Yes, that south facing facade does have a similar look and feel to other, Winnipeg esque structures from the 80's..Similar to the example below, although the r-value is probably better today, maybe closer to R-27 for the wall insulation.:D


http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/di...hite-stone.jpg
Image

Well at the very least they're making an attempt to add some retail space. Any development on that strip should be required to have it as the street continues to develop into a great location.

As for the design.... Are we still using "better than nothing" as a justification for terrible things?

Also would have been nice if they could have put the underground parking entrance in the back of the building so it wouldn't need to cut into Sherbrook. But that would have required some sort of effort on the design and that's clearly out of the question.

This building must be lost. Sherbrook isn't behind Portage Place.

This is the same clown that never built the Pumphouse Condos.

This will never get built with this guys track record.

According to the variance, in order to only have 49 instead of 144 parking stalls in the lot they are being required to have 2, possibly 3 car share vehicles on site.

Thats how I feel

interesting

One thing makes a track record now?

He just doesn't seem to be presenting designs that are cohesive with the neighbourhood he's working in - this is just another monstrously big building surrounded by low-rise structures. Is he compensating for something? ;)

I will say - at least the Pumphouse design was interesting to look at. This is yawn central.

It's a good project for the neighbourhood. And even though it may not be a crowd-pleaser from a design standpoint, it's hard to deny that it adds far more to its surroundings than it takes away. It certainly isn't terrible, so the "better than nothing" justification has no place here.

Also, If a nice building or two went up on the other side of Sherbrook, you could basically have a pleasantly walkable street from the river right up to Portage - not bad. This building would be a good addition despite its somewhat unusual appearance.

This is Winnipeg. Given what it costs to build and the rents one can probably take from this area, everybody should be happy that even one group is prepared to take the risk of providing this sort of density, let alone somebody coming to the table with design elements sure to drive a project beyond feasibility. I'd rather somebody design to reality than get everybody into a lather with a project we all know can't be completed. At the very least it shows that the design team understands the constraints they're working within...

OK Fair Enough..........now how will they make money?

Concrete and steel, high rise.................I cannot see any ROR.

The building is fugly.

The only way the building would look decent is if it had vines growing all over the damn thing.... never mind.

Better than nothing, right?

Apparently fugly seems to be the consensus in the Canadian Proposal Thread as well and Sotirios Kotoulas ability to pull this off after the the PumpHouse fiasco as detailed by local posters as well. Hard to say if this will be the case at this early stage of the process.

Ahh..1-10 = 5. Although I'd like to see some better renders before I give it a 1 on the aesthetics scale.

^ If someone wants to build a large apartment building on a vacant lot on Sherbrook, I can live with it being something less than a glass-clad stunner. Even though it has an unconventional (but by no means terrible) looking design, the fact that this building would increase the population density of the area makes it a net positive.

As to whether or not it will actually get built... well, I wouldn't advise anyone to hold their breath.

.......caaan't talk........hoooolding breathhhhh......

didnt the head of cv get fire recently?

Ross McGowan is retiring, so we're told.

I don't know, I really don't mind this building. it's a rental building going up in a part of town that still commands fairly low rent and real estate prices. the materials look good, the massing is decent, and there are some architectural details that make it a bit more interesting. if it gets built, I think it will be a good addition to the area.