One Twenty UP

Project

Year

2019

Location

Vancouver, Washington

Client

Ginn Group

The Challenge

From Auto-Oriented to People-Focused

Creating a new community at 120th and Mill Plain in East Vancouver, Washington, meant transforming a corridor long defined by fast-moving traffic, surface parking, and auto-oriented commercial uses into a welcoming, neighborhood-serving the entire neighborhood. Designed by First Forty Feet in collaboration with Ginn Group, the project introduces new housing density, active ground-floor uses, and a strong pedestrian network to establish a walkable environment where daily needs are close at hand. The team worked to overcome the area’s historic lack of identity and infrastructure for people on foot or bike, ensuring that new streets and open spaces feel safe, connected, and comfortable from day one. Thoughtful public-realm design links residences with community gathering areas, inviting storefronts, and future transit, supporting Vancouver’s broader goals to create complete, inclusive, and livable districts along Mill Plain Boulevard. By reimagining an underutilized site as a place where community can grow, this project sets the foundation for ongoing reinvestment and a more vibrant East Vancouver.

Sawmill Past

For decades, East Vancouver’s economy was shaped by its timber roots — with sawmills, lumber processing, and other industrial operations supporting families who built the community we know today. While those mills have largely disappeared, the spirit of working landscapes and resourceful industry still influences the area’s identity as it evolves into a modern neighborhood.

Parklets

The community’s parklets are intentionally designed for families—featuring playful elements where kids can explore close to home, while parents can relax on stoops or nearby seating with clear sightlines. These human-scaled spaces turn everyday moments into safe, casual encounters. By bringing play and supervision into the heart of the public realm, the design supports family-friendly living and strengthens the social fabric of 120th & Mill Plain.

Courtyard Gardens

The landscape design carefully balances privacy and connection, shaping a shared environment that feels both personal and communal. Around each courtyard, layered plantings and subtle screening elements give every home its own sense of retreat— enclosing patios and windows without feeling isolated. Open sightlines and framed views allow for gentle glimpses into the center of the space, maintaining a sense of openness and shared life. This thoughtful interplay between enclosure and visibility helps the gardens feel safe and welcoming, encouraging a sense of community while preserving the quiet comfort of home.

Live / Work Units

Along Mill Plain Boulevard, a row of live-work units creates a natural transition between the quieter residential courtyards and the more active commercial edge of the corridor. These flexible spaces support small businesses, studios, and entrepreneurial uses at the ground floor while providing homes above—bringing daily activity right to the street. By placing eyes on the sidewalk and doors directly onto the public realm, the live-work units help transform Mill Plain into a vibrant, walkable destination, setting the stage for future retail and community-serving uses to grow around them.

The Impact

A New Model for Transition Zones

This project establishes a new model for development in the transitional spaces that sit between auto-oriented commercial corridors and established single-family neighborhoods. Rather than repeating the spread-out retail of Mill Plain Boulevard or the low-density housing to the south, the design introduces a human-scaled, mixed-use fabric that supports walkability, housing choice, and local business opportunity. By demonstrating how higher density and family-friendly living can coexist comfortably at this edge condition—with shared courtyards, active frontages, and safe public spaces—the neighborhood becomes a catalyst for rethinking growth across East Vancouver. It shows how future development can evolve in a way that strengthens both sides of the transition zone, offering more ways for people to live, work, and belong close to where they already are.