600 Robson | 65.55 m | 13fl | Proposed
 

http://i.imgur.com/8anjKuLl.jpg
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/renderings.pdf

https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/index.htm

Project Data:
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/projectdata.pdf

Renderings:
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/renderings.pdf

Elevations:
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/elevations.pdf

Landscaping Plans:
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/landscape.pdf

big improvement over what is there now.

Thanks!

That site is prime for large format retail though.
Disappointed in the retail proposal - especially since it is for the Bonnis family who own the Best Buy / Winners building.
Even the 2nd floor terrace unit is marked "office", not restaurant.

The design looks like something from the 1990s.
The design rationale says the City asked for a short height (max is 300ft) to avoid shadowing on Robson St. and Granville St.
It'll be about the same height as Vancouver House (the original building with that name) across Robson St.

https://i.imgur.com/Vrt08N0.png
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/streetscape.pdf

https://i.imgur.com/L4Up3dn.png
https://development.vancouver.ca/600robson/documents/designrationale.pdf

I am disappointed with the look of this one. The corner this building is going into would be a good one to have a more iconic structure that has a superior overall look. The fact its also close to the new offices of Amazon and other spaces makes this spot a prime one where something a little nicer should be built.

Maybe the UDP will reject this and Perkins and Will will go back to the drawing board and come up with something nicer. From the company that has made some much nicer projects this ones a disappointment.

I would love to see a larger space for a large format retailer maybe Kim's Market or something to compliment H Mart on the other side of Seymour....

I like stuff that looks like it's from the 90s!

How is it good for large format retail? It's a pretty tight lot

WRT large format, I mean larger format clothing retailer (not as big as Wal-Mart, etc.).
The podium floorplates are 667.49 sq metres (6000 sq ft?).
So a 12-18,000 sq ft retailer could be possible on 2 to 3 floors.
Banana Republic @ Thurlow has 3 levels. H&M in Pacific Centre has 3 levels.
Old Navy at Granville has 2 levels.
It's also very central as just "off-Granville".

Not bad, but hope it involves some form of lighting / signage.

I'm a fan of anything that helps block the view of the ghastly Capitol.

I'm a little surprised at the sackcloth and ashes response to this proposal.

It's a small site, and for the area, is likely the best that can be done usage-wise. Having worked in the area off and on for several years, I can say that this isn't the most prime lot for anything in particular, so I'm surprised people are somehow expecting a retail mecca. (And I wonder how many of those people actively work in commercial real estate.)

Ah, so this is where the print and framing store is? Another longtime Vancouver business disappears.

Yeah, I don't even think you could go much taller considering the small size of the lot and tower either.

It's a decently-sized infill tower in Downtown. The design is basic, but more unique than a 'box'. I'm fine with it. it doesn't need to stand out.

Isn't the height limit 300 feet? They can go higher

It would just be nice to have a little nicer design for this spot may be in the line of say the new building going up beside VCC Clark Station [The Hive] and or even something with more colour like makes the glass red or something instead of just another glass box that blends in with its surroundings. A building with all black glass and cladding maybe cool just because we seem to have too much seafoam glass in this city.

Not sure if there are any height restrictions on the site and or view cones... But it would definitely be nice to see a building here that is as tall as possible for the site.

In regards to retail IGA, is a block or so nearby is also two floors and I think Home Sense is on top of the two-floor IGA. A few blocks further and of course you have at the corner Best Buy, Winners, and street-level retail so three levels of retail in this area most definitely is not unusual.

Iga is just one floor

Lol! I forgot I was thinking about the IGA on Burrard across from Famous Players Scotia Bank Theatre. Thanks for correcting me on that location...

This proposal is a significant step backwards in terms of the quantity and quality of retail space provided. Retail presently covers nearly 100% of the site's area, while under this proposal, it will cover under 40%, and take the form of very shallow units unsuitable for anything interesting. We can't afford backwards steps like this as downtown's daytime population continues to skyrocket.

Back to the drawing board. Multi-storey retail is called for here, or at minimum, re-arrange the ground floor to allow for deeper commercial spaces.

Loving this one. It's got some height and definition. Would prefer to see a two to three storey retail though!

It's interesting that this project has less retail than is there today. Bonnis almost certainly own more retail buildings Downtown (especially on Granville Street) and on West Broadway than any other owner/developer, so they understand retail demand better than most. The previous project before this was the conversion of the almost all retail Tom Lee Music to office, with retail reduced to the main floor. They've also completed the repair and canopy replacement on the Commodore Ballroom, and there are quite a few new tenants in there. They seem to be diversifying their portfolio by adding more office, as well as rental residential. I wonder if that tells us anything about their view of retail in the next few years? There are signs that on-line retail is starting to hit the bottom line of traditional bricks and mortar retailers, so maybe we won't see a significant increase in retail (except where there was none before, like the new Vancouver House retail area).

They can't, to avoid shadowing of the intersection- perhaps it's a safety issue? I can see shadowing of a major intersection being a problem for left-turns during daytime. Either way, they could go wider, but they're not, to expand the podium amenity space of the nearby tower. It's nowhere near hitting its maximum FSR, even accounting for the limitations of the site.

I'm more wondering about the nearby surface level parking lots on the lot behind the tower on the other side of Seymour St. Seems like a pretty prime location with a ton of potential for offices.

lmao. Safety issue? Limiting the shade an intersection gets has nothing to do with safety. That makes no sense

I like the design... maybe not the functionality but the design of the tower itself is nice.

BUT it irks me that it isn't going for the maximum zoned height limit. With space being such a hot-button issue, they can make it at least the maximum allowable height.

There's no such thing as a 'maximum zoned height limit' in Vancouver. There are height limits set by policy - either in plans, or through viewcone limits. Those maximum heights are always subject to other policy. In the West End Plan for example it says "Building heights are subject to other Council-approved policies, guidelines, by-laws and urban design considerations". Developers all know this, although some times they'll try to see if they can get round some of those policies and guidelines.

This building proposal is also building the maximum density allowed in the zoning here - which is 5 FSR plus a 10% bonus if heritage space is taken from the Heritage Bank. The DP Application (while the link is live) shows they're proposing 5.5 FSR. In theory they might consider a rezoning, but given the site limitations (proximity to the Capitol next door, the potential shadowing of Granville) and the extra cost and time that would take, this is as big as they can build in a straightforward project.

If you want to see what the zoning allows here, L'Aria across Seymour to the south, was completed in 2004 with 3 FSR of residential and 2 FSR (required here) of commercial. That was a bigger site; presumably the strong demand for office space led the developer to making this an all commercial project. There's greater efficiency in keeping just one use for the upper floors, especially on a small site.

Manhattan must be the most unsafe place in the world where you can find lots of twisted wreckage in many street intersections with tall buildings around. Oh the humanity.... :D

Thousands of man-hours and billions of dollars could've been saved if all the nonsense was never in existence.

Which is why I find it disappointing there isn't more retail when you have retailers like Uniqlo looking for space. I actually think that the Robson & Seymour location (due to proximity to Nordstrom) is more desirable now than Robson west of Burrard (certainly moreso than west of Thurlow).

Westbank also changed the retail levels at Telus Garden to office space, but that was several years ago and a block farther east.

Is it because it is close to the mall and departments stores, hence more desirable?

I think Retail Insider said that the retail focus downtown has shifted eastwards after Nordstrom opened (more of an anchor than Sears was) and after Pacific Centre has become higher end.
That's in part why Robson west of Thurlow isn't doing so well - it's too far away.

Noted here:
https://www.retail-insider.com/retail-in...le-street-strip-to-see-retail-resurgence

Yeah, you can feel a shift towards the east now.

Robson West isn't that interesting, for me when strolling will usually hit up CB2 and then go back east.

The weird thing is that from Seymour eastwards, Robson is dominated by restaurants and services.
The only hard goods retailers are H-Mart, IGA, Vitasave (new), Body Energy Club and Homesense, and a lot of those are also food stores.

Feb.8 '19, my pics
https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1280x1024q90/924/QQ1Ha0.jpg


https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1280x1024q90/922/FOHl8e.jpg


https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1280x1024q90/922/SeKqlm.jpg

^I bet the city will raise all sorts of heck if that tree on the corner gets impinged by the new building.

I think it looks fine for the area, but of course it could have been a bit taller. I think the design is actually pretty nice.

I think those trees will be cut down soon. I have noticed the trees along Robson and other parts of the city have been gradually cut down. I think the issue with a lot of the trees being cut down is that they are getting a little big and their roots are damaging the sidewalks. I can also see some of them being in really bad overall health as well. Moss growing and or other things growing which make the trees more of a hazard then beneficial to the residents of the city. I think the most likely case is that the trees there are going to be removed and a few new trees planted to replace the existing ones. The sidewalk on that side of Robson is not in great condition anyway so the construction will be a great opportunity to take out the roots and rebuild the curb and put in nice new sidewalks. The city has also in recent years worked to find new tree species that are more appropriate for placement in locations like that as well that have smaller root balls and grow up and less so out.

The one storey retail with deck above is supposed to provide room for the trees.
However, buildings with taller podiums were built to the east and the trees were trimmed and fine after construction.
Oddly, one tree was protected during construction of R&R at Robson & Richards,
then cut down a few years later for the hydro vault work in the sidewalk.

While I agree the CoV required too much retail as part of earlier projects, this is one area that deserves lots of streetfront retail. It is always busy.

Another note:
I don't see "For Lease" signs on the eastern stretch of Robson - unlike the western stretch where they charge much more for rent.

The cannabis shops sure don't do much for enlivening the sidewalks - all those windows blocked off. Either make it legal for them to be visible, or don't allow them on shopping streets.

(sorry, way off topic here, but the image really highlights this)

I think that cannabis shop is moving across the street to where the 7-11 was.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?p=8462698#post8462698

One thing I'll certainly miss is the card shop on the corner.

I notice the weed places all have frosted glass now, part of the new regulations I'm sure.

Yeah, it looked much nicer before the new regs.

Why are there so many weed stores? Can't people buy it online?

^^^ Why wait 2 days when you can TOKE up asap

If all the pot shops closed there would be a huge surplus dump of vacant retail space in this city. The pot shops have been one of the few saving graces for landlords who aren't afraid of the stigma and don't like the look of perpetual 'For Lease' signs on their buildings. I can tell that the negative comments regarding the pot shops are out of insecurity or close-mindedness. I have never met a scary or seedy character in any pot shop, if anything, the friendliest people you will ever meet in this pretentious city.

600 Robson - Open House
 

http://i.imgur.com/U4gU27ql.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/MhfZTfsl.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/5t2Egtdl.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/PSAasvql.jpg

https://cityduo.wordpress.com/2019/03/07...is-unable-to-achieve-impossible-heights/

Love the alley created between Capital Residences and the new building. There should be retail with door facing it. That is a much needed covered (or partially covered) plaza and alley in the downtown neighbourhood.

Not a fan of the public plaza on Seymour, what's the point? Just another covered sleeping area for the homeless.

What about the hideous black wall on the Capitol

Do you see the homeless sleeping in the lane and covered square of Telus Garden? What about the convention centre? Key is to have strict enforcement.

this is true; and keep in mind commercial buildings have good enforcement since it is making a lot of money.

That's not an alley - it's a recessed entry to the building (it doesn't go all the way through to the actual alley)