Is the downtown core declining? More than half of BC residents polled think so

Aug 12 2022, 6:22 pm

A new survey is revealing the declining perception Canadians have of their city’s downtown core which can be a contributing factor to how people are feeling about returning to the office. 

About 45% of Canadians that responded to a Leger poll said the state of the downtown core closest to where they live has declined in the last year. When Leger broke down how people in each province felt, British Columbians had the second worst perception of their city’s downtown core. 

In BC, more than half believe the area significantly declined. 

Leger/Screenshot

The survey comes as several high-profile stranger attacks have made headlines in downtown Vancouver in recent months, including several machete attacks and in one incident, a man setting another woman on fire.

Respondents from BC said mental health challenges for vulnerable populations, homelessness, rising crime, lack of security, drug addiction, and lack of cleanliness, contributed to how safe they feel in the area. 

Leger/Screenshot

According to Leger, in the past six months, 22% of BC respondents said they or a close friend or family member feared for their safety, 18% experienced aggressive behaviour, and 16% said they were victims of petty theft. 

However, most respondents (61%) said they would not consider themselves to be victims.

Leger/Screenshot

How do British Columbians feel about returning to the office?

After the pandemic forced many businesses to shift to work from home, many employees have now gotten used to working remotely. 

However, they are now being pushed to grapple with getting back to life as it was before the pandemic — which includes heading back to the office. 

Those polled in the Leger survey said if there were mandated to return to the office full-time in the near future, 43% of people from BC said they would return, 32% said they would return but would look for another job, and 11% said they would quit immediately. 

The Leger survey was conducted from August 5 to 7 this year.

About 1,500 Canadians who were 18 years old or older were randomly recruited from LEO’s online panel.

Leger says, “A margin of error cannot be associated with a non-probability sample in a panel survey. For comparison, a probability sample of 1,509 respondents would have a margin of error of ±2.52%, 19 times out of 20, while a probability sample of 1,002 respondents would have a margin of error of ±3.09%, 19 times out of 20.”

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