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Save Kogawa House Committee (2005)
November 3, 2005
This afternoon Vancouver City Council voted
unanimously to grant an unprecedented 120-day delay of
demolition for 1450 West 64th Avenue, the childhood
home of author Joy Kogawa.
The present home owner bought the house in 2003,
unaware that the Save Kogawa Homestead committee was
trying to raise funds to turn the house into a
writers' retreat. The owner has now decided to
demolish and rebuild on the site, prompting the now
renamed Save Kogawa House committee to action,
soliciting support from writing and arts organizations
across the country.
Gerry McGeough, senior heritage planner in the
Vancouver City Planning Department, was instrumental
in bringing the motion before city council. He stated
that the 1915 house could be registered as Class A
heritage because of its cultural value and local and
national prominence.
Todd Wong and Ann-Marie Metten led the committee's
presentation to council, with additional presentations
from Diane Switzer of the Vancouver Heritage
Foundation, Heather Redfern of the Alliance for Arts
and Culture, and Marion Quednau of the Writers' Union
of Canada, demonstrating the wide local and national
support across Canada to preserve the house,
Kogawa, received the Order of Canada in 1986 and her
novel Obasan is school curriculum across Canada and
studied around the world. The novel was also chosen as
the Vancouver Public Library's One Book One Vancouver
selection for 2005. An operatic adaptation of the
children's story, Naomi's Road, is now touring BC
schools with the Vancouver Opera in the Schools
program.
Joy Kogawa arrived via car and ferry from a
performance of Naomi's Road in Ucuelet, BC, just in
time to read from her novel Obasan. Kogawa had only
left City Hall on Tuesday, November 1st, which had
been proclaimed "Obasan Cherry Tree Day";, as a graft
from the cherry tree from Kogawa's childhood home was
planted at City Hall.
Council was so moved by the presentation that
Councillor Raymond Louie immediately challenged other
councillors to pull out their wallets and match his
$100 donation. Councillor Ellen Woodsworth wrote an
equivalent cheque and said council would challenge
other city councils to match their donations as well.
At the end of the meeting, the committee walked out of
council chambers $540 richer.
An estimated $750,000 is needed to purchase the house
from the owner at "fair market value."; McGeough has
been mediating with the house owner and the Save
Kogawa House committee, and the 120-day delay will
give the committee time to fundraise this amount.
Charitable donations can be made online through the
Vancouver Heritage Foundation website at
http://www.vancouverheritagefoundation.org/Kogawa.html.
To celebrate this milestone in the Save Kogawa House
campaign, a performance of the opera Naomi's Road by
the Vancouver Opera Touring Ensemble will be presented
free to the public on November 12 at 2 pm. It will
take place in the Alice MacKay Room of the Vancouver
Public Library downtown. Special guest musician is
Harry Aoki, who was interned at age 20.
This afternoon Vancouver City Council voted
unanimously to grant an unprecedented 120-day delay of
demolition for 1450 West 64th Avenue, the childhood
home of author Joy Kogawa.
The present home owner bought the house in 2003,
unaware that the Save Kogawa Homestead committee was
trying to raise funds to turn the house into a
writers' retreat. The owner has now decided to
demolish and rebuild on the site, prompting the now
renamed Save Kogawa House committee to action,
soliciting support from writing and arts organizations
across the country.
Gerry McGeough, senior heritage planner in the
Vancouver City Planning Department, was instrumental
in bringing the motion before city council. He stated
that the 1915 house could be registered as Class A
heritage because of its cultural value and local and
national prominence.
Todd Wong and Ann-Marie Metten led the committee's
presentation to council, with additional presentations
from Diane Switzer of the Vancouver Heritage
Foundation, Heather Redfern of the Alliance for Arts
and Culture, and Marion Quednau of the Writers' Union
of Canada, demonstrating the wide local and national
support across Canada to preserve the house,
Kogawa, received the Order of Canada in 1986 and her
novel Obasan is school curriculum across Canada and
studied around the world. The novel was also chosen as
the Vancouver Public Library's One Book One Vancouver
selection for 2005. An operatic adaptation of the
children's story, Naomi's Road, is now touring BC
schools with the Vancouver Opera in the Schools
program.
Joy Kogawa arrived via car and ferry from a
performance of Naomi's Road in Ucuelet, BC, just in
time to read from her novel Obasan. Kogawa had only
left City Hall on Tuesday, November 1st, which had
been proclaimed "Obasan Cherry Tree Day";, as a graft
from the cherry tree from Kogawa's childhood home was
planted at City Hall.
Council was so moved by the presentation that
Councillor Raymond Louie immediately challenged other
councillors to pull out their wallets and match his
$100 donation. Councillor Ellen Woodsworth wrote an
equivalent cheque and said council would challenge
other city councils to match their donations as well.
At the end of the meeting, the committee walked out of
council chambers $540 richer.
An estimated $750,000 is needed to purchase the house
from the owner at "fair market value."; McGeough has
been mediating with the house owner and the Save
Kogawa House committee, and the 120-day delay will
give the committee time to fundraise this amount.
Charitable donations can be made online through the
Vancouver Heritage Foundation website at
http://www.vancouverheritagefoundation.org/Kogawa.html.
To celebrate this milestone in the Save Kogawa House
campaign, a performance of the opera Naomi's Road by
the Vancouver Opera Touring Ensemble will be presented
free to the public on November 12 at 2 pm. It will
take place in the Alice MacKay Room of the Vancouver
Public Library downtown. Special guest musician is
Harry Aoki, who was interned at age 20.
Submitted on November 4, 2005 in By David.
