The "Worst Street" in North America

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Something serious is going on there right now.

Cops had a building surrounded by swat earlier on in the late afternoon. Apparently there have been a lot of cops wandering the block all day/evening. I just saw a cell phone video and there are 3 ambulances and something like 2 dozen police cars parked up and down the block with everyone knowing something bad happened, or is happening, but no one knows what exactly. Who knows, maybe a hostage situation even ?

In another part of town about a 15-20 minute drive away, Vancouver police shot and killed a man on the Granville Street Bridge. That'll be investigated like crazy for sure. I guess there was someone acting erratically on the bridge, cops attended.. I'm guessing the guy threatened cops for them to shoot him dead. Probably unrelated to what's going on on Hastings street right now.

Every time I see breaking news on all this stuff, or another body found dead of an overdose, I can't help but think about my good friend and Hope he's not involved in any of these things. Hard to know when I don't hear from him for several weeks at a time - it's been about 5 weeks now. Also concerned for everyone else I know that lives/works anywhere nearby, too. But the probability it's someone I know is low, just like every time there's a motorcycle fatality - and there have been a LOT over the last few years.. I haven't known any of them. But still, I worry a bit.


Oh, and the guy that I moved a bed to this area for that was gonna go live aboard a boat is now staying in this hood because another friend of ours F'd it all up by sneaking into the marina at night to sleep on the boat.. got caught by the marina owners so they told the lot of them to F off and stay away for the most part. That drunk a-hole that already had that job offer and lived aboard that exact boat just couldn't stay away after he was kicked out of there a year ago.. and now he F'd up a better living situation and a job for someone that isn't a chronic drunk a-hole. At least the guy got an upgraded room and additional work in the hood, I guess.


edit: Scrolled down the comments on the video and it said there were only 3 cop cars left, most had gone now. No shots fired and one comment posted said that they heard someone was killed by someone throwing a frying pan out their window. It is Possible that that is what actually happened.. I mean, stranger things have happened.. and almost anything could happen in that neighbourhood.

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Just saw a FB post from half an hour ago (moderated group, could be a bit older if it wasn't approved to post yet - but it's from Today in broad daylight as it's 3:12pm right now) that someone walked up to someone else in an alley just off this street and shot them 4-5 times in front of cops and then the cops shot the shooter. My guess is it's 2 rival drug dealers. No additional information if either/both died.

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Whoa.. this was a pretty major incident on the street. Read about a young guy falling a few stories out a window when he was evading police, but this follow up article describes how bad his injuries are -> likely to be fatal within the next day or so, and IF he survives he’s going to be blind and paralyzed:

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-new ... -vancouver

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Just parked at the infamous corner of Main & Hastings. Heading just down the block to the Overdose Prevention Society as they’re throwing a birthday party for Smokey D (Smokey Devil) - the City of Vancouver just declared his birthday “Smokey D Day,” @ City Hall a couple days ago. He’s a graffiti artist that’s been painting the DTES for 25 years and his murals literally are the community newspaper/PSA bulletins. Bad drugs, people going missing etc the info is in his murals for all those who don’t have phones or read newspapers.

Met him a couple times, cool guy. Brought him some spray paint and girl guide cookies for his bday. Supporting the arts and all + his community service + one of his painting buddies brokers art from some DTES artists I want to buy pieces from sooo being extra nice so I’m remembered and get first right of refusal to buy paintings when they pop up for sale.

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Whoa.

Smokey D was super appreciative of the bag full of spray paint for his birthday.

Then my acquaintance, Trey, motions for me to go towards the back office.. where I meet legendary local artist Ken Foster. Chatted, took a selfie, bought both of the small paintings he had with him, and then even though he’s notoriously difficult to commission to paint anything.. I made my request for my twin brother’s belated 40th birthday present: a painting of Canada Place on the biggest canvas he has at the moment.

I stuck around and chatted with some people in the street and wander up and down the street on the off chance I might run into my drug addict friend I haven’t heard from for over 2 months.

Then I got a phone call a couple hours later from a woman named Molly representing Ken Foster telling me he’s almost done my painting & will call and meet me at a certain cross street soon. I walked straight there, waited around a while, had a donair and then Molly comes along and confirms I’m there to meet Ken Foster and takes me inside and up to his little “studio space,” (SRO room, but a nice one. This is the nicest SRO hotel building I’ve ever seen!) where the door and then every wall inside have bright paintings all over everything.. he’s sitting in there working on my painting. He asked for a Mountain Dew (he used to paint for slices of pizza I hear, now he can command good money.) and said 10-15 mins.. came back after 15 or so, said 10-15 minutes lol no worries I’ll wait - what he’s painting for me right now is pretty fkn rad and is going to be very well appreciated as a gift. It might even deserve to have some uv protectant glass over it..

Not sure if I can snap a pic of his door or room - definitely not without asking that’s for sure.. as it’s his home/sanctuary/studio space as well as not exactly a penthouse or even condo.. most people wouldn’t want their room photos taken in a place like this - but his is ART and I wish I could share it!

Another 5 or so minutes and I’ll wander back up and check the status. Might have to catch a taxi back to my car lol it’s kinda cold out and I wouldn’t wanna damage this painting walking it several blocks.

So anyways ya this is really cool because now I can contact him via the front desk and leave a message to have him paint other scenes I want in the future.

_________________
No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

It’s pretty rad. I paid $200 for it. I could probably stick it on a gallery wall for 3x+ that if it were for sale. But it’s not.

It’s on a stiff foam backed canvas with a simple black frame that’s a little less than perfect But extremely authentic to the artist & place this art comes from. I might have some fancy uv protective glass added to it depending on cost.

This is definitely going to be one of the coolest gifts I ever give - and I even delivered a really cool late arriving Christmas gift earlier today.. a really nice thick fleece blanket with the ski map of Cypress Mountain printed all over it. It was well received - but this one is Next Level cool.

_________________
No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Here are the two he had on him thought I bought on the spot:


v pic

And this is the one I commissioned that he went home and finished up a bit after midnight like a normal crazy artist:


v pic

Might get some uv protective glass for it. It’s gonna end up on my brother & sisinlaw’s living room wall. (He used to work in an office in that building (Canada Place), and our father worked on its original construction back in the day + it’s just an iconic Vancouver waterfront building.)

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Turns out the guy that died falling from a 3rd floor window is the guy that accidentally killed an overdose prevention worker in a fight a few years ago.

Also, today a tent fire exploded a bunch of propane tanks right beside where I normally park whichever vehicle I drive there - vids:

https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/loca ... de-6728812

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

If we're talking about crime, the street would likely be in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, which has the world's highest homicide rate.

The theatre that got burned at the front is already slated for demolition and redevelopment into housing. Most old theatres in the city are gone or going. This one did have a revitalization years ago but the guy who did it died and it never did get it’s full revitalization completed.

Article: https://vancouversun.com/news/local-new ... de-culture

Best line about another theatre that at one point was going to get a $26M restoration and was then demolished:

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Saw a fb post this morning that no transit buses were entering the area tdy as police were planning something big.. there are a a few video clips on fb and YouTube - dozens of cops doing a full sweep of the block clearing all tents etc full decampment. There’s a vid of an Indigenous drummer standing in front of a line of cops drumming - pretty impactful. (A lot of the local residents are Indigenous, a result of the residential school system etc)

Ok cool.. they mayor wants the city to look better for tourists. But with so many old buildings burned down recently and the only “housing,” offered to people in tents being a bed in a shelter, where do they expect people to go? Even IF there are beds in shelters or rooms in some SRO hotels, many opt to live in tents on the sidewalk because it’s cleaner and safer.

Needs to be some viable option of a place for people to go when the city rolls through with cops and garbage trucks and just sweeps the whole place.

I bet protests and drumming and such carry on all day and through the night. I don’t blame these people one bit for wanting a solution vs being told to shuffle along out of sight or something.

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Apparently they evicted something like 300 people from the street - well, a couple block or so stretch.. and one day later tents are going back up. There are very few shelter spaces available, certainly not 300, more like single to maybe double digits.. and many of those places are not fit for people to live in.

I saw PIVOT legal society was assisting - good. Everyone wants the homeless problem solved, but just stealing their tents and only possessions and shuffling them along is not the answer. I also read that $17k was raised in a day to help some find places to stay, and others to replace tents/sleeping bags/toiletries etc.

It'd be nice if some level of government offered some form of roofs over peoples heads as a solution before they decamp sidewalks. And they wonder why the problem isn't solved..

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

i remember the main drag of south tacoma way, below about 15th street up to 6th avenue, was pretty hairy after dark. i hadda drive through there and i saw a pimp slapping his hooker. very nasty looking fella. i drove past quickly.

Yeah, you’d see that kind of stuff in parts of the DTES. One of the main parks where street hookers hang out around is apparently a no go zone 24/7. It’s pretty much just a grass field, but apparently the people that hang out there are among the sketchiest violent people in the area and are likely to attack and/or rob you. I’ve never stopped there.. just driven past.

_________________
No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

I’ve met this award winning journalist a few times hanging out at fires at the beach. She was down there on the block reporting during the decampment. Obviously the purpose was to try to reclaim appearances for tourists, but there are no actual housing solutions for these people and tents are already going back up:

_________________
No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

i hope they don't go all fascist on y'all and start putting 'em in concentration camps like many righties here clamor for.