|
General Vancouver Updates
For discussion and updates outside of downtown in the City of Vancouver only.
------------------ Vanoc Update: Trout Lake Ice Arena Vancouver Sun Published: Monday, December 10, 2007 What: Trout Lake Ice Arena What's new: Park Board to approve second contract to Bird Construction. Details: Trout Lake's existing arena is to be replaced with a new facility that will be used as a training facility for short-track speedskaters. Once estimated at $10.5 million, the project cost has ballooned to $15.94 million because of the hot construction market. It first went to $13.08 million last year. Then, in October the city agreed to pay another $2.86 million by diverting money from two other projects, the post-Olympic conversion of the Hillcrest Curling Centre and the Renfrew Pool change room project. The Park Board split the Trout Lake project into two contracts. The first was awarded to Bird Construction in November for nearly $2.2 million. The board said Bird was also working to bring the overall cost down to $13.7 million, with the remaining $2.14 million for contingencies. In a report going to the Park Board on Dec. 10, staff now want to award a second contract for $11.53 million to Bird. Normally the board has to approve the contract award, but because the final contract negotiations won't be done before the board's Christmas break, the general manager wants to have the authority to sign the contract himself. |
Nice way to kick off the thread with a bang, Mr. x! :)
|
that Canadian Tire in east van has put up a sign with all the stores
there is Canadian Tire, Price Smart Foods, Mark's Workwearhouse, PetSmart, Boston Pizza and Starbucks - might have been another but i forget... petcetera will have some competition - i wonder if locals will favour the Canadian chain over the US chain... |
Construction of the VCC King Edward campus, photo by me Dec 7th. There are two more floors to be added.
http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/4...ion6131fg9.jpg |
Thanks! That went up fast!
|
Petcetera is shit......go to a PetSmart store there is no comparison its HIGHER end and clean and organized and well staffed.
|
Business in Vancouver December 11-17, 2007; issue 946
Real estate roundup: Peter Mitham Construction starts on project to create region’s “greenest” commercial building $60 million Discovery Green aiming for LEED gold, but could hit platinum certification Pouring green What’s being touted as the greenest commercial building to become available in the Lower Mainland came a bit closer to reality last week. With dignitaries from the province and the developer, Discovery Parks Trust, looking on, the foundation for Discovery Green poured into place. The $60 million project is rising on the last available site in Discovery Place, Discovery Parks’ original Burnaby research park. An 80-acre parcel set aside by the province in 1979 for technology-oriented office space, Discovery Place is now home to 15 buildings occupied by companies ranging from Electronic Arts to Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. The latest building aims to achieve LEED (leadership in energy and environmental design) Gold certification on completion in 2009, but Tom Douglas, Discovery Parks’ director of leasing, notes that the initial results from energy modelling suggest that the building could meet the requirements for LEED platinum. Total energy consumption could be cut by 79% compared with a conventional building, while a 45% reduction in water consumption is planned through rainwater harvesting. An ambitious target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions is also envisioned. Douglas notes that several of the features being incorporated in the building’s mechanical and electrical systems are new to North America, but he sees no reason why they can’t work here. Better still, Douglas expects that tenants will enjoy overall savings from the building, citing a U.S. study that suggests one company in a similar eco-friendly building managed to pay its rent through lower employee turnover and productivity gains. Morguard Investments Ltd. is handling leasing for the building, which will join its stable of properties on completion. The 147,162-square-foot building is estimated to be in excess of $60 million. Green light Shato Holding Ltd.’s bid to exclude approximately 28.5 acres from the province’s agricultural land reserve to accommodate redevelopment of the Tsawwassen Golf and Country Club recently won approval from the Agricultural Land Commission. “The commission believes the exclusion will have no greater impact on the agricultural suitability of the land beyond that which currently exists,” the commissioners say in their decision. Adjacent to the existing club property, the land will allow the club to be reconfigured as a residential community with upwards of 450 units of housing. The proposal drew strong objections from conservationists, some of whom mounted a boycott of Shato’s White Spot restaurants. Parking tax shifted Despite concerns in some quarters that the new South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority that forms on January 1, 2008, diminishes citizen representation in the taxation process, business groups are applauding the approval of a bill that will see the former TransLink parking tax laid on the backs of businesses and residential taxpayers alike. Passed in Victoria on November 29, Bill 43 restructures TransLink such that the board of elected municipal representatives that formerly governed it will be replaced with a nine-member board of appointed professionals. The interests of municipalities will be represented by a commission of mayors. But the bill also provides for a system of variable tax rates that lays the burden of taxes to support regional transit service on all regional property owners, not just commercial property owners as the old TransLink parking area tax did. In addition, revenue garnered through the property tax is capped at $18 million a year. The allocation of the tax burden is up to the appointed board, to be named in early 2008. The Vancouver Fair Tax Coalition, an alliance of seven business groups, expects the allocation to be fair given the degree of opposition to the TransLink levy and feedback on drafts of Bill 43. One such draft could have hit Vancouver business property owners with a whopping 34% of the burden, according to Bob Laurie, the tax coalition’s co-chairman. “The province is going to be watching them like a hawk,” he said of the new board. And what of the democratic process? Laurie thinks it will be an improvement on what existed before, as the legislation is specific in the parameters it sets for the board’s taxation powers, the province will be overseeing its activities, and the new board promises to eliminate much of the regional squabbling that hobbled the current governance structure that Laurie considers hardly democratic. “You don’t have the governance model that promotes regional co-operation,” he said. “That’s not democracy. Democracy is the alignment of appropriate decision-making with the will of the people. |
Question has anyone seen the segment about the VAG expansion on globalTV, I do not watch the tube so I am seeking more info HERE?
|
Business in Vancouver December 18-24, 2007; issue 947
At Large: Peter Ladner Concerns over Canadian Tire store largely unfounded Canadian Tire’s second-try application for a large-scale super-green retail store and four smaller retail stores, including Best Buy and Mark’s Work Wearhouse, on Southwest Marine Drive may seem perfectly reasonable to a business person. But it seized up Vancouver City Council for three nights due to a barrage of public reaction, mostly negative. A lot of the negativity was from people who see this store as a precursor to Wal-Mart, which owns the adjacent property. That’s evident from the complete lack of protest and almost unanimous council approval of a comparable Canadian Tire store in a comparable former industrial area on the Grandview Highway. Since no one could come out and say they opposed Canadian Tire’s application in the name of Wal-Mart, a storm of other objections was raised.Given that Canadian Tire had bought the property in good faith, under an existing policy of allowing big box stores on that location, the company’s $20 million investment in the development had to be respected if we want to be providing any certainty for companies investing in our city. So what arguments would be strong enough to override that concern? •“The neighbourhood doesn’t want it.” This became the headline in the media based on presentations from anti-corporate activists from other neighbourhoods, but it doesn’t reflect the facts. A survey by Canadian Tire asking people in the immediate area if they would support a new Canadian Tire store and other retail on the site got a 77% vote in support, 9% against. Of the local businesses surveyed, 78% were in favour, 7% against. •“It will kill small independent neighbourhood stores in local shopping areas.” The biggest retail impact from the Canadian Tire complex would be from clothing sales at Mark’s Work Wearhouse. (The only significant hardware merchandiser in the area is Canadian Tire’s existing small-format store a few blocks away, due to be closed.) An independent retail study concluded that a proposed 100,000-square-foot expansion at Oakridge Mall would be the biggest loser, so city staff recommended that clothing sales be curtailed at the Canadian Tire complex, mainly to protect Oakridge. Council turned this down. “There is no expected impact on neighbourhood shopping areas, which generally support clothing stores that attract a different clientele,” the city staff reported. The exception was a faltering Field’s store on Fraser Street, but its possible closure “should not have a significant impact on the marketing appeal of the Fraser Street shopping area.” •“It will increase greenhouse gas emissions from increased car traffic created by this auto-dependent format.” This is a legitimate concern but is easily misunderstood in today’s passion about climate change. “Big-box store” evokes acres of parking at the edge of town, miles from downtown. Opponents played to this ugly image by citing “10,000 additional car trips a day” and speculating on resultant GHG emissions. That’s the biggest estimate for the busiest day of the week, Saturday, and includes trips both ways. The actual number of cars is half that: 5,000 max. That compares to 3,770 cars driving past the store every hour on a Saturday. Then you have to ask how many of these trips were “new” – the shopper wasn’t already driving by, or would have never left home if not for these new stores. Hardly any, I would predict. And how far would those shoppers have driven if they didn’t come to this store? If the new store is closer than the alternate destination, then these trips are reducing GHG emissions. Because this store is on four bus routes, within three blocks of a new SkyTrain station, on a bike route and will offer home delivery service, its allowed parking footprint is less than half that of a typical suburban mall. All in all, it’s easy to generate hysteria about increased GHG emissions based on unexamined suburban big-box stereotype thinking. But it doesn’t always make sense. |
Quote:
|
theres some activity on the false creek flats area. does anyone know if this is for the hospital develpment ?
|
Drove past Kingsway & 12th today - the "Stella" condo looks to be topped out - huge visibility down Kingsway, and tucked in behind is the "Sophia" condo which looks almost complete.
|
I like this the most ^^
"Because this store ... ...., within three blocks of a new SkyTrain station, on a bike route and will offer home delivery service, its allowed parking footprint is less than half that of a typical suburban mall." |
Trevor Boddy's article from Saturday's Globe & Mail:
Quote:
|
^^As someone who lives right near the graham house i can't see what all the fuss is about, the place was a wreck, and just the fact that arthur erickson designed it, doesn't necessarily mean its the greatest architectural triumph this city has ever seen. If it had such architectural value how come no one was interested in paying for it. I'm sick of my fellow west vancouver residents pissing and moaning about this house, there's certainly enough money here, why don't they put it where there mouth is.
|
that building with the Tim Hortons on Terminal is looking close to finishing the outside
does anyone know whats going in the lot next to it? A LEASED sign has gone up the MINI dealer is getting up pretty fast too |
Quote:
|
http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p...hoolSideVi.jpg
http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p...opView-red.jpg Details presented by Emaar to the neighbours on November 19th are as follows: • project to extend from West 41st to the north edge of the current Fellowship Centre property. • 5 concrete buildings varying in height from 3 to 8 storeys in a stepped arrangement • site coverage will be nearly 90% • senior oriented complex (senior-friendly market housing) • plus/minus 50 units • average unit size 1,400 sq ft • majority of units 2 bedroom/2 bathroom • 120 underground parking spots for residents plus 20 for church (likely with mechanical car park system) • traffic to be oriented northbound to West 39th • green space on roofs • pool at southwest corner (facing West 41st) • EcoDensity friendly • external elevators • geothermal heating |
^nice. thanks for the info.
|
Thanks. I dug this up with a google search:
http://www.dunbar-vancouver.org/DRAN...em/79/catid/15 Architect is Adrian Smith (Chicago. FormerSOM, architect of Burj Dubai, hence the connection with Emaar) http://www.smithgill.com/firmportfolio.htm# The Dunbar Resident's Association's view is: The view of the DRA Board is that the project as described is objectionable and clearly does not comply with the Dunbar Community Vision. For example, both the significant extension of the project northward beyond the lane and the excessive height of some of the buildings are patently inconsistent with approved Vision directions. The Board is further concerned with the guidance City Planning is reportedly providing the developer to encourage increased density and greater building height than is supported in the Vision. The Board relies on the Dunbar Community Vision -- which was developed as part of a City planning process engaging neighbourhood residents -- when making its comments, and urges that any development submission respect the Vision and reflect the desires of the community. |
Business in Vancouver January 8-14, 2008; issue 950
Real estate roundup: Peter Mitham Billboards get bum’s rush Roof-top signs that don’t comply with Vancouver municipal bylaws headed for the scrap heap in 2008 Seeking compliance The new year has opened with Vancouver city staff readying a campaign to rid the city of non-conforming billboards following a Supreme Court of Canada decision in November. The Supreme Court rejected an appeal regarding the billboard atop the Lee building at Broadway and Main, which must now be removed in compliance with a Vancouver bylaw prohibiting roof-top signs. The federal court’s decision upholds an earlier B.C. court judgment that ruled in favour of the city. But Carlene Robbins, manager of the city’s property use branch, said at least 200 signs that fail to comply with the city’s existing billboard regulations could come down starting this year. Municipal staff are surveying existing billboards to see how many don’t comply with current bylaws. Though many were approved by the city and received the requisite permits, they no longer conform with the city’s rules. “We’re thinking we’ll have a voluntary phase-out period,” Robbins said, “and then if they don’t comply, we’ll have to look at enforcing, and we’ll start by enforcing the most offensive or the ones that most blatantly don’t meet the current bylaw.” Staff will present a signs survey and phase-out strategy to council in the coming weeks. The news doesn’t sit well with local media buyers. Carmen Hunt, media director with ad agency TBWA\Vancouver, said Vancouver already has less billboard space than surrounding municipalities. Any decrease in the number of boards will put upward pressure on the cost of space. “The few remaining boards that are available will be in so high demand that the space will not often come available to advertisers – they’ll be booked on long-term contracts – and the space that is available will probably be prohibitively expensive,” Hunt said. “For a lot of advertisers, it’s the loss of a really strong media.” Fraser Institute weighs in Fraser Institute senior fellow Martin Collacott recently weighed in on Metro Vancouver’s Sustainable Region Initiative during a regional discussion at the Wosk Centre in Vancouver. Residential developers are one of the few groups that benefit from immigration to a region that’s significantly challenged by the people it already has, said Collacott, a former diplomat who currently studies immigration policy for the Vancouver-based Fraser Institute. With Statistics Canada reporting that nearly 70% of recent immigrants to Canada live in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver, Collacott said better immigration management could help manage urban growth. “Shouldn’t Vancouverites be saying, ‘Well do we really want this? Are we going to benefit from it? What are the benefits, what are the downsides? And do we have to have it?’” Collacott said in an interview last month. Developers might benefit from immigration, he said, but the average citizen is often left out. “The real estate industry would like an endless increase in demands for housing,” he said. “The average Vancouverite is not in any of the categories that have a clear benefit. What’s the deal here? They’re simply being told they’ll have to have [immigration].” While Collacott has questioned Canada’s immigration policies in the past, the Metro Vancouver forum was one of the first times he has publicly applied his concerns to regional growth issues. Michael Alexander, a research analyst with advocacy group SmartGrowth BC who heard Collacott’s presentation, doesn’t think immigration is as big a factor as the shape of growth. “We’re perfectly capable of continuing to sprawl without adding one more person to Vancouver.” Kristall polishing plans The Kristall Resort and Spa in Vernon was big news when it first cropped up in this space two years ago (see “Kristall clear” – BIV issue 764; June 15-21, 2004). Then valued at $65 million, the project was supposed to be completed in spring 2006. Site servicing began three years ago, but construction of the main buildings never started. A call to project manager Jim Radford last year confirmed that plans were still on the books, but nothing was to be announced till January 2008. Well, here we are – and the news is out. In fact, construction of the project began in earnest last month. While the price tag has increased to $100 million, construction is still expected to take two years. The 150-room hotel, including a 20,000-square-foot wellness centre, is slated to open in late 2009 and be in full swing by the start of the 2010 golfing season. The 174-acre property has approvals from Vernon for up to 300 units. A second phase of the master-planned project, a venture of Europe’s Swarovski Group, could include a resort-style residential community similar to the one at neighbouring Predator Ridge. • |
i like that Main Street billboard, don't know why people are complaining about it.
|
i would like to know who is complaining?
i haven't yet met anyone who says anything about it its reached landmark status too as most locals know it it brings in some good money for the building - they are losing a nice chunck of change |
there are thousands of signs in HK just like that, i really don't understand why the city is being such a dick about it. god forbid if this is a view issue.
|
Quote:
I for one, don't care to look at a Giant McDonald's sign when driving over my favorite landmark. |
It's more an issue of control. It's also reflected in the City's strict controls on building and landscape design.
|
Although i hate large advertisements, and well just about any advertisement as its main goal is to gain your atention at the expense of much more interesting things like architecture etc. and brain wash you. Anyways I agree that city goes way to far with its rules and thirst for total control over everything and anything. In the end its just going to make me move and leave the region which I love otherwise, well I dont care too much about the city but rather the almost unspoiled nature within a short drive and all the benefits of a city. Anyways my point is that all these rules regarding just about everything is just freaking insane in a country that prides itself on the freedom its people supposedly have. I mean all these liquor bylaws, smoking bylaws, billboard bylaws, dog bylaws, idling bylaws, the hate of gatherings, hate of events, dog bylaws etc. et.c just go way to far, this place feels like a totalitarian state, I mean in this city we have less freedom then people in a communist state where the control of the people is one of the main objectives to achieve its goals. I mean its way worse here then a communist state...I should know. I mean im really starting to have enough as I feel like a little child at times, no freedom, nothing, there are so many god dam rules that I cant live a day without technically braking one or many of them.
I guess my point is that the city is going way to far and although I hate advertisements I dont want the city making more bylaws and rules, I dont like them someone else might, I do something I like and someone else might not, its all about compromise because we all loose when the city or country go overboard trying to protect everyone from everyone. |
REceived the flollowing mass mailing from the mayor, in case anyone is interested.
Dear friends, Let me begin my first communiqué of 2008 wishing you and your family all the best for the coming year. It promises to be an exciting one around City Hall! For me, 2008 will be a year of delivering on initiatives to support the five goals we have established for Vancouver. I look forward to keeping you up to date on our progress and hearing your ideas. One of the five goals we have established for our government is to make Vancouver a world leader in sustainable development and transportation. One of the key elements of our plan to achieve this goal is completion of the Millennium Line to central Broadway and UBC. With over 60,000 passengers each day, Broadway is one of the busiest bus corridors in North America. Transit ridership on Broadway has doubled in the past decade and despite increased service, overcrowded buses often leave passengers waiting. Last summer, our government identified Millennium Line completion as Vancouver's top transit infrastructure priority. Shortly after, Metro Vancouver and the City of Vancouver confirmed more than $2 million to develop a plan to consult stakeholders regarding the project's design - in partnership with Translink. As part of that process, Councillors Suzanne Anton, Peter Ladner and I have initiated an outreach campaign to local Broadway businesses, students at UBC the provincial and federal governments. In October, we made the case for Millennium Line funding in our pre-budget submission to the BC Minister of Finance. We followed that up with a November visit to Victoria and a December visit to Ottawa where we put the case for Millennium Line completion directly to Ministers and senior officials. And to support all of this, I released a special survey on my website inviting local businesses, residents and community organizations to give us their ideas about the plan to complete the Millennium Line. Over 1800 people have responded to the survey, and support for completing the line to UBC was overwhelming. Today, Premier Gordon Campbell and Transport Minister Kevin Falcon confirmed that they have been listening to all of us. They have confirmed that the Province of British Columbia will invest in a new $2.8 billion, 12km UBC rapid transit line from Broadway station to UBC by 2020. The UBC Line was not the only bit of good news for Vancouver today. As part of the new province-wide transit plan we will see more new buses and a significant expansion of the Expo Line starting next year. I want to thank Premier Campbell and Minister Falcon for listening to us and helping us achieve the goals we have established. I also want to remind you that you can still fill out the Millennium Line survey until the end of the month. We will be publishing final results in February. Today's announcement is an historic one for the province and our city. In addition to complementing our EcoDensity plan and the commitments we have made for more bike lanes in Vancouver, it is an example of what can happen when governments work together constructively. We look forward to more progress in the months ahead. City Council Motion Will Improve Animal Service Facilities & Licensing This past weekend I had the pleasure to visit the Vancouver SPCA shelter with Councillors Kim Capri and Suzanne Anton. We were joined by Park Board Chair Korina Houghton and Commission Marty Zlotnik to thank volunteers and announce our plans to support a City Council motion to improve animal service facilities and licensing in Vancouver. The motion will be introduced at City Council tomorrow. The new plan calls for: development of a self-sustaining funding model for dog licensing, urban animal education, by-law enforcement & related programs in Vancouver request for a new animal services facility for Vancouver in association with the 2009-2011 capital plan community partnerships to assist in the City's delivery of services Councillor Capri's motion builds on the work of various committees involving stakeholders, City Council, School and Park Board officials. It is based on other innovative animal licensing models in North America. Responsible pet ownership contributes to neighbourhoods and communities that are safer, more enjoyable and more livable for everyone. I want to thank all the members of City Council, School and Park Board who have been working on the Dog Committee for the past year. These proposals are a tribute to their hard work and love for animals. Expanded Street Cleaning Program Proposed in Downtown Eastside Also this week, City Council will consider an expanded street cleaning project in the Downtown Eastside (DTES). This initiative will focus on lane cleaning, education and enforcement covering 4-6 blocks bordering Columbia and East Hastings Street in Vancouver. Expanding street cleaning services in the DTES is another step toward achieving the goals and objectives of Project Civil City. In addition to delivering large investments in social housing, addiction treatment, mental illness and policing, we need to implement grassroots, street level solutions to public disorder. My colleagues and I will be supporting a proposed investment of up to $200,000 in the 2008 municipal budget to significantly enhance street cleaning services. While many of the solutions to our social challenges fall under the jurisdiction of senior levels of government, street cleaning is a municipal responsibility. I want to thank our community partners and the Clean Streets Task Force for their important contribution to make Vancouver a more civil city in all our neighbourhoods. The proposal to expand street cleaning activities and enforcement in the DTES builds on a 2006 pilot project and on other initiatives to support Project Civil City goals and objectives that have been announced in the last 60 days, including: development of over 1100 units of social and supportive housing on 12 city-owned sites across Vancouver expansion of Downtown Ambassador program plan to establish dumpster-free zones downtown Granville Street closure on New Year's Eve employment opportunities for inner city residents as part of Athletes Village construction in Southeast False Creek Olympic Legacy Fund for public realm improvements in inner city neighbourhoods proposal to relax height restrictions for new construction on signature sites in Gastown, Chinatown and Downtown Eastside Sincerely, Sam Sullivan Mayor |
^Thanks for posting that jlousa, some interesting stuff there. I'm really interested in finding out the actual dates surrounding construction of the M-Line extension. I would hope it would be completed several years before 2020, otherwise it would essentially be two decades overdue.
Quote:
|
I used to work for Pattison Outdoor in Vancouver and i think outdoor advertising can be done right or very wrong. For the most part Vancouver does it right and i love the LEE building ad space.
|
Business in Vancouver January 15-21, 2008; issue 951
Real estate roundup: Peter Mitham Metro Vancouver residential real estate prices projected to rise again in 2008 Ontario property management company bullish on Victoria office market Housing boom The news last week that Bob Rennie is listing the penthouse atop the Residences at the Ritz-Carlton on West Georgia for $28 million is stunning, yet merely the most extreme tip of the upward trend in residential prices most brokerages were reporting last year. Royal LePage Real Estate Services, for one, reported last week that home prices rose 10.8% in Vancouver last year and projected a further 4.8% gain this year (below Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. estimates but still firm). That sets Vancouver on track to see an average home price this year of $587,500. Meanwhile, the CMHC reports that vacancies in rental units across the province fell for a fourth straight year, hitting 1% in October 2007. While conditions remained steady in Vancouver (CMHC didn’t consider the increase in vacancies to 0.5% from 0.3% an improvement), conditions tightened in centres close to the city core – most notably Richmond, where vacancies last year dropped to 0.7% from 2.4%. This had a knock-on effect on rents, which rose 4.5% across the region. With power in the residential market remaining firmly in the hands of sellers and landlords, expect to see development plans holding steady this year, too. The fact that Vancouver councillors approved plans for 1,200 new units of social housing across the city last month is as indicative of market conditions as it is good news for the people it will accommodate. As municipal homeless advocate Judy Graves remarked in this space last year, vacancies for the least fortunate throughout Metro Vancouver have been zero for quite some time. The next forecasts for the residential market will come at the January 17 Urban Development Institute luncheon (watch this space for a summary). Investing in tight markets Dropping office vacancies on the West Coast have drawn Mississauga-based TransGlobe Property Management Services Ltd. to Victoria. Colliers International reports that Victoria office vacancies in 2007 dropped to 2.9% from 4%. With very little new product being built to serve the demand, TransGlobe president Daniel Drimmer believes the region is ripe for investment. “We’re very bullish on offices in Victoria,” Drimmer said. “There’s not much new construction. … We like the fact that there’s not new property coming on board, we like the tight vacancy rate for office, and it’s a very good long-term investment to own offices in Victoria.” TransGlobe acquired 31 Bastion Square last month for an undisclosed sum, a deal that followed the purchase in August of Upper Harbour Place II, the first new A-class office project built in Victoria in five years. Together, the two buildings account for 134,000 square feet of space. TransGlobe is also interested in adding to its portfolio of three commercial properties in Metro Vancouver and continues to scout opportunities. While a lack of new product gives Victoria an edge from an investor’s point of view, Drimmer believes the environment in Vancouver is also strong. While new projects are more common in Metro Vancouver, Colliers reports that regional office vacancies stand at 4.1%, while downtown Vancouver is tighter than the capital with a vacancy rate of just 1.9%. Analysts project further tightening in the market in 2008. Pending further office acquisitions, Drimmer is focused on residential units. TransGlobe acquired two apartment buildings in New Westminster on January 4 with a total of 69 suites. It also expects to close on two more transactions in Burnaby and New Westminster in the coming weeks, which will add a further 99 rental units to TransGlobe’s portfolio. UniverCity wins award Kudos to SFU’s UniverCity development, the sole project from Canada to win an award of excellence last month from the American Planning Association. UniverCity was one of nine recipients of the 2008 National Planning Excellence, Achievement and Leadership Awards, taking home honours for “innovation in green community planning.” The award will be presented at the APA’s April 30 conference in Las Vegas. |
Didn't know where to put this....
During the News Hour, they showed Chevron Burnaby plant doing a routine burnoff: http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/4517/96201820te0.jpg They got a bunch of callers thinking it was some kind of big fire. :D |
Quote:
But now the Lee is ad-less, unfortunately... |
Quote:
This is such a ridiculous case, and an example of NIMBYism at its worst. One person's desire for aesthetic perfection shouldn't interfere with another person's right to do whatever they want on their property. If anyone truly feels that they would be better off without the billboard, they should compensate the owners of the Lee building accordingly. Cornholio's rant might be hyperbolic, but I agree with the general sentiment. |
I don't have pictures, but work on the 2010 curling venue at Hillcrest Park, adjacent to Nat Bailey Stadium, is rapidly progressing. The roof of the building is already taking shape, half of it has been erected.
|
Quote:
was kinda weird a pulsating orange glow i wondered what what was going on |
Quote:
stupid idea - huge loss of income for the building |
Quote:
|
Quote:
:) |
Quote:
|
Quote:
If they fined people for stupidity, you would be declaring bankruptcy. |
Quote:
Owning your own property doesn`t mean you can do *anything* you want on it. I would be offended if my neighbour installed a giant billboard on their lot. It would interfere with my quality of living, and would be an eyesore for the whole neighbourhood, which, not surprisingly, would affect the value of his and my house, let alone generate bad blood with all the other neighbours, affect sight lines, affect sunlight, and all that stuff. So there are reasons why you cannot do absolutely anything you want on your own property, and the city bylaws are there for those reasons. Having said that, I don`t think the Lee Building`s billboard was ever an eyesore to anybody. Granted it is a subjective opinion on aesthetics, but I think it has been there so long that it has become a landmark rather than an eyesore - it`s no more or less ugly than the Jumbotron on BC Place or the giant signs above Futureshop/Winners on Robson/Granville. Plus, because of the building's height and mass, it can't be seen from ground level or even with in the immediate blocks anyway. I wouldn't mind if that particular billboard, due only to its landmark status, won an exemption to the rule. But all of the other ones the city has identified as being outside of the bylaws, I would be OK with them being removed - gradually and with the least impact on the property owners (I'm talking about the ones that have been there a long time and are not affecting their neighbours such as the one on South Granville). |
Pottery Barn Kids Is opening up On Granville Street - next to or just one down from Williams-Sonoma - the space where Pottery Barn had a temp store last year...
|
Quote:
I wasn't really talking about cases like this - all the billboards we've been discussing are in high-volume transit corridors. However, even if your neighbour erects a massive sign in his yard: A) The chances of this happening in a suburban neighbourhood where it would actually matter are slim to none, because of the reasons you mentioned B) Even if it did happen, it's their property - if you want to do something about it, bring it up with them. Gather all your neighbours together and bring it up. If they're uncooperative and covering your house in shadow, nuisance bylaws or small claims court would probably do the trick. But if it's just an eyesore and it bothers you that much, move to a subdivision with a strata council to protect you from these things. At any rate, this isn't what I was talking about and it's clearly not what this bylaw is being used to stop. If you want a bylaw that clearly states "Thou shalt not put huge signs on your lawn in residential areas", lobby for that. I wouldn't agree with it, but it's better than a catch-all bylaw that's depriving property owners in high-traffic locations of some extra revenue. It may sound a little strange to defend advertising, but does the average billboard downtown really reduce your quality of life that much? I used to live in Japan, and I loved the neon and advertising downtown - it made it feel much livelier and city-like. I'm done, sorry for the threadjack. |
i don't think anyone here is anti-billboard
i think most people want the billboard to stay as is its the city who seems to want it gone |
Business in Vancouver January 22-28, 2008; issue 952
Real estate roundup: Peter Mitham Asia-Pacific trade centre for City of Vancouver ruffles feathers in Richmond Meanwhile in Delta: golf club redevelopment plan raises ire of conservationists Richmond laments Robson plan A planned multimillion-dollar makeover of Robson Square is not sitting well in Richmond. A renovation of the downtown Vancouver plaza has been discussed at various times over the past decade, but discussions now underway in Victoria could be the real deal. A final decision on the project hasn’t been made, but the B.C. Ministry of Economic Development says an Asia-Pacific trade centre would be a desirable element. There’s just one hitch: it’s the kind of thing tourism officials in Richmond have been seeking for that municipality, a fact that sparks some concern among backers of the Richmond project. Since 1999, Tourism Richmond has collected about $6 million from a 2% tax on local hotel accommodation towards the development of an Asia Pacific Trade and Showcase Centre, originally envisioned as a media centre for the 2010 Winter Olympics. The media centre went to Vancouver, and now the trade centre seems set to go to Vancouver, too. A spokesman for the province said Richmond wasn’t considered for the Asia Pacific centre touted for Robson Square, prompting Tracy Lakeman, executive director of Tourism Richmond to wonder why not. “We still believe that Richmond is the ideal location for an Asia Pacific centre, culturally as well as business-wise,” she said. Shato faces challenge The exclusion of 28.5 acres of land in Delta from the agricultural land reserve in exchange for the inclusion of 4.5 acres that are farmed is under fire from conservationists. The arrangement was approved by the Agricultural Land Commission in November 2007 and removes an obstacle to Shato Holding Ltd.’s reconfiguration and redevelopment of the Tsawwassen Golf and Country Club with upwards of 450 units of housing. Shato has also committed 150 acres for rezoning from industrial to agricultural use as part of the arrangement. But the apparent benefits to agriculture are drawing serious criticism from the Boundary Bay Conservation Committee, which has secured a grant from West Coast Environmental Law allowing it to retain North Vancouver lawyer William Andrews. Andrews filed a petition on behalf of the Boundary Bay committee and its representative Kent Warmington in B.C. Supreme Court on January 10, days after Delta council sent Shato’s proposal to public hearing. The petition seeks orders “quashing” the two resolutions of the Agricultural Land Commission that cleared the way for Shato to present its redevelopment application to Delta council. The conservation committee contends in court documents that the land commission “exceeded its jurisdiction” at several points, and argues that the exclusion violates the spirit of 1989 decision allowing a golf course on the lands. The planned residential development is not a legitimate golf course use, it believes. “A new application for golf course use of ALR land and an application for exclusion of ALR land for residential development is certainly not a benefit to agricultural land,” Andrews told the land commission in a letter last fall, prior to being retained as counsel for the conservation committee. Industrial strength A reader asked last week how things had changed with industrial land over the past decade. A glance back at BIV’s list of the “Biggest industrial business parks in Greater Vancouver” (April 1998) shows that land in the biggest park, Annacis Island, was selling for $375,000 to $400,000 an acre, while in Gloucester, parcels could be had for as little as $205,000 an acre. The cheapest property was in Bontebok Holdings Ltd.’s Nelson Road Industrial Park in Richmond, where sites began at $175,000 an acre. Today, prices are well above those decade-old values. Vacant land sales on Annacis are as rare as hen’s teeth, but estimates at Colliers International last fall pegged current values at between $1 million and $1.2 million an acre. In Gloucester, buyers can expect to pay between $900,000 and $1.2 million an acre. The rise in prices – there’s lots of other examples besides these two – correlates with demand. A decade ago, Colliers reported a regional vacancy rate for industrial properties of 4.6%. Today, the brokerage shows vacancies sitting at 1.5%. With quarterly absorption over the past two years averaging 1.35 million feet and new supply lagging behind it by an average of 600,000 square feet a quarter, the market doesn’t appear set to slacken. |
Quote:
i.e. something that shouldn't be spearheaded by tourism officials? |
Quote:
The way to foster increased trade with Asia is to continue fostering the growth of the Canadian economy; make the country more attractive to invest in; and focus on research, innovation and value-added products. |
Nothing really, but a new Tim Horton's coming to Commercial Dr.
Specs: 1932 sq ft. Corner of E 1st and Commercial Construction will start late April and finish Canada Day. |
Quote:
There is that old empty McDonalds spot a little to the West of the VanCity, I guess it could be in there? |
| All times are GMT. The time now is 9:24 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2026, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Prev