VANCOUVER | The Projects & Construction Thread
 

wow. that musta took some time to compile

Great work! Thanks so much for the updates, Vancouver is looking f'ing sweet!

mediocre at best id er um say

Whats mediocre? The thread? The highrises? The City itself?? I think they're all lookin' fine... the city is really starting to become dense, any the only beef I've got is the lack of really tall buildings.

Looks great. I love the density.

he was being sarcastic... anywho, great thread for this great city. So many nice projects underway (esp the Ritz)!

Thanks for the update Hed Kandi, great job as usual. By the way, do you think you could add a section for significant projects under 150ft such as the convention centre, Olympic Village, Canada Line etc?

For those that don't know what Vancouver's skyline looks like, post a panoramic shot of the city. Basically Vancouver is a massive number of 20 story towers with a huge park. It's nice to see some of the towers are hitting 600ft. The above designs are all very nice.

I think the mayor of Vancover will walk before a 900+ft tower appears in the skyline. Let's hope I'm wrong. Some super talls would really add to the skyline.

There will be a day where Vancouver will have to stop their cute little height restrictions. With property values going through the roof and the city growing as fast as it is there is, the Shangri-La won't be the tallest for long. Within the next year or two there will be another tallest going up, no doubt.

Close but no cigar. Huge portions of the downtown and yaletown areas are zoned for around 300ft, and most buildings seem to be able to squeek out 30 stories or so, some a few highter, some a few lower than that. There have been some complaints that it is making this area look flat. I think 25-40 story buildings for residential purposes works very well. Tall enough, but it doesn't make the city feel like a bunch of dark, windy, lonely canyons that I have experienced in many other cities. I love tall, but the feel of the neighborhoods seems more residential somehow at this height level.

It would be nice to get 2-3 towers in the 700-1000 foot range, but I hope buildings this tall, if ever allowed to be built at all, will be in the downtown core.

Here's a shot I rather like that shows off the current skyline. As you can see it is especially flat in the southern part of downtown (to the right of the picture). A few taller towers in the CBD (taller area to the left) would be really nice. If we had those I wouldn't really care if the southern part was still really flat and short. The Shangri-la currently under construction should help out quite a bit (it's 31% taller than the next tallest building). It is supposed to top out in December from what I've most recently heard.

Originally posted by mr.x2 in the Vancouver photo thread...
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1226/...46b0bd33_b.jpg

Yes, I agree, it is rather flat on the south end of downtown. The only building that sticks out a little bit on the very far right of the photo is most likely One West which is 47 stories tall. I always felt that the 300 foot limitation in this part of town could have been relaxed a bit and additional height allowances granted for projects closer to the downtown core. I understand that this is somewhat of a reality with the present zoning and viewcones, that stairsteps heights taller as one reaches the central business core, but it falls flat south of Granville Street.

:previous: I should also add that the viewcones and the shape of our skyline was designed as a rounded bubble, not to exceed the mountain tips from primarily False Creek and southern view locations. The above photo was most likely taken from Jericho Beach or Spanish Bank, a skyline outlook that the people responsible for the current height limits did not consider.

Vancouver is crazy with construction! I've got to get up there again soon.

January Vancouver update
 

Well it has been a long time since a Vancouver update, hasn't it?

January 15th was a beautiful sunny winter day in Vancouver and so I headed out with my camera to take a walk downtown.

L'Hermitage ( mixed-use condo, hotel, social housing, grocery store, and retail, Robson and Richards)
http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/5451/p1050059lo4.jpg

Raffles on Robson (mixed-use condo and retail, Robson and Cambie)
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/387/p1050091ww0.jpg

TV Towers (2 towers, mixed-use condo and retail, Robson and Cambie)
http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/7879/p1050093ps0.jpg

Atelier (mixed-use condo, retail, office, daycare, Robson and Homer)
http://img175.imageshack.us/img175/1923/p1050088pk8.jpg

H+H (mixed-use condo and retail, Homer and Helmcken)
http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/7541/p1050081mg2.jpg

Yaletown Brewing Office Addition (Mainland and Helmcken)
http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/2288/p1050080fm2.jpg

Renos on an office bldg at Homer and Nelson
http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/6842/p1050083ze4.jpg

The Donovan (condo, Richards and Nelson)
http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/3384/p1050077xp4.jpg

1022 Living (mixed-use condo and office, Seymour and Nelson)
http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/9437/p1050074yg3.jpg

Dolce & Vita (2 towers, mixed-use condo and retail, Seymour and Smithe)
http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/5799/p1050069gg2.jpg

Capitol Residences (mixed-use condo, music school, and retail, Seymour and Robson)
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/3888/p1050057ii6.jpg

Ritz-Carlton (600ft twisting tower, mixed-use hotel-condo, Georgia and Bute)
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/1830/p1050015rl2.jpg

Shangri-La (650ft tower, city’s tallest, mixed-use hotel-condo-retail-gallery, Georgia and Thurlow)
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/6646/p1050010wz2.jpg

Flatiron (mixed-use condo and retail, Pender and Melville)
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/8872/p1050004tv5.jpg

http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/6049/p1040999jn2.jpg
North elevation as seen from West Pender St.

The Ritz (mixed-use condo and retail, Pender and Bute)
http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/9692/p1040995qx5.jpg

The Coast Hotel (Hotel, Pender and Bute)
http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/1605/p1040989km7.jpg

Jameson House (Norman Foster-designed mixed-use condo and office tower, Pender and Howe)
http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/7404/p1040977up6.jpg

Fairmont Pacific Rim (mixed-use hotel and condo, Burrard and Cordova)
http://img139.imageshack.us/img139/2485/p1040971ot5.jpg

Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion (Burrard and Canada Place Way?)
http://img299.imageshack.us/img299/426/p1040966cb5.jpg

Canada Line Waterfront Station (Granville and Cordova)
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/9223/p1040931cx0.jpg
(I had my camera on panorama mode and thus the vertical horizontal distortion)

Woodwards (2 towers, mixed-use condo, Simon Fraser University campus, office, retail, and social housing, West Hastings and Abbot)
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/2134/p1040903yv0.jpg

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/9247/p1040898jb5.jpg

http://img301.imageshack.us/img301/1188/p1040928wj5.jpg

33 Pender (condos, Pender and Abbot)
http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/3889/p1040897um1.jpg

Espana (2 towers, mixed-use condo and retail, beside the Stadium-Chinatown SkyTrain stn)
http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/3918/p1040895rd1.jpg

Bowman Lofts (?) (Beatty and West Pender)
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/5417/p1040896gf8.jpg

Cooper's Quay (4 towers, condos, Cambie Bridgehead)
http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/6341/p1040851bw2.jpg

Olympic Village (16 buildings, mixed-use condo, retail, community centre, social housing, senior’s housing, marina, streetcar line, grocery store, etc., etc., Southeast False Creek)
http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/4994/p1040849hg9.jpg

Foundry (condos, Southeast False Creek)
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/8128/p1040843sz3.jpg

The Rise (mixed-use condo and large-format retail, Cambie and 7th)
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/4526/p1040828kp3.jpg

Crossroads (mixed-use office, condo, restaurants, large-format, retail, Cambie and West Broadway)
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/1279/p1040817sy1.jpg

Stella (mixed-use condo and large format retail (auto dealership), 12th and Kingsway)
http://img515.imageshack.us/img515/6504/p1040806yi9.jpg

One Kingsway (mixed-use community centre, retail, and rental apartments, Kingsway and 7th)
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/7857/p1040803xf0.jpg

Now walking back along Broadway to Cambie and then down to the Olympic Village.

West Broadway and Main Street, looking North.
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/3271/p1040808dj3.jpg

West Broadway at Quebec street, looking west. The SkyTrain Millennium Line will be extended in phases under Broadway to the University of British Columbia (UBC) over the next 12 years. Central Braodway is ahead and it is the second densest concentration of jobs in British Columbia after the downtown core.
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/8381/p1040811jd1.jpg

Looking south up Quebec street. The articulated diesel bus is part of the #99 B-Line bus rapid transit line that runs along Broadway out to UBC from the major transit hub at Commercial Drive and East Broadway. The #99 B-Line exclusively uses 120-passenger articulated diesel buses with as little as two or three minutes of headway. It currently carries in excess of 70,000 passengers per day and it will be replaced in phases by construction of the above-mentioned extension of the SkyTrain Millennium Line next decade.
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/2392/p1040814wh5.jpg

Looking north down Quebec street for a glimpse of part of the downtown core.
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/4604/p1040812no6.jpg

West Broadway and Cambie Street looking south, just north of City Hall. The enormous construction project is part of the new SkyTrain Canada Line that will connect the city of Vancouver to its southern neighbour Richmond and to the Vancouver International Airport.
http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/5236/p1040824ef4.jpg

Looking north along Cambie Street towards downtown Vancouver. The pit in front is part of the abovementioned SkyTrain Canada Line.
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/153/p1040815ng9.jpg

West Broadway experiences a major bottleneck at Cambie street due to the SkyTrain Canada Line construction. It goes from a total of six lanes down to two. The bus-only lanes are forefitted in the intersection and the buses must merge with regular traffic. The bus to the left is one of our new 77-passenger electric trolley buses.
http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/3575/p1040825fm4.jpg

Because of the construction on Cambie it is easier to walk a block east or west of the street when heading north towards the Cambie Street Bridge and downtown. This is at Yukon and 7th. The second building to the left is called The Rise and it is a mixed-use building housing three large format retailers (Home Depot, Winners clothing, and Save on Foods), and a number of rental condos on the upper floors. The building further ahead on the left is also a new building. It houses two large format retailers, Canadian Tire and Best Buy.
http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/3382/p1040826ux4.jpg

Another shot of The Rise.
http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/4214/p1040828ix9.jpg

Ivy is being encouraged to grow up a blank cement wall of the Canadian Tire building. Every new building is expected to have a landscaping plan and the developer pays for the public realm improvements associated with construction of a new building. Some of these improvements include new wider sidewalks, new street trees, etc.
http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/3071/p1040831ww8.jpg

Looking south along Cambie Street. The Rise is on the left and the new public realm it is supplying is taking shape. In the centre up the street is the Canada Line construction. The building on the right is called Crossroads and it is a mixed-use building incorporating a medium-sized office building that will be the corporate headquarters for Yoga wear maker Lululemon, 88 condos, a Whole Foods grocery store, a Royal Bank, and a number of restaurants.
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/4372/p1040834za6.jpg

The Cambie Street Bridge is down to two lanes from its previous six in order to make room for the construction of the Canada Line. Pedestrian and cycling access is unaffected.
http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/3084/p1040833rb0.jpg

Looking east at Second Avenue and Cambie towards the Olympic Village construction precinct in Southeast False Creek (SEFC). Most of the Olympic Village surrounding SEFC neighbourhood will be built to about the same approximate height as the building on the right in this photo, which is about 90 feet in height. There will be a number of buildings that reach slightly taller and others, obviously, will be shorter.
http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/7075/p1040840do4.jpg

Another shot of the Southeast False Creek neighourbood, this time looking east from the Cambie Street Bridge deck. The brick building on the right is being restored and converted to lofts. A streetcar line, Vancouver's first in more than 50 years, will run down First, below, and connect to SkyTrain to the east and Granville Island to the west. Additional phases are planned.
http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/8452/p1040841oy0.jpg

A couple of shots of the Olympic Village showing the mass of cranes.
http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/8947/p1040845vu4.jpg

http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/4994/p1040849hg9.jpg

These folks (below) across False Creek in Yaletown are getting some new neighbours to the east of the Cambie Street Bridge.
http://img102.imageshack.us/img102/9831/p1040853lh5.jpg

These new towers are being built by Concord Pacific in the Cooper’s Quay precinct. Behind them is BC Place, home of the BC Lions football franchise and the site of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
http://img107.imageshack.us/img107/2973/p1040850ot3.jpg

Things are moving along for the Olympic Village itself. Construction continued through the worst of winter without disruption. The weather is fine again, the snow has melted, and the first flowers are starting to bud. It has become a pretty busy place. 12 tower construction cranes are building the 16 buildings, the first of which is about three storeys above ground. The remainder is all below- or at- grade.

The following several shots of the new man-made marine habitat island. The very small bay to the left is where the daylighted stream will empty into False Creek. There are dozens of streams running under Vancouver, all of which were filled in or buried in sewers more than a hundred years ago. One is being daylighted and deeply integrated into the landscaping of the Olympic Village. The elementary school will be right beside it and children can be expected to play on its banks and run across its pedestrian bridges.

http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/6084/p1040858mx2.jpg

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/6166/p1040865ji4.jpg


The new Seawall features separated pedestrian and bicycle/wheeled vehicle paths, a number of boardwalks that feature recovered wood from the old industrial piers on the site, and an inlet with pedestrian bridge adjacent a piazza and the community centre. A marina for non-motorized boats (Dragon Boat war canoes, kayaks, etc.) will be adjacent.

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/1744/p1040867nu5.jpg

http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/9053/p1040874sy4.jpg

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/429/p1040871ig6.jpg

http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/7209/p1040876xa4.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/7118/p1040873gp9.jpg

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1919/p1040862rw5.jpg

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/6365/p1040868jj8.jpg

All photos were taken by me on January 15th, 2008.
My photos ( SFUVancouver in SSP | Vancouverite in SSC )[/QUOTE]

I like the building with the Home Depot in the bottom. I assume it's going to replace the existing Home Depot just East of downtown as they're quite close? OTOH, according to their website, there is only one Home Depot in the CofV, so they could probably support a second.

February Vancouver updates
 

The Ritz

The retail podium is turning out quite nice. Is there a specific term for the small "rims" of concrete that protrude out above and beside the window? I like it. I also the like the sloping glass on the second floor and the crisp cornice line it creates. Also, note that the wrapping is being taken off of the red panels. Some of the wrapping was torn off of the building during our last wind storm to reveal a sort of ruddy red colour but thankfully the real red is better.
http://img185.imageshack.us/img185/9216/p1050381kz9.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Red panel detail and that nice glass on the Pender elevation.
http://img85.imageshack.us/img85/7751/p1050383fs2.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

The retail podium along Bute. Imagine living in the condo beside those big HVAC units on the roof of the podium. I bet that "view" was not in the sales brochure.
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/4496/p1050385de5.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Lastly, a shot of the Ritz and the Flatiron. It isn't the greatest picture. I don't know how to get the most out of my camera on days like this when it is bright outside but overcast.
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/5517/p1050384nh6.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)


Flatiron

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/3752/p1050376gy0.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)


Woodwards' W43 Tower

Looking east from the pedestrian bridge at Granville and Cordova.
http://img128.imageshack.us/img128/3884/p1050354lm8.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/6184/p1050356aj9.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)


Jameson House

Pender street elevation. The two heritage buildings are fully braced now. The cream coloured one on the left is only having its facade preserved while the old mining museum building beside it is being saved in its entirety.
http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/9859/p1050361ky2.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Detail of the bracing and I guess a nice promo BelPacific (For all your excavation and shoring needs, call BelPacific today!)
http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/2094/p1050364hb1.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Why is BelPacific on site? Because there is excavation underway. Finally. For real this time.
http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/7194/p1050363jb8.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)


Shangri-La

Looking south on Thurlow.
http://img100.imageshack.us/img100/1723/p1050367od6.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

The "box" near the top of the tower now has glass on two of the two-storey floors.
http://img352.imageshack.us/img352/5719/p1050369uo4.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

The now-classic flatiron view.
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/668/p1050386yn7.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Looking south from Harbour Green Park. The other two buildings under construction are The Ritz and The Flatiron.
http://img240.imageshack.us/img240/7002/p1050372kg2.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)


Fairmont Pacific Rim

http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/2959/p1050359yj6.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)


Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion

From Canada Place.
http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/870/p1050358ny0.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Looking north from the driveway of the Shaw Tower. The Fairmont Pacific Rim is to the right.
http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/2853/p1050365aj4.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Looking northeast from the walkway to Harbour Green Park.
http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/9819/p1050370qb0.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

Looking east from Harbour Green Park.
http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/3708/p1050374ab2.jpg
(My photo, taken February 4th, 2008)

For comparison, I took the following picture in late spring last year.
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/9...ndvcecpff1.jpg
(My photo, taken June 29th, 2007)

Pure
http://img85.imageshack.us/img85/190...1050400lb5.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)


Patina
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/2...uary132od5.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/2...132008plc1.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)

That's a deep pit. The guy at the bottom gives one a sense of scale.


Shangri-La
http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/5...andhelmek0.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)

http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/7236/p1050413ew4.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)

http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/5862/p1050417fp9.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)


Canada Line Waterfront Station Switch
http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/3...rontstaow6.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)


Woodwards
http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/912...y132008wk4.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)

http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/677...ruary13bk5.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)


Vancouver Convention Centre Expansion
http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/9...132008pzi9.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)


Fairmont Pacific Rim
http://img220.imageshack.us/img220/5...imfebruoh8.jpg
(My photo, February 13th, 2008)

Outstanding update, SFU! Vancouver just keeps rolling along....

Updated March 7