After 11 years of bringing you local reporting, the team behind the Vancouver Observer has moved on to Canada's National Observer. You can follow Vancouver culture reporting over there from now on. Thank you for all your support over the years!

Susan Main

Where will the children play in my neighbourhood?

A neighbourhood school–Laura Secord–is trying to win votes for a new playground. About 9,000 kids in the area would be served by the new playground, including an estimated 350 children with disabiliti

Larry Skopnik, wheelchair-bound Commercial Drive hero, foils robbery (VIDEO)

It's all caught on surveillance camera and talked about in different languages around the world. A guy from my neighbourhood, Larry Skopnik, stopped a would-be robber from assaulting a store clerk on

East Van pilot project: on-street bike racks

Bike corrals are used in Portland, Montreal, Ottawa, Seattle, and other major cities throughout the world – and now we have our first one in Vancouver. It's on the South-East corner of Commercial Driv

Rain party at Italian Day on Commercial Drive

Rain did not stop the party today on Commercial Drive. It was the first Italian Day since 1982, and the streets were closed from Grandview to Venables.

Bike to Trout Lake Farmers Market for smooth valet parking

Next time you shop at Trout Lake Farmer's market, consider going by bike. Parking for cars is  tight around the market, but if you come on two wheels, Geoffrey Vincent will set you up with a...

Youth take over the Cultch during IGNITE! festival

Last night my son and I went to the IGNITE! Youth Festival at the Cultch – and I was truly surprised by how good it was. The entire thing was created by youth (13 to 24) including writing, performing,

Security Fences Come Down

This worker in this photograph was taking down an Olympics security fence around Trout Lake. The southwest corner of Trout Lake park has been inaccessible since before the Olympics.

Vancouver Freaks Out After Canada Wins Gold Medal Against U.S. in Olympic Hockey

Wooooo! Honk honk honk! Yeahhhhhhhhhhh! Even 20 minutes after Canada beat the U.S. 3 – 2 in overtime – the freaking out continued. On Twitter, a woman reported her husband's tears were dripping into h

Missing Women’s Memorial March today in Vancouver

It’s not a protest and it’s not connected with the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. It’s an annual memorial march for the missing and murdered women of the downtown eastside neighbourhood – the same area...

Mad Dog Opens Big Can of City Dog Food in Vancouver

Mad Dog’s “golden castle” is a replica of a Strathcona home that in today’s market sells for a million dollars and is renovated and fortified with bars that keep out robbers on drugs.