighbourhood Market Profile

Collingwood is an ethnically diverse, family-oriented community at the east edge of Vancouver, with many new Canadians.¹ The area is comprised of proportionately more residents with Chinese, East Indian and Filipino heritage than the City of Vancouver. Chinese is the dominant household language for area residents, with significantly more Chinese-speaking residents than average for the city or the GVRD. Many other languages are commonly heard in the area, including Punjabi, Tagalog (Filipino), Vietnamese and Hindi.

Household sizes in the area are larger than the City and the GVRD average, with more married couples and more children per household. Collingwood is a place where people establish roots, with more homeowners and fewer migrants in the past five years than average for the city. The area is primarily comprised of single-detached dwellings, higher than average for than the City. Recent redevelopment of high-rise condominiums and town homes near the Expo SkyTrain line has increased density while maintaining the area’s community atmosphere.

Collingwood is a working neighbourhood. Residents of the area have lower education levels and lower household incomes than average for the City of Vancouver and the GVRD. Residents of Collingwood are also less likely to be engaged in the workforce because of the higher than average number of children and seniors. The area has a higher percentage of lone-parent families as well as a higher proportion of new Canadians.

Collingwood residents tend to be proportionately more employed in sales and service positions as well in processing, manufacturing and utilities related industries. There are also a significant number of residents employed in business, finance and administrative positions and in trades, transport and equipment and related positions.

^{1. For the purposes of this study, the residential catchment area is defined as the geographic area between 22nd Avenue (north), Boundary Road (east) 45th Avenue (south) and Slocan Street (west).}

About the BIA

The Collingwood Business Improvement Area (BIA) runs along Kingsway from Rupert Street to Boundary Road (see Figure 1). The BIA comprises 349 businesses and approximately 5,761 employees. Its primary residential base1 comprises over 34,600 residents.

The Collingwood Commercial Area Profile focuses on key market information including zoning and development potential as well as business and employee mix.

This report provides an overview of the Collingwood neighbourhood market, focusing primarily on population, household and spending statistics.²

^{2. Unless otherwise stated, statistics used in this report come from Statistics Canada’s 2001 Census data. Census data is copyrighted material and any reproduction without prior approval is prohibited.}

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Fast Facts

• BIA size: 17 blocks; residential area size: 20.3 hectares

• 34,672 residents and a daytime employee base of 5,761, including 2,400 within the BIA itself.

• Population density per sq km: 64, as compared with 48 for Vancouver and 7 for the GVRD.

• A working neighbourhood, residents are employed primarily in sales and service as well as business, finance and administrative positions. Higher than average employment in trades and manufacturing positions.

• A family-oriented area, average household sizes are higher than average: 3.0 people, as compared with 2.3 for Vancouver and 2.6 for GVRD.

• Projected average 2005 household income: $54,880 as compared with $64,889 and $68,853 for Vancouver and the GVRD respectively.

• Average house price: $496,886 for detached home (as compared with $522,979 in Vancouver East and $576,417 in the GVRD). Average price for apartment/condo: $238,766 (vs. $230,574 for Vancouver East and $282,079 for the GVRD.

• Dominant language: Chinese (44% list as primary spoken language). Also greater proportion of Hindi and Punjabi than average for Vancouver.

• A place for people to establish roots, 59% of households are homeowners (vs. 44% for Vancouver).

• 17% of residents have moved within the past year, as compared with 20% for Vancouver and 16% for the GVRD.

• New Canadians: 13% international migrants in the past 5 years, which is higher than the City of Vancouver average of 11% and the GVRD average of 9%.

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Physical Profile

The Collingwood BIA lies at the eastern edge of the City of Vancouver, approximately 6 kilometres from City Hall and 7 kilometres from downtown.³ The BIA is a retail and commercial area along Kingsway Avenue comprised of Commercial District Zoning: C-2 and some Comprehensive Development Zoning: CD-1. Primarily comprised of older developments, the BIA has seen some new development in the past 10 years.

^{3. Source: City of Vancouver VanMap.}

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Heritage and Culture

The BIA has one structure listed on the Vancouver Heritage Register – 3250 Kingsway Avenue (Sir Guy Carleton Elementary School). Three others (all private homes) are in close proximity. The BIA is home to one city art project – Hands Across the Heights on Rupert Street.

Recreation

The Collingwood Library is located just west of the BIA at 2985 Kingsway Avenue. Several parks, including off-leash dog parks are within walking distance, as is the Killarney Community Centre (6200 Killarney Street).

Education

There are two elementary schools within the BIA – Sir Guy Carleton Elementary School at 3250 Kingsway Avenue and Collingwood Neighbourhood School at 3417 Euclid Avenue. Killarney Secondary is about 1 kilometre south of Kingsway and Joyce.

Transportation

The Collingwood BIA is easily accessible by vehicle. The BIA is also well served by frequent transit service. The #19 – Metrotown Stn/Stanley Park runs along Kingsway, and the Joyce Station stop for the Expo Line SkyTrain is just north of the BIA, providing convenient service to New Westminster, Surrey, Burnaby and Waterfront Station. Buses along Joyce Street link the BIA to UBC, Brentwood Mall, Kootenay Loop and Capilano College (North Shore). The Sunrise Bikeway and Eastside Greenway runs north-south along Earles Street five blocks west of the BIA. The BC Parkway Bikeway/Greenway runs east-west along Vanness Avenue five blocks north of the BIA, and the Ridgeway Bikeway/Greenway runs east-west along East 45th Avenue to the north.

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Key Population Indicators

Population

With a total population of 34,672,⁴ the Collingwood BIA neighbourhood is comprised of 49% men and 51% women – the same as the typical gender profile for the City of Vancouver. A family neighbourhood, Collingwood has proportionately more middle-aged adults, children and seniors than the City of Vancouver overall, and significantly fewer young-adults aged 20 to 34. The average age for Collingwood residents is 36.2 years as compared with 38.4 for Vancouver and 37.1 for the GVRD. The dominant age range in Collingwood is 5-19 years. Figure 2 illustrates key differences between the BIA and the City and the Region. Between 2001 and 2005, Collingwood saw 3% population growth, on par with the 3% increase for Vancouver and 5% for the GVRD.⁵

^{4. 22nd Avenue (north), Boundary Road (east) 45th Avenue (south) and Slocan Street (west).}

^{5. Statistics Canada: adjusted five year forecast (2005). All other statistics are 2001.}

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Ethnic Origin

Ethnic origin refers to the culture or ethnic roots with which residents identify themselves. In Collingwood, the top 5 ethnic origins in order are Chinese, East Indian, Canadian, Filipino and English. The presence of East Indian and Filipino ancestry, and absence of Scottish and Irish ancestry within the top five origins is significantly different than the ethnic mix for Vancouver and the GVRD. Figure 3 illustrates key differences between Collingwood residents’ general geographic origins as compared with Vancouver and the GVRD. As illustrated, Collingwood’s strong East/Southeast Asian heritage (63%), primarily Chinese (49%) is significantly higher than for Vancouver (40%/30%) or GVRD (25%/18%). Correspondingly, significantly fewer Collingwood residents have European, British or Canadian ancestry than either the city the region.

The Collingwood population base is more stable than average for the City. Only 17% of Collingwood residents have moved in the past year as compared with 20% for Vancouver and 16% for the GVRD. Most have moved from elsewhere in the City (11%); however, about 13% of Collingwood residents are new Canadians, having immigrated in the past five years. This is higher than the migration rate for the City (11%) and GVRD (9%).

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Spoken Languages

Chinese is the dominant household language with residents in Collingwood, rather than English as in the City and the GVRD. Collingwood also exhibits differences in non-official spoken languages with proportionately more Hindi and proportionately less German, Korean and Spanish, as illustrated in Figure 4.

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Level of Education

A working neighbourhood, Collingwood residents tend to have lower education levels than average for the City or the Region. Only 54% of people 20 years and older have some form of post-secondary education, as compared with 68% of Vancouver and 66% of GVRD residents. However, many Collingwood residents are attending school. As Figure 5 illustrates, the population aged 15-24 is as likely as their City counterparts and more likely than their regional counterparts to be attending school, particularly on a full-time basis.

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Household Income

Collingwood households have lower annual income levels than average for Vancouver or the GVRD. This may in part be reflective of the fact that in Collingwood there are more lone-parent households (19% as compared with 17% for the City of Vancouver and 15% for the GVRD), lower education levels (see above) and a greater percentage of “new” Canadians. Figure 6 illustrates the income profile for Collingwood residents as compared with the city and region. As can be seen, Collingwood has fewer households with annual income levels at the high end of the scale (21% as compared with 26% for Vancouver and 33% for the GVRD). However, importantly, there are also fewer households than the City average at the lower end of the income scale.

Average 2001 household income levels in Collingwood were $49,363 as compared with $57,916 for Vancouver and $63,003 for the GVRD. Projected 2005 income levels are $54,880. Comparisons between Collingwood and the rest of the region are summarized in Figure 7.

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Occupation

Reflecting the higher percentage of seniors than average, a lower percentage of Collingwood residents are in the labour force – 62% of the population 15-years of age and over is in the labour force, which is lower than the labour force participation rate in Vancouver (65%) and the GVRD (66%). The employment rate is also lower (57%) as compared to Vancouver (60%) and the GVRD (61%); the unemployment rate is the same for all three at 5%.

The top 5 occupations for Collingwood residents are:

• other sales and service

• clerical occupations

• machine operators in manufacturing

• chefs and cooks

• professional occupations

A higher share of Collingwood residents are employed in sales and service positions as well as processing, manufacturing and utilities jobs positions than average for the City and region. Proportionately fewer Collingwood residents are employed in management, social science, education, government and religion positions as well as health occupations and art, culture, recreation and sport positions. This is illustrated in more detail in Figure 8.

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Family Structure

Collingwood is home to 11,353 households.⁶ Of these, 9,360 or 82% are families, a significantly higher proportion than for Vancouver (57%) and the GVRD (71%). Collingwood households with families are larger than Vancouver and GVRD averages for size and number of children as Figure 9 illustrates.

Perhaps a cultural reflection of its family-oriented and ethnic mix, Collingwood is also home to proportionately more married couples than for the City of Vancouver, and correspondingly fewer common-law couples. However, it also has a higher percentage of lone-parent families than both the City and the region, as illustrated in Figure 10.

^{6. Family is defined as a census family - a married couple, a common-law couple or a lone-parent with a child or youth who is under the age of 25 and who does not have his or her own spouse or child living in the household. Married couples and common-law couples may or may not have such children and youth living with them.}

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Housing Profile

Structural Mix

Collingwood has significantly more single-detached residences than average for the City of Vancouver (41% as compared with 28%). However, as with the city, apartment-type dwellings are the most common type of residence in Collingwood (56%). Figure 11 illustrates.

Densification of the residential area around Joyce SkyTrain station, with several high-rise structures along Vanness Avenue is helping to increase the residential base for the BIA.

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Tenure

Perhaps reflecting that Collingwood is a place where people establish roots, the majority of Collingwood households (59%) own their home. This is significantly higher than the proportion of homeowners in the City of Vancouver (44%) and on par with the GVRD (61%).

There are five non-market housing complexes within the BIA: Alberni Co-op, Synala Co-op, Pacific Park Place Co-op, HW Flesher Coop and Odd Fellow Manor.⁷ Several others are in close proximity.

^{7. Source: City of Vancouver VanMap.}

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Age of Housing Stock

In part reflecting the significant increase in development of high-rise apartment/condominium towers along the SkyTrain route over the past 20 years, Collingwood homes are proportionately younger than typical for the City of Vancouver, with significantly fewer pre-1946 homes and significantly more 1991 and newer homes (see Figure 12).

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Housing Prices

Detached housing prices in the Collingwood residential area are lower than average for the east side of Vancouver, while prices for apartments are slightly higher.⁸ The 2005 average price for a detached house in Collingwood was $496,886 as compared with $522,979 in Vancouver East and $576,417 in the GVRD. The one-year average increase in Collingwood was 19.8% as compared with 21.6% for Vancouver East and 18.5% for the GVRD. The average 2005 price for an apartment/condo in Collingwood was $238,766, compared with $230,574 for Vancouver East and $282,079 for the GVRD. The one-year average increase for Collingwood apartments was 27.4% as compared with 24.6% for Vancouver East and 19.7% for the GVRD.

^{8. Housing price information courtesy of the Real Estate Board of Vancouver.}

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Spending Patterns

Reflecting their lower household income levels than the City and the GVRD, Collingwood households spend less per year than the average Vancouver and GVRD household. In 2005, Collingwood households averaged $54,215 in household spending as compared with $62,536 for City of Vancouver and $65,917 for GVRD households.

On a percentage basis Collingwood residents spend more than Vancouver and GVRD households on basics such as food, transportation and health and personal care. They spend significantly less on taxes, as well as less than their regional and city counterparts on recreation and “other,” such as clothing, tobacco and alcohol, as illustrated in Figure 13.

Figure 14 provides a complete breakdown of average 2005 spending per Collingwood household.

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Conclusions

Commercial businesses catering to ethnically diverse and larger, family-oriented households will find a solid market base in the Collingwood BIA. The commercial zoning in the area, which caters to a wide range of goods and services requiring central locations to serve large neighbourhoods, provides for significant business potential in this area.

Due to the high rate of home ownership, and growing residential base, the Collingwood residential base provides a solid market for businesses locating here.

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