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A Tale of Two Cities
We work in commodities; they work for Microsoft. They earn more; our real estate costs more. We have less violent crime; they have less property crime. Seattle and Vancouver have major differences, sure, but you could also argue that no two cities are more alike, right down to their kooky burrito joints, touristy public markets and gentrifying port-side neighbourhoods.
By Rosemary Poole and Lucas Lee
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SEATTLE
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VS.
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VANCOUVER
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Grey’s Anatomy
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As seen on
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Battlestar Galactica
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573,000/3,460,400
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Population city/
region (2005)
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583,267/2,155,880
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33
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Median age
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37
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14.3%, making it the fittest city in the U.S.
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% of the population considered overweight
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12%, making it the fittest city in Canada
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Microsoft, Amazon
Washington Mutual, Starbucks
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Home of
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Telus, Canfor, West Fraser Timber, Teekay Shipping, Goldcorp
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Bimbos Bitchin’
Burrito Kitchen
506 E. Pine St., Belltown, 206-329-9978
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Hole in the wall
burrito joint
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Budgies Burritos
44 Kingsway Ave., Mount Pleasant, 604-874-5408
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Pioneer Square, a long-troubled historic neighbourhood by the port
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Hot neighbourhood
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Gastown, a long-
troubled historic neighbourhood by the port
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June 6, 1889
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Date downtown burned to the ground
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June 13, 1886
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“Skid Road”
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Invented the term
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“Skid Row”
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Seattle Art Museum
Just expanded, reopens
May 17
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Largest art gallery
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Vancouver Art Gallery
Looking for new digs
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Seattle Seahawks
Estimated value:
$823-million (U.S.)
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Biggest sports franchise
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Vancouver Canucks
Estimated value:
$192-million (U.S.)
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Greg Nickels
Nationally recognized for taking Seattle green and adopting the Kyoto protocol
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Mayor’s green record
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Sam Sullivan
Wants his new ecodensity initiative to be nationally recognized
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30%
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Voter turnout in last
civic election
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32.4%
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On Mercer Island, an exclusive enclave with multimillion-dollar water views
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The city’s wealthiest residents live…
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In West Vancouver, an exclusive enclave with multimillion-dollar
water views
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Bill Gates
Net worth: $53-billion (U.S.)
Latest project: Windows Vista
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Richest local
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Jimmy Pattison
Net worth: $4.5-billion
Latest project: 24 Hours
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Pike Place, which opened in 1907
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Public market the
tourists flock to
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Granville Island, which was inspired by Pike Place
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A ghastly crime or house fire
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Typical lead story on nightly newscast
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Used to be the weather,
now it’s the Pickton trial
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30
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Number of murders last year
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15
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39,787
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Property crime
incidents last year
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49,736 (but down 4.7% from last year)
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Going from bad to worse
Commute times from the outer suburbs, such as Bellevue, have risen 14 minutes in the past two years—it now takes 56 minutes for a one-way trip
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Commute times
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Holding steady—and going down? Last summer, Statistics Canada reported commutes in Greater Vancouver take roughly the same time or a little less than they did in 1992—bucking the national trend
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$72,250 (U.S.)
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Average household income
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$56,200
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Tom Douglas
Inventory: six restaurants, a bakery, a catering business, three cookbooks, a radio show, an Iron Chef America victory, and a line of sauces and spice rubs
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Superstar chef
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Rob Feenie
Inventory: two restaurants (a third one rumoured to be opening in Toronto soon), an Iron Chef America victory, an American Express campaign and three cookbooks
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READ MORE IN THE SEATTLE SERIES:
36 Hours in Seattle: Where to eat, drink, shop and sightsee.
Bed Check: Reviews of three very different Seattle hotels.
Culture Crawl: Our ranking of Seattle's independent coffeehouses, and listings of the best local books and music acts.
The New Seattle: What Vancouver can learn from its Pacific sister.
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