DCTRL (pronounced "decontrol") was a community-run basement space in downtown Vancouver that became the unofficial cradle of the city's blockchain ecosystem. Located on the corner of Pender and Richards streets behind an unmarked black door, the space incubated many of Vancouver's most prominent blockchain companies and hosted Ethereum-related meetups and discussions from 2014 onward.
Origins
The space grew out of the Vancouver Bitcoin Co-op, a group closely associated with those who operated the world's first Bitcoin ATM, which launched at a Waves coffee shop in downtown Vancouver on October 29, 2013. The co-op leased a basement space underneath a downtown barbershop as a place to meet, code, and discuss cryptocurrency. The Meetup group "decentral.bangtown" was created around March 2014, organized by Cameron Gray.
Do-ocracy
DCTRL operated as a "do-ocracy" — an organizational structure that let individuals choose their own tasks independently without consulting a leader. The ethos drew from the 10 principles of Burning Man, including radical self-expression and participation. The basement space featured movable couches on wheels, haphazard meme-related murals, a small jam room with free-to-use musical instruments, and a separate coding area. The washroom was marked with a sign reading "cemetery."
As Chelsea Palmer described: "What I like most about our spirit here at DCTRL is that it's always been free, welcoming, and publicly accessible. Anyone who cares more about money than people comes down here and never wants to return."
Ethereum Connection
DCTRL hosted Ethereum-related events early on. In April 2015, Mihai Alisie presented his Ethereum.Builders proto-DAO interface via a livestreamed Google Hangout at the space.
In mid-December 2015, Anthony D'Onofrio and Vitalik Buterin did a live-streamed "Salon Talk" to DCTRL:
Companies and Community
DCTRL spawned numerous blockchain companies and projects. The Vanbex Group, co-founded by Lisa Cheng, grew out of the community. Mike Olthoff created Coincards (crypto-to-gift-card service) as a dedicated visitor. Members of the CryptoKitties team, which became Ethereum's killer dapp in 2017, had ties to the space. Other companies with DCTRL roots include Quantfury, DigitalFutures, and Advance Tech Media.