Find Your Perfect Main Street Home
Main Street is a central district of Vancouver, running from the Vancouver Port in the north to the Fraser River in the south. The street runs through the historic Chinatown, past Science World, cutting through Mount Pleasant.
Main and Hastings is one of the city’s oldest but also the most notorious neighbourhoods in Vancouver. It is a hotspot for crime and drugs. A lot of Vancouver’s mentally ill end up on the streets in the area.
Main and Hastings used to be Vancouver’s most prominent intersection. The city’s central public library was on the corner and the old city hall was only a few blocks away. Now city hall has moved to Cambie and the central public library was renamed Carnegie Centre.
At the very north end of Main Street the Hastings Mill opened, becoming the city’s epicentre until it closed in 1928 and the Financial District moved westward. Main Street was originally called Westminster Avenue because it connected New Westminster with Vancouver. It received its current name in 1910.
Science World was opened for the 86 Expo, originally called Expo Center, and is a not-for-profit organization that is dedicated to furthering science and technology. In 2005, Telus donated $9 million to Science World and it was renamed “Telus World of Science”, however, locally it is still known as “Science World.”
At Terminal Avenue there is the main station where residents can catch long-distance buses.
The area between 3rd Street and 41st Street has changed drastically over the last two decades and is now a hotspot for young people and families. Once rundown, there are many high rise condos with fashionable local breweries for the locals. A lot of the old commercial businesses have been forced to shut down because of rising rent and are being replaced by upscale restaurants and shops.
On 49th Avenue there is the Punjabi Market district with the largest East Indian population in Vancouver.