The Great Canadian Skyline thread for CMAs 1 million and under

[ssiguy]

Originally Posted by Innsertnamehere

London's new tallest is really adding some heft to the skyline. A couple more big highrises downtown and the city is going to start looking quite impressive.

There are 7 buildings over 20 stories that aren't even shown on the shot, several major buildings nearly completion in the inner city, and a whole plethora of new proposals. The downtown office vacany rate in London is very high at 28% but thankfully some new office conversions are in the works.

Downtown London has taken a pounding over the last 6 years. Dundas, the main drag, was ripped up in 2018 to create the new flex-street of Dundas Place in 2018, and as soon as it opened Covid hit. Then when Covid started to wane, the new Downtown BRT Bus Loop started construction with huge sections of downtown streets being torn up to accommodate it with new sewers put in place at the same time, COVID also caused the office vacancy rate to soar, and when compounded with the surge in homelessness and drug addiction, it's a wonder the downtown is still there.

Thankfully, the Bus Loop will be done in a few months, there are thousands who will be moving into the downtown/inner city in the next year, the City is finally getting some affordable rentals onto the market to help with homelessness, the East Link BRT nearing completion, and Wellington Gateway BRT will be completed to Commissioners by next year greatly increasing the ease of getting from downtown from the south/401 as right now it has to go down ripped up Wellington, the city's busiest road.

In a couple years when this is all behind her, I think downtown will move into a real renaissance.

[KnoxfordGuy]

Saint John viewed from the first cruise ship of the season from netanel_fahima on Instagram. May 8th.

[giallo]

Saint John just does it for me. I'd love to see some of new, tastefully done buildings added to the skyline, but I do love it as it is.


Some recent video of Kelowna's skyline

• Video Link

[Innsertnamehere]

Originally Posted by KnoxfordGuy

Saint John viewed from the first cruise ship of the season from netanel_fahima on Instagram. May 8th.

It's nice to see significant investment finally returning to downtown Saint John in the last few years. I haven't been to Saint John in 6 or 7 years now, and there are substantial differences today from the last time I visited. I'll be returning this summer though so I'm looking forward to seeing the differences in person.

[isaidso]

Has anyone taken the Digby - Saint John ferry? It would cost us $217 (2 adults and a car) for the 2 hour voyage as opposed to driving the long way around. You get a nice boat trip but seems steep for such a short distance.

[MonctonRad]

Originally Posted by isaidso

Has anyone taken the Digby - Saint John ferry? It would cost us $217 (2 adults and a car) for the 2 hour voyage as opposed to driving the long way around. You get a nice boat trip but seems steep for such a short distance.

I've done it. To drive from Saint John to Digby around the Bay of Fundy would be about seven hours. The ferry trip is about two hours. So, you save a lot of time and about $100-150 in gas (depending on the size and efficiency of your vehicle). The trip also can be pleasant and a novel experience for landlubbers.

If your final destination is Digby and area, or southwestern NS in general, it makes a lot of sense. If you were doing it as a shortcut between SJ and Halifax, the value is a lot more questionable. I would drive in that circumstance.

[Wigs]

I hope the Halifax effect comes to Saint John... okay maybe not the crazy price increases, but lots of new development would be nice.
It has so much potential but seems so undervalued

[Nouvellecosse]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I've done it. To drive from Saint John to Digby around the Bay of Fundy would be about seven hours. The ferry trip is about two hours. So, you save a lot of time and about $100-150 in gas (depending on the size and efficiency of your vehicle). The trip also can be pleasant and a novel experience for landlubbers.

If your final destination is Digby and area, or southwestern NS in general, it makes a lot of sense. If you were doing it as a shortcut between SJ and Halifax, the value is a lot more questionable. I would drive in that circumstance.

Yeah I thought about using it as a shortcut to get from Halifax to SJ but it doesn't really make sense for that purpose. I'm sure it's fine of you just want the experience but it doesn't really save any time or money.

[WhipperSnapper]

It's a shortcut from the fisheries to i95 as mentioned when the Fed's considered transferring the ferry to a more in demand route

[isaidso]

Originally Posted by MonctonRad

I've done it. To drive from Saint John to Digby around the Bay of Fundy would be about seven hours. The ferry trip is about two hours. So, you save a lot of time and about $100-150 in gas (depending on the size and efficiency of your vehicle). The trip also can be pleasant and a novel experience for landlubbers.

If your final destination is Digby and area, or southwestern NS in general, it makes a lot of sense. If you were doing it as a shortcut between SJ and Halifax, the value is a lot more questionable. I would drive in that circumstance.

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

Yeah I thought about using it as a shortcut to get from Halifax to SJ but it doesn't really make sense for that purpose. I'm sure it's fine of you just want the experience but it doesn't really save any time or money.

Thanks very much. Our last night in NS is off grid near Hampton (60km northeast of Digby). I booked the ferry. Even if it were a little more expensive than the long 7 hour drive, its a good excuse to get some Digby scallops, and the boat trip will be a nice experience for my friend who's never been to Atlantic Canada. Hopefully, we'll see some whales.

[Arrdeeharharharbour]

Hampton! A favorite destination of mine back when I was a newly licensed driver in my high school days. Many beers and smokes on Hampton beach with my friends. On a clear night you can see lights in New Brunswick across the bay. If you take the road towards Bridgetown there's a provincial park located just as you start the descent into the valley. The picnic area of the park provides a nice view of the Annapolis Valley below. For sure I'd take the ferry if only for the nautical adventure. If not whale sightings, chances are good that you'll see dolphins flanking the ship doing the playful thing that dolphins do alongside ships.

[ScreamingViking]

Took it once a long time ago while on a driving trip through Quebec, NB, PEI, and Nova Scotia, en route to our final night camping in New Hampshire. We stayed in Digby, but the ferry trip was very early in the morning so aside from watching the sky brighten there wasn't much to see.

We also took the ferry from PEI to NS on a beautiful sunny afternoon and did see some smaller whales (probably porpoises) in the Northumberland Strait.

[isaidso]

Originally Posted by Arrdeeharharharbour

Hampton! A favorite destination of mine back when I was a newly licensed driver in my high school days. Many beers and smokes on Hampton beach with my friends. On a clear night you can see lights in New Brunswick across the bay. If you take the road towards Bridgetown there's a provincial park located just as you start the descent into the valley. The picnic area of the park provides a nice view of the Annapolis Valley below. For sure I'd take the ferry if only for the nautical adventure. If not whale sightings, chances are good that you'll see dolphins flanking the ship doing the playful thing that dolphins do alongside ships.

Valleyview Provincial Park?

Originally Posted by ScreamingViking

Took it once a long time ago while on a driving trip through Quebec, NB, PEI, and Nova Scotia, en route to our final night camping in New Hampshire. We stayed in Digby, but the ferry trip was very early in the morning so aside from watching the sky brighten there wasn't much to see.

We also took the ferry from PEI to NS on a beautiful sunny afternoon and did see some smaller whales (probably porpoises) in the Northumberland Strait.

I've always had a memorable experience; especially the longer ones. I did Port-aux-Basques to North Sydney 2 summers ago and it took 7 hours. Another I did decades ago was Southampton (UK) to Goteborg (Sweden). That one required overnight accommodations on the ferry.

[giallo]

Kelowna

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[MolsonExport]

Is Kelowna the largest city in Canada without any bit Freeway in City limits?

How's the traffic on Harvey Avenue nowadays? It was quite atrocious back in the early 90s when I lived north of Kelowna (and like Robert de Niro screamed in "Raging Bull": I got no choice!! I got no choice!! when you had to go somewhere to/from Kelowna).

[giallo]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Is Kelowna the largest city in Canada without any bit Freeway in City limits?

How's the traffic on Harvey Avenue nowadays? It was quite atrocious back in the early 90s when I lived north of Kelowna (and like Robert de Niro screamed in "Raging Bull": I got no choice!! I got no choice!! when you had to go somewhere to/from Kelowna).

It's brutal. The drive from West Kelowna, over the bridge, and on to Harvey/Hwy 97 in downtown Kelowna is long. It can take an hour to go 12km. That's in the summer though. Half that in the fall and winter.

[Beedok]

Hopefully it encourages them to build some higher order transit ahead of their population curve?

[Metro-One]

Originally Posted by MolsonExport

Is Kelowna the largest city in Canada without any bit Freeway in City limits?

How's the traffic on Harvey Avenue nowadays? It was quite atrocious back in the early 90s when I lived north of Kelowna (and like Robert de Niro screamed in "Raging Bull": I got no choice!! I got no choice!! when you had to go somewhere to/from Kelowna).

I think it’s the biggest city on the mainland of Canada to have neither any form of freeway or any railroad tracks within it’s official boundaries.

The provincial government under the NDP seems to absolutely despise the Okanagan, they haven’t built or started a single interchange or major transit facility in the area since taking power in 2017.

Before that under the BC Liberals they got the new bridge, 2 interchanges in West Kelowna, the bus system expansion along Harvey, the freeway-like bypass of the old 2 lane road along Wood Lake between Lake Country and Oyama, the 4 lane widening north of Summerland, and the 4 lane widening plus 2 interchanges north of Vernon.

The only thing under the NDP of any scale has been the promise of two interchanges in West Kelowna that still don’t have any funding and we’re already planned under the Liberals nearly a decade ago…

Also, twinning through or around Peachland has been pushed back by at least 20 years by the NDP MOT and the hope for any second crossing has been shot down for at least two decades as well…

So don’t expect much until we get a change in government.

[nclsteba]

Lévis's skyline actually in transformation :

• Video Link

Several highrises are underconstruction (with nice view of Chateau Frontenac).

[MolsonExport]

Interesting stuff in Levis. There wasn't much in the way of high-rises during my last visit (I have cousins living in Levis, as well as an aunt and uncle)