CALGARY | Eighth Avenue Place | 689 FT / 210 M | 51 FLOORS

[Calgarian]

Back to the drawing board is the last thing this project needs, it's been 6 years since they were supposed to originally start construction.

[wild wild west]

Originally Posted by urbanlife

beautiful renderings, shame that the finished product will look very sterile.

How do you know???

I know I'm in the minority here, but I quite like the design, although they should have found a way to incorporate the old Penny Lane Mall buildings into the design, and I also think one tower will look much better than two. My hope is that the first tower only gets built, and the second tower gets built years from now with a different design (and hopefully as a mixed-use building!).

Unfortunately it's not particularly likely that they will vary the designs even if Tower 2 is built a decade or more from now - Bankers Hall 2 was built a decade after Bankers Hall 1, and they still went with the original near-twin concept.

[Surrealplaces]

I think the tower looks plain, but I like it. I have a feeling the tower will look better than the rendering once it's finished.

[chex]

i like the project with the 2 towers, hopefully the 2nd will get built.

[Phil McAvity]

Originally Posted by Surrealplaces

The project was originally a two tower project, but the second tower may or may not get built.

You didn't specify which tower might not get built but based on the pictures, i'm assuming the shorter one might not.

The interesting thing about this tower (for us skyscraper nerds anyways) is that it is the exact same height that Petro-Can was for a long time (689 feet). It is only recently that someone changed the height so Petro-Can is now slightly over 700 feet. I expect some slick salesman from Calgary talked some official skyscraper committee member somewhere to include the mechanical penthouse so Calgary can say it has a 700 footer!

[Thinner6]

Originally Posted by Phil McAvity

You didn't specify which tower might not get built but based on the pictures, i'm assuming the shorter one might not.

The interesting thing about this tower (for us skyscraper nerds anyways) is that it is the exact same height that Petro-Can was for a long time (689 feet). It is only recently that someone changed the height so Petro-Can is now slightly over 700 feet. I expect some slick salesman from Calgary talked some official skyscraper committee member somewhere to include the mechanical penthouse so Calgary can say it has a 700 footer!

I think this is pretty much irrelevant, seeing as how The Bow will eclipse 800 feet.

[ScottFromCalgary]

Originally Posted by Phil McAvity

You didn't specify which tower might not get built but based on the pictures, i'm assuming the shorter one might not.

The interesting thing about this tower (for us skyscraper nerds anyways) is that it is the exact same height that Petro-Can was for a long time (689 feet). It is only recently that someone changed the height so Petro-Can is now slightly over 700 feet. I expect some slick salesman from Calgary talked some official skyscraper committee member somewhere to include the mechanical penthouse so Calgary can say it has a 700 footer!

So now we aren't including mechanical floors? Gimme a fuckin break buddy. Its not like we threw up an antenna or even a spire for christsakes. We're not exactly talking about the Guangzhou TV Tower here. You're just breaking our balls man.

[wild wild west]

Originally Posted by Phil McAvity

You didn't specify which tower might not get built but based on the pictures, i'm assuming the shorter one might not.

The interesting thing about this tower (for us skyscraper nerds anyways) is that it is the exact same height that Petro-Can was for a long time (689 feet). It is only recently that someone changed the height so Petro-Can is now slightly over 700 feet. I expect some slick salesman from Calgary talked some official skyscraper committee member somewhere to include the mechanical penthouse so Calgary can say it has a 700 footer!

Right now only the taller (51 floor) tower is under construction. The second one is to be 41 or 43 floors, I believe.

Re: height of Petro-Can, many buildings in various cities have had their height revised upward or downward over the years as new information became available. Besides, nothing wrong with counting a mechanical penthouse in the height of a building. Besides, this city doesn't cheat: out of all the big North American skylines, Calgary's is one of the few that doesn't have many buildings padding their heights with spire elements.

[Surrealplaces]

Originally Posted by Phil McAvity

You didn't specify which tower might not get built but based on the pictures, i'm assuming the shorter one might not.

The interesting thing about this tower (for us skyscraper nerds anyways) is that it is the exact same height that Petro-Can was for a long time (689 feet). It is only recently that someone changed the height so Petro-Can is now slightly over 700 feet. I expect some slick salesman from Calgary talked some official skyscraper committee member somewhere to include the mechanical penthouse so Calgary can say it has a 700 footer!

Could be the case. I'm not sure where the actual extra height comes from as the Petro Canada tower has a flat roof. It must be the basic structural height, which is what should be used anyway. Petro Canada tower is the least guilty of any tower for lame ways adding height.

What I don't care for are heights that include an antenna/spire as an official height. One of the notable ones is 1250 Rene Levesque in Montreal where they've added the antenna (they call it a Spire) to give it a height of 755'.

[Geofferson]

I actually like this project quite a bit!
I think it will turn out very nicely, and hope that they can build the second tower with a completely different design... twins are far too boring, and common in our skyline

[Surrealplaces]

Originally Posted by Geofferson

I actually like this project quite a bit!
I think it will turn out very nicely, and hope that they can build the second tower with a completely different design... twins are far too boring, and common in our skyline

Yup, too many twin towers in this city. Hopefully Livingston will be the last set of twins.

[WhipperSnapper]

You didn't specify which tower might not get built but based on the pictures, i'm assuming the shorter one might not.

at this point, neither tower is guarranteed to be built. The parking garage is being built to meet some city obligation.

[mersar]

Originally Posted by goodlookin'

at this point, neither tower is guarranteed to be built. The parking garage is being built to meet some city obligation.

Pretty much. There is a change in some bylaws related to parking, and in order to keep the older bylaw as the one that the building falls under they had to start construction (in this case excavating and shoring) by the end of December. The new bylaw likely would have resulted in a redesign to the parkade and/or having to pay the city extra in lieu.

[Boris2k7]

Courtesy of Myself

February 15, 2008

[Surrealplaces]

Originally Posted by Buck

I thought this looked like a Pickard Chilton and I went to the website and I was right. This is a slightly altered design of a never-built Centennial Hill building in Atlanta by them. Glad the design is getting used.

It sure looks similar doesn't it.

[Senz]

.

[Surrealplaces]

^They're making pretty good progress, especially with the nice weather outside.

[Calgarian]

What will the space behind Belgo be used for?

[Innersoul1]

Originally Posted by johnnyc

What will the space behind Belgo be used for?

Yeah, they are really going at quite a pace. It is pretty impressive to see all of the dump trucks waiting to be loaded in the AM. Reminds me of the Bow.

I wonder what will be behind Belgo. Do you know if they are required to provide access to 4th street still?

[mersar]

I don't believe they are. Looking at the city's mypages it doesn't show the access that was there previously that I remembered. I do see though that it shows the DP has been released, while the BP is still on hold.