The Downtown Eastside is the oldest neighbourhood in Vancouver. The neighbourhood has a rich and colourful history and a strong community fabric. It is bordered by Cambie Street to the west, Clark Drive to the east, the waterfront to the north and Pender Street to the south, with Hastings Street running down the middle of the neighbourhood. Once a popular destination for shopping, restaurants, and nightlife, the area of Main and Hastings is now known as the poorest postal code in Canada. Retail shops which flourished through the early 1980's are now gone. Buildings that are not boarded up have bars on the windows. Overhead doors cover storefronts at night to protect them from theft and vandalism. Graffiti is prevalent throughout. The area is noted for high incidences of poverty, drug addiction, and prostitution. Drug use is completely out in the open and out of control. The skid row corner of Hastings and Main has been described as "the most active corner as a drug market in North America".

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