Historic Mayfair Avenue

Mayfair Avenue, squeezed in between 38th and 39th Avenues and probably there before they were created, lies between the heritage 1906 Morisette Farmhouse on Blenheim Street and Dunbar Street. It is only two blocks long. I always get on edge when there is the potential of a  house being demolished on Mayfair because it is a section of Dunbar with houses so old that they are not typical to the Dunbar area. This  house was not there  on December 6--I assume that it was torn down in November. The real estate ad said "needing a major renovation or build  your dream home". Well, it's going to be a dream...and if we want to remember how Mayfair Avenue used to be, we'll have to use our imagination. Vancouver Vanishes reports that this house at 3349 Mayfair was built in 1913.

I missed getting a photo of the wide Vancouver Special at 3421 that was replaced in 2011 by this  house:

What I would really want is a photo of what was there before the Vancouver Special was built!

What if...the north side of Mayfair Avenue had years ago been designated a "heritage block" and the old houses had been retained and maintained? It would be a charming and special street to celebrate. There are still two old originals near Dunbar Street--I've been inside one of them, and it retains its original charm. Here is a link to June Binkert's description of some of the older houses in the area. The Mount Pleasant area is ahead of the Dunbar area in appreciating its history; a heritage zone was inspired by the "painted ladies" on the 100 block of West 10th Avenue. Here's a link to more information on that endeavour.