Terminal City-Vancouver as the model of the new global city - part I

Terminal City , the aptly provided moniker of Vancouver, is indicative of its edge status. Vancouver, throughout its history, has been the backwater of the dominant economic forces of the time. In its youth it battled with San Francisco for gold rush dollars. In its post war growth it succumbed to the influence of Eastern Canada. In its most recent incarnation it accepted its role as outpost to Hong Kong. Vancouver is like the stereotypical vacuous blonde supermodel that is beautiful but suffers from a lack of substance between the ears.

Consequently the economic structure of Vancouver is uninfluential. There are relatively few corporate head offices compared to "local" competitors like Seattle and Calgary. With corporate dominance low, Vancouver has thrived on a very different ethos in the way its citizens approach life and lifestyle. Small business is the predominant form of business and equality of citizens across the urban mosaic is the cultural norm. In fact, libertarian ideology (apolitical) is rampant in the city and forms a very different mindset than prototypical North American cities.

However, Vancouver's beauty and the attractiveness of its stable real estate (comparatively) makes it a good place for off-shore money to invest personal resources. The worldly libertarian view and Canadian Immigration policies have enhanced the large influx of immigrants largely from Hong Kong, mainland China, India and South Korea. In fact, visible minorities now form the majority in Vancouver and consequently the city has a large reach to the rest of the world.  Unlike many world metropolitan centres, Vancouver has achieved this with a relatively low threshold of racism.

With the rise of the information age, Vancouver's global reach is further enhanced while small business is empowered. Internet usage rates in British Columbia according to Statistics Canada are around 85% in 2010. The numbers are approaching 90% in the Greater Vancouver itself. These numbers are among the highest in North America.

Unencumbered by slow moving corporate behemoths and the associated political baggage, Vancouver has the ability to react with speed in its own interest and turn its smaller more nimble economic structure to its favour . It will be important that the political elites  federally, provincially, and municipally buy into the economic reincarnation. Individuals and companies are ready to establish business links with the rest of the world. with a larger professional and tertiary workforce perhaps the model will be smart as well as good looking.