Kamloops Construction
 

Figured a Kamloops thread was needed. Just moved here from Toronto and I've been noticing a lot of construction around town. Been wanting to live here for awhile and the chance finally came up! I'm pretty familiar with the City, but if I get anything wrong, hopefully another local could point it out.

Gonna try and make it around the City and get some pics of different projects and figured I'd start with what I know that's going on downtown.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/IMG_1673.jpg

The City is laid out along the river valley and extends up the South hillside towards TRU. There's 3 distinct areas that seem to see the most activity.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/IMG_1988.jpg

I'll try and cover them all but just going to start with downtown.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/IMG_1989.jpg

1. New Lottery Corporations head office. This is in the design stages, so no rendering yet. Currently prep work is taking place and will coincide with the largest capital project to date in Kamloops which is West Victoria Street upgrades. They'll run from the new BCLC office to the Overlanders Bridge.

2. Parkade Art project
This will be the largest piece of art in Kamloops. Will cover 3 sides of a 6 story parkade. Product has never been used in North America. I was talking to the guys installing it the other day and it's a bunch of individual pucks that make up the picture. The pucks used for the water will spin in the wind. Should give it a cool effect when it's done.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...okanee47/2.jpg

3. Royal Residence
Mixed-use apartment.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...kanee47/3b.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/IMG_1987.jpg

4. Apartment
Don't know the name, but I like the look. Currently working on the parkade.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...kanee47/4a.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...kanee47/4b.jpg

5. RIH Patient Care Tower
Breaks ground this spring.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...kanee47/5a.png

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...kanee47/5b.jpg

6. Apartments
This will be over multiple city blocks and close to 500 units.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...okanee47/6.jpg

7. ???
Don't know what this is, but it was a pretty big hole.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/IMG_1985.jpg

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...7/IMG_1986.jpg

8. TNRD Building
New art gallery entrance

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...okanee47/8.jpg

9. Office Building
The hotel attached to the new office building is currently being re-branded as a Delta. KPMG took over the entire ground floor.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...kanee47/9b.jpg

11. Apartments

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...anee47/11b.png

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...anee47/11a.jpg

Pretty stoked to be living here now, so I'll try and keep this up to date.

Thanks for this. Kamloops tends to get overshadowed by Kelowna but still a lot of activity there. We have a cabin up at Bridge Lake 1.5 hours north of there and Kamloops is the closest large centre so we’re down there every so often during the summer. The city centre area is quite nice.

I like Kamloops. Yes its definitely true Kelowna steals the spotlight from Kamloops. The road system in Kamloops is light years better than Kelowna's, Kamloops people aren't as addicted to wine and golfing like they are in the Okanagan, and they don't need to pretend they live in California.

There are several development sites in the downtown core, one being the former Daily News site. Kamloops really needs a couple more high rises. The current ones are mainly 1960s apartment towers and office buildings. 500 units going in at 5th and Battle will be a huge change for that part of the downtown, but none of those buildings look any higher than 5 stories

Ya I'll give you the wine, but Kamloops is very much all about golf. You don't have a course like Tobiano and not be a big deal.

www.tobianogolf.com
http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...e47/s7f9DO.jpg

Golfed here on Saturday and it lives up to the hype as one of the best in Canada.


Ya no residential high rises planned. There will be 2 next year over 10 stories with the hospital and BCLC headquarters. Seems like the city is eating up land downtown for better livability in the core, could see it just a matter of time until one is proposed. The real estate here is pretty crazy at the moment.

Me too. I alway have.

I've never liked Kelowna. But growing up in Vernon may be part of that. At one time there was a rivalry (at least in the minds of some Vernon residents) I believe but Kelowna is so far ahead at this point I can't imagine that there is much rivalry left. But then I've been gone for over 30 years so who knows.

When I was a kid I liked Kamloops because it had skyscrapers (although not really tall ones).

hey great post VantageHD! :-D

Thanks Skylinegazer!

Thanks for posting that project djmk. This is one thing I don't get about Kamloops and the developers here. They'll build in a ravine or on the side of a hill that requires millions (atleast it would seem like it would) in geo-tech, stability work, drainage and earth work, site access and servicing issues... etc, instead of building downtown on a site that has little to none of those issues. I feel like it must be cheaper but I just don't see it. Anyone have any insight on this?

Here's a rendering of that project.
http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...on%20place.png

I also love Kamloops and I am happy to see this thread started, but this is not a city vs. city thread. I also fail to see that just because Kelowna has a wine industry (which I enjoy very much!) and many golf courses (which I also enjoy, but haven’t played in many years now...) that it equates to pretending to be California?

I like the fact that Kelowna and Kamloops have two very different feels despite their similar climate and geography.

Kamloops is definitely somewhere I am considering moving to with my family when we return, but my wife wonders if there is any Japanese community there (there is one in Kelowna).

There seems to be lots of changes happening in the North Shore Town Centre area. Every time I'm in Kamloops and go through there its a little different. Definitely a good thing to have a 2nd separate business district from downtown. Especially because almost half the population in Kamloops lives north of the river. Before the 1971 amalgamation, North Kamloops was a District Municipality with its own mayor.

And of course theres good ol Brocklehurst! Always loved that name!

I think you have to know the interior to get this. I didn't know either until I moved here but had to laugh at that comparison because there's a guy in my office from Kelowna and he named his fantasy hockey team 'Kelownafornia'. Plus search kelownafornia on youtube, pretty funny. I don't think he meant it as a negative, seems like it's an actual thing people in Kelowna do.... Anyways.

I had no idea it used to be another town back in the day. That's pretty cool. After I finish up with the university district I'll try and get out on the North Shore and get some pictures.

the lottery company is going to be ten stories?thats pretty huge. Is there somewhere we can get more information on this building?

I've only heard by word of mouth. People who have been part of some of the preliminary design meetings. I haven't seen anything myself so I could be wrong. Figure something should be coming down the pipes soon. They put up construction fencing last week.

Apparently this is what's going up in the #7 location from above.

lightwell by Oakenshield, on Flickr[/IMG]
http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e.../St.PaulSt.jpg

This is right across the street from the new office building getting built at 580 Victoria Street. Anything would be an improvement over this eyesore.

http://i230.photobucket.com/albums/e...47/Capture.jpg

Edit.. I thought NAI bought the property, but it looks like they're the seller. I'll be interesting to see what's planned for those two sites

there is a movie theater next door?