Vancouver mayor visits Chinatown fire site: ‘It’s really disappointing’

After the exterior of the Chinese Cultural Centre in Vancouver’s Chinatown neighbourhood was charred in a fire on Sunday, the city’s mayor paid a visit to the site the following day.

Ken Sim took in some of the damage seen at the rear of the building on East Pender Street near Columbia Street, saying he feels for the community.

“It’s really disappointing,” he said in an interview with OMNI News. “The fact that we have to deal with this crap, it’s terrible.”

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On Sunday afternoon, Vancouver Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) says crews were called to the building after noticing smoke coming from the rear of the cultural centre’s building. Although the cause of the fire has yet to be determined, crews said Sunday it was “suspicious.”

“It’s terrible for the community. It sends a lot of the wrong signals to the community and it scares the community,” Sim said on Monday.

The Chinatown fire was one of many reported in the city during a short period of time, with VFRS saying there were nearly 100 reported over the weekend.

When asked if the city is doing enough to address the increase in fires, whether from arson or accidental blazes set by people trying to stay warm, Sim said “obviously not.”

“We have to do a lot more. It’s not just a city thing, it’s a provincial and federal thing and we’ve been working on it since we were elected,” the mayor said.

“We need to deal with these things in an empathetic way but we need to address them because things won’t get better until we do.”

Sim added that there are still plans on establishing an office in Chinatown in an effort to revitalize the neighbourhood, adding there will also be enhanced patrols from police and support from incoming mental health nurses.

Fred Kwok, Board Chair for the Chinese Cultural Centre, says the damage to the building is around $100,000, mostly to the exterior. Most of the damage, he says, was to office supplies.

The charred remains of some office materials at the back of the Chinese Cultural Centre building after a fire Sunday night. (CityNews Image)

While the police investigation into the cause of the fire is still ongoing, Kwok says he thinks it was started intentionally.

“I think in a way, this place is targeted. If that is related to hate crimes, I can not tell you,” he said.

-With files from OMNI News, Michael Williams, Emily Marsten and Astrid Agbayani