A plan to build highrise towers in an already densely-populated area of B.C.’s largest city is raising questions about how urban centres can be livable and affordable as populations grow rapidly in the coming decades.

With a new subway line being constructed under Broadway, a busy Vancouver street that runs through multiple neighbourhoods, city planners have seized on the opportunity to increase the amount of housing in one of Canada’s most expensive cities.

The Broadway Plan calls for existing homes along the line to be replaced with multi-storey towers, able to accommodate up to 50,000 more residents. Mixed-use developments as high as 40