Small business

Current initiatives

There are many initiatives underway with small business components, organized within five key areas:

• City services
• Small business support
• Economic development
• Policies and research
• Engagement

Services

We provide services to small businesses throughout their lifecycle, including permits and licenses.

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  Commercial Renovations Review

  The Commercial Renovation Permit Process Improvement initiative was launched in 2018 as a response to commercial permitting challenges.

  Following consultation with stakeholders, several changes are already underway. A selection of the improvements – most of which are expected to be in place in 2019 – include:

  • Testing a pilot program for simple renovation permits to reduce wait times in the Services Centre
  • Creating an online checklist for simpler renovation permits
  • Providing expected permit wait times to applicants

  View the update provided to Council on January 16, 2019 PDF file (3 MB)

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  Small Business Commercial Renovation Centre

  The centre offers assistance to small business owners who have found a great location, but aren't sure if it’s suitable for their business or can be renovated to meet the needs of their business.

  We offer hands-on support for small business owners who are experiencing difficulty understanding our regulations, permits, and procedures. The centre provides clear and comprehensive direction up-front from our experienced staff to help you make an informed decision about the suitability of a property or the viability of a proposed renovation.

  Learn more about the Small Business Commercial Renovation Centre

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  Engineering and Business Improvement Association (BIA) Partnership Program

  This program connects each BIA with a designated Engineering staff representative, to help the BIAs navigate Engineering Branch processes.

  The first phase of this partnership program was launched in early 2018, and it will be expanded in 2019 to facilitate special engineering-related requests.

  Through the VIVA program, we also partner with the BIAs and community organizations to enliven the city with creative place-making, including pop-up activations and events to support more participation in public life.

Support

We have several initiatives that provide support to small businesses to open, expand, and thrive.

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  Small business guide

  In early 2019, we launched our first small business guide, providing a one-stop online small business resource featuring:

  • Permitting, licensing, and other requirements
  • Other City resources, programs, and touch points affecting small businesses
  • Key resources and supports provided by outside organizations and agencies

  The first guide features information for starting a new business in Vancouver. Future guides will feature operating and expanding.

  Read the small business guide

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  Homelessness and street cleaning

  We have several projects and studies underway to address homelessness and street cleaning.

  Street cleaning

  • Additional $1.5 million investment in street cleaning in 2019
  • Street cleaning service level summary between the City and most BIAs
  • Social enterprise grants for street cleaning totaling $1.2 million in 2019

  Homelessness

  Are you concerned about people experiencing homelessness in the neighbourhood of your small business? Download our resource guide PDF file (56 KB) for connections to local organizations who can provide support, or check in with your local BIA for a neighborhood-specific version.

  We're taking the following actions to address homelessness in Vancouver:

  • In partnership with BC Housing, we've opened more than 600 temporary modular homes for people experiencing homelessness in Vancouver
  • Our Homelessness Services Outreach Team connects with people who are homeless where they sleep to offer help in moving to a shelter or housing, if available. Over the past 11 years, nearly 7,000 people have been housed with support from the City’s Homelessness Services Outreach Team
  • More than 900 year-round, permanent, shelter beds are available across the city. The Province has also provided funding for nearly 240 temporary shelter beds to remain open year-round.
  • We'll continue to approve and open new affordable homes to respond to the housing crisis and homelessness. In 2018, more than 500 new social and supportive homes opened in Vancouver.
  • As part of the Housing Vancouver Strategy, we have a target of approving 12,000 new units of permanent social and supportive housing over the next 10 years.
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  Small business help at the Vancouver Public Library

  The Vancouver Public Library provides a free information service to assist those who are thinking of starting a small business or looking for ways to improve their business.

  The service provides a wealth of knowledge of books, articles, websites, and online databases, and the team can suggest research strategies or refer the business to useful community resources.

  The library also has free small business workshops to offer help with small business planning, market research, financial assistance, and more.

  Find support for small businesses at the Vancouver Public Library External web site, opens in new tab

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  Commercial Tenant Assistance Program (CTAP)

  The Commercial Tenant Assistance Program (CTAP) offers resource guides for relocation planning and decision making for commercial tenants having to relocate for any reason.

  CTAP ensures commercial tenants have equal access to reliable and consistent relocation planning and information on topics like:

  • Commercial leases
  • Redevelopment process
  • Finding a new space

  Information icon The information is intended as a first step for businesses and non-profits to plan their relocation and where to find support.

  All information is available in English, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), Punjabi, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.

  Learn more about the program

Economic development

We've undertaken a number of initiatives to promote and strengthen local business, provide the tools for Vancouver's businesses to flourish while incorporating sustainable practices, and make the city an attractive destination for businesses around the world.

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  Bizmap

  The Bizmap tool External website, opens in new tab provided demographic and business data for 17 commercial districts and their neighbourhoods across the city.

  While a review of the future Bizmap is underway, we've retained many helpful links and resources on this page. 

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  Vancouver Economic Commission (VEC)

  The Vancouver Economic Council (VEC), an agency of the City of Vancouver, has several initiatives related to economic development for small businesses. It works to strengthen the city's economic future by:

  • Helping existing businesses
  • Attracting investment
  • Researching the business environment
  • Making policy recommendations

  Learn more about the Vancouver Economic Commission External website, opens in new tab

Policies and research

Research is critical to ensure we have the information required to develop policies that support our overall goals, including creating an environment where small business can thrive.

We're working with the Province on exploring options for targeted tax policy options, as well as doing research on several areas critical to the future success of small business.

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  Property assessment and taxation

  There are very limited authority and policy tools available to local government to address property assessment and taxation issues.

  In April 2019, Council approved a 2% tax shift ($15.8-million) from non-residential properties (Classes 2, 4, 5, and 6) to residential properties (Classes 1, 8, and 9) over three years, at a rate of 1% in 2019, 0.5% in 2020, and 0.5% in 2021.

  An Inter-governmental Working Group was established in November 2018 to identify viable policy tools to provide targeted and time-limited tax relief to properties that are impacted by assessment volatility arising from development potential. The Working Group is comprised of Provincial staff from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and the Ministry of Finance, BC Assessment, City of Vancouver, and six other Metro Vancouver municipalities (Burnaby, Coquitlam, Richmond, North Vancouver, Surrey, and West Vancouver).

  Based on BC Assessment’s preliminary analysis, approximately 3,000 (21%) commercial properties in Vancouver are deemed under-developed with their assessed values reflecting a higher and better use relative to their existing use. The Working Group strongly supports splitting the development potential value from the existing use value for under-developed properties (split assessment), and creating a commercial sub-class to capture the development potential value. With the new sub-class, Council could define eligible properties for split assessment, set a lower tax rate (compared to commercial) for the development potential, and limit the duration of such tax relief.

  This, together with other potential policy tools (split tax bill and tax deferment), are being considered by the Province. We hope to provide an update in July 2019 on final policy options that could be implemented in time for the 2020 tax year.

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  Employment Lands and Economy Review

  We’re developing a long-range land use policy plan to ensure we have an appropriate supply of land for businesses and jobs to support the future growth of our economy. 

  Understanding the current capacity of Vancouver’s employment lands, along with the future demand for job space, will be essential to ensuring a strong and diverse economy for future generations. The Employment Lands and Economy Review will examine all of Vancouver’s employment sectors across the city, including office, commercial, retail, and industrial uses.

  Learn more about the Employment Lands and Economy Review

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  Regulation redesign

  We've started a comprehensive review of our land use regulations and policies.

  The aim of the review is to:

  • Simplify, clarify, and update regulations
  • Improve the consistency of regulations and policies
  • Establish a framework to coordinate policy development
  • Ensure land use regulations align with the City's emerging policies and priorities
  • Improve communication and information sharing

  Learn more about the project

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  Retail and Commercial District Small Business Study

  This study will illuminate changes over time to the commercial and retail landscape in six representative study areas, and help inform future policy to protect small independent neighborhood businesses citywide.

  This consultant-led study will analyze change in the number and proportion of small retail and commercial businesses by category compared to other businesses in the study areas.

  The study will determine and rank the drivers of change, provide a periodic report card to track change, and suggest directions for future policy development and research.

  This project will provide a foundation for understanding challenges to small business viability, and inform priorities for developing policies or other initiatives.

Engagement

Our small business webpage provides information on City updates, initiatives, and projects relevant to the small business community and other interested parties.

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  Mailing list

  The mailing list allows us to hear feedback on a variety of topics that affect small businesses, such as City strategies, studies, and initiatives. The input will influence the development of our policies, services, and programs.

  We hold multiple events over the course of the year where we seek to engage with the small business community. Sign up to our mailing list at the top of the page to be informed of news relevant to small business owners, as well as opportunities to provide your insight into how we should shape our city.