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The University Endowment Lands (also known as University Hill or the UEL) is an unincorporated community immediately west of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. While not within Vancouver city limits and not controlled by the City of Vancouver, it is commonly referred to as part of Vancouver in casual conversation (for example, Canada Post uses Vancouver for UEL addresses).

Residents of the University Endowment Lands are considered to reside in neither the University of British Columbia (UBC) nor Vancouver. They live on Crown land and pay their taxes directly to the Provincial Government. There was a referendum in the mid 1990s, in which the residents chose to have no municipal governing body.

Geography

The University Endowment Lands are located immediately west of the City of Vancouver. About half of the UEL is made up of Pacific Spirit Regional Park, a mostly forested land that was originally set aside for development which never materialized. Located on Point Grey, the UEL also boasts tall cliffs near the water, with steep drops of approximately 70 metres down to the beaches below.

Because of its isolated location and the nature of the steep cliffs next to the beaches, Greater Vancouver's only nude beach is located in the University Endowment Lands, in a place known as Wreck Beach, located near the western tip of the peninsula.

Climate

Because the UEL is close to seaside cliffs and the Strait of Georgia, above-average winds are common. Most of the winds come from the Strait itself, Howe Sound and the Burrard Inlet.

Snowfalls are also more common than many parts of the City of Vancouver because of the area's higher altitude and the lack of an urban heat island due to less terrestrial development.

The UEL enjoys higher humidity compared to other parts of Greater Vancouver due to the fact that it is surrounded on three sides by water. Fog is common in the winter months, especially in areas near Pacific Spirit Park and the water.

History

The creation of the University Endowment Lands was first proposed after the passing of the University Endowment Act of 1907, in which the British Columbia provincial government agreed to set aside two million acres (8,000 km²) of British Columbia Crown land to be sold or leased to fund the creation of a university. This land was to be in the Cariboo region of the province's interior, which consisted of mostly agricultural land. This idea was changed in 1911 when the provincial government passed the University Site Act, which set aside 175 acres in Point Grey for the university. This is where the UEL is located today.

By 1920, it was realized that the Cariboo land did not have a high enough market value to generate the income needed for the university, so that idea was abandoned. This led to the British Columbia University Loan Act, which allowed the Lieutenant-Governor to sell 30 km² of Crown land on Point Grey for residential development. The money from the auction was put in the University Endowment Account for the university. *

However, a lot of the development that was planned was halted due to economic hardships stemming from the Great Depression. The university could not afford to prepare the land for development or to clear the forest land for development. In the 1930s, the university returned control of the land to the government. By the mid-1950s, over half of the undeveloped land in the UEL remained undeveloped due to the Depression and war shortages in the 1940s.

There have been many attempts to develop this land, which was then opposed by environmentally-aware residents in the area. In 1988, the creation of Pacific Spirit Park was announced by the provincial Premier Bill Vander Zalm. The park currently makes up of over half of the UEL, acting as a greenbelt between the developed areas and the City of Vancouver. Development, in large part, is very limited -- for any proposed developments in the UEL by the Greater Vancouver Regional District or the University of British Columbia, the following groups must be consulted beforehand: university students, university staff, university faculty, environmental groups, businesses, residents and the general public. *

Demographics

The University Endowment Lands' residential population is small and the non-university population includes mostly high-income professionals as the land there is very expensive. The other residents are mostly students living in the university's residences. The daytime university population is around 40,000 and includes undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty and staff. As with most universities, diverse cultural and ethnic groups make up the daytime university population, making the UEL very multicultural.

Government and politics

An unincorporated entity, the UEL has no mayor or municipal government. Rather, it is mostly ruled by the University of British Columbia, the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) and the Province of British Columbia, and they control three entities: the University of British Columbia, University Hill and Pacific Spirit Regional Park. It is part of Electoral Area A of the GVRD.

Residential and commercial taxes are paid directly to the provincial government as the UEL is Crown land.

For provincial elections, the UEL falls under the Vancouver-Point Grey electoral riding. Its current Member of the Legislative Assembly is Gordon Campbell, who is also the current Premier of the province.

For federal elections, the UEL is in the Vancouver Quadra electoral riding. Its current Member of Parliament is Stephen Owen.

Transportation

Pacific Spirit Regional Park, at the eastern end of the Endowment Lands, creates a physical buffer between the University and the adjacent Vancouver neighbourhoods of West Point Grey and Dunbar. Because of this, there are only five roads leading from Vancouver into the UEL: North West Marine Drive, 4th Avenue/Chancellor Boulevard, 10th Avenue/University Boulevard, 16th Avenue, and South West Marine Drive.

However, the large number of students and staff commuting to UBC on a daily basis means that the area is easily accessible by public transit. UBC is the western terminus of many TransLink bus routes, and the bus system is heavily used due to a discount bus pass system called U-Pass. The following routes service the UEL and UBC:

The C20 and C22 Community Shuttle routes, serving the campus and the UEL, will commence operation on September 4, 2006.

An additional B-Line bus rapid transit route has also been proposed from UBC to Joyce Station, replacing the current #43 UBC/Joyce Station. The Vancouver-UBC Area Transit Plan indicates that service would start in late 2009, to coincide with the opening of the Canada Line. There have also been several proposals for creating a rapid transit link to the university. The most likely candidate for such a service would involve extending the Millennium Line SkyTrain to Granville or Arbutus Street in Vancouver, with a B-Line route continuing on to UBC.

See also: List of bus routes in Greater Vancouver

Economy

The UEL is largely a residential neighbourhood, and most economic activity is centred at the University of British Columbia and the area around University Village and University Marketplace. UBC's stores are located mostly in the Student Union Building ("the SUB"). The Village and Marketplace, located next to each other near the intersection of University Boulevard and Allison Road, are located off-campus and home to a food court, several restaurants, some shops, some medical clinics and some services. This is the only commercial area outside of the UBC campus in the UEL.

In addition to the locations above, there are small cafeterias and cafes located in certain buildings on the UBC campus.

There are also several museums and performing arts theatres on campus, including the Belkin Art Gallery, the Museum of Anthropology, the Fredric Wood Theatre, the Chan Centre and the Morris Art Gallery.

The eastern end of the UEL is home to the University Golf Course, which is one of the original developments in the non-campus portions of the UEL.

While not economically-driven (due to free admission), Wreck Beach is also a popular area for locals and tourists alike due to its reputation as one of the largest clothing optional beaches in North America.

Commercial centres

University Village
The University Village is the first commercial structure built on the UEL. Its main level mostly includes a convenience store, a McDonald's restaurant and a photocopying store.

The second level is home to a Japanese restaurant, a salon, a pizza parlour and a discount textbook store (which is in direct competition with UBC Bookstore, located on campus).

The basement level is entirely dedicated to a multicultural-themed food court. Cuisines from Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam, India, Hong Kong, the Middle East and China are available there, among others..

University Marketplace
The University Marketplace * is a mixed commercial-residential structure completed around the late 1990s to the early 2000s. The main floor is home to Rogers Wireless, Staples Business Depot, a provincial liquor store, Starbucks Coffee, several restaurants, some cafes and others.

The second floor of the Marketplace contains mostly offices and medical clinics. Some professors from UBC (especially those in the medical field) have offices located there, likely due to the proximity of the science buildings and UBC Hospital.

The upper floors of the Marketplace contain mostly residential apartment housing.

Student Union Building (SUB)

The SUB is home to most of the student clubs at UBC, as well as UBC Food Services (which include fast food services such as A&W and Starbucks Coffee), a Travel Cuts location, a salon, a pub and other student services. It is owned and operated by the University of British Columbia Alma Mater Society.

Film industry

Because many films require university scenes, the UBC/UEL area is a desirable filming location. Combined with the fact that the Vancouver area is the third-largest film production centre in North America, this has made UBC a popular location for many productions. Production companies that wish to shoot on-campus must pay a fee to the university, which goes to the film and theatre departments.

Some notable movies and television shows shot in the UEL include:

  • The Exorcism of Emily Rose: UBC's MacMillan Building as the courthouse, Kenny Building as the dorm and Buchanan Building
  • 88 Minutes: UBC's Koerner Library area
  • Taken: UBC's General Services Administration Building for hostage scenes
  • Try Seventeen: UBC's Chan Centre for student orientation scenes
  • She's the Man: UBC's Thunderbird Stadium for soccer stadium scenes
  • The Butterfly Effect: Koerner Library area, Room 100 of the UBC Geography Building as the lecture hall
  • Wind Chill: UBC's Main Mall
  • The 4400: Chan Centre as "The 4400 Center," University Marketplace
  • Antitrust: Chan Centre
  • Smallville: Koerner and Main Libraries, for exteriors

Education

The UEL is home to the University of British Columbia (hence the name "University Endowment Lands"), the Vancouver School of Theology and Regent College.

In addition, the UEL is served by the Vancouver School Board and is zoned to University Hill Secondary School and University Hill Elementary School.

Sports

Most of the UEL's sports activities and facilities are located on the UBC campus. UBC's sports teams are called the UBC Thunderbirds and they play at various locations on campus, including War Memorial Gym, Thunderbird Stadium, UBC Aquatic Centre and Thunderbird Winter Sports Centre. The Student Recreation Centre (REC) is home to intramural sports for students.

2010 Winter Olympics

For the 2010 Winter Olympics, the Thunderbird Winter Sports Centre will be replaced by a newer building, named the UBC Winter Sports Centre. The new structure will house three ice rinks, with the main rink accommodating 6,650 spectators. Demolition of the old arena began April 2006 and the building is expected to be completed by April 2008. After the Olympics, the building will serve as a recreational facility, with classrooms and research laboratories *.

Policing and public safety

Unlike neighbouring Vancouver, which is under the Vancouver Police Department, the UEL is under the jurisdiction of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), under the University detachment of British Columbia The UBC campus is mainly policed by [http://www.security.ubc.ca UBC Campus Security but the RCMP still has jurisdiction.

The UEL is, however, served by the Vancouver Fire Department and Vancouver ambulance services (in addition to those provided by UBC Hospital).

See also

External links

Surrounding municipalities

Communities in British Columbia | University Endowment Lands, British Columbia | Unincorporated settlements in British Columbia

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "University Endowment Lands".

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