Downtown Vancouver Updates II

[dleung]

^^What was the point of this renovation? They didn't really touch anything else besides going for a duller finish

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by dleung

^^What was the point of this renovation? They didn't really touch anything else besides going for a duller finish

I believe chunks of the old tile were falling off so they didn’t have much choice.

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by dleung

^^What was the point of this renovation? They didn't really touch anything else besides going for a duller finish

You can see white material leaching from between the stone tile on the west side of the podium on street view. I don't think any fell off, but it was obviously a liability.

[WestEnd604]

Originally Posted by Changing City

You can see white material leaching from between the stone tile on the west side of the podium on street view. I don't think any fell off, but it was obviously a liability.

Some of those tiles did in fact fall off from the extreme eastern side nearest the alley. That's what prompted this reno.

[osirisboy]

Ideally I’d love to see the retail built out and enclose the coveted space. But yes it is dull, stop painting things grey.

[jollyburger]

Seems like it started to fail in 2015/2016 they installed those little black/tile coloured holders at all the joints on the pillar near the driveway on the Hornby side. They started adding them to some areas on the Davie side recently as well.

[jollyburger]

Demo footage for 1818 Alberni

https://www.instagram.com/p/C9p41InSXgE/

[jollyburger]

Crestpoint, Anthem partner to acquire Vancouver high-rise dev. site
New Crestpoint Opportunistic Real Estate Strategy fund to hold 77% interest in 1318 Thurlow St. development

1318 Thurlow St. is a 0.4-acre development site at the southwest corner of Thurlow and Burnaby streets in downtown Vancouver’s popular West End neighbourhood. It had previously been owned by Strand and IntraCorp, which had originally proposed a condo tower for the property but then revised that to a 34-storey rental earlier this year.

Crestpoint and Anthem have submitted a site redevelopment plan to the city for a 32-storey tower on the 17,283-square-foot property.

It is to contain 300 apartments – 242 market rental units and 58 below-market rental units. They will comprise a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units with both indoor and outdoor amenity spaces.

The site redevelopment plan has been submitted to the city, with first and second reading expected in the fall of this year, then a public hearing/third reading will follow, according to the Anthem release.

Construction is anticipated to begin in the fall of 2025.

https://renx.ca/crestpoint-anthem-partner-to-acquire-vancouver-high-rise-dev-site

Revised Application - June 6, 2024 - Rezone to permit a 32-storey, residential building with 300 rental units (20% delivered at below market rates). A maximum height of approximately 82 m (269 ft.) with a rooftop amenity space above, a floor space ratio of 12.63 and 20,298 sq. m (218,490 sq. ft.) net floor area proposed. 122 parking spaces and 529 bicycle spaces in underground parking accessed from the rear lane are proposed. Rezone 1068-1090 Burnaby Street, 1318 Thurlow Street from RM-5A to CD-1 to permit a 34-storey, residential building with 311 units, of which 287 are secured market rental housing units, and 24 are social housing units (10% FSR) turnkey to the City, under the Criteria for 100% Secured Rental and Below-Market Housing as an Alternative to Inclusionary Social Housing in the Burrard Corridor of the WECP (WECP Rental Policy). An FSR of 12.25, with an net floor area of 19,663 sq. m (211,648 sq. ft.), and a height of 89.8 m (294.6 ft.) are proposed. 118 underground parking spaces (including 13 accessible spaces), 7 visitor spaces, 1 class A passenger loading space, and 2 class B loading space, are accessed from the rear lane. 498 Class A bike spaces and 17 class B bike spaces are located on-site. There are existing tenants on-site.

Type of Work: New CD-1

https://plposweb.vancouver.ca/Public/Default.aspx?PossePresentation=Guest&PosseObjectId=190036351

Revised application

https://www.shapeyourcity.ca/1068-1090-burnaby-st-and-1318-thurlow-st

[officedweller]

Royal Centre

Pic by me July 16th:

[Zepfancouver]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

Demo footage for 1818 Alberni
https://www.instagram.com/p/C9p41InSXgE/

This morning.
Started the parking lot demolition. I like the look of this mini tower.


https://makeagif.com/i/Zlqn5Y














https://makeagif.com/i/hWfKRF

[officedweller]

Royal Centre

Pics by me today:

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by Vin

After so many inept municipal governments running this city for decades, ABC is finally doing work on the rejuvenation of Gastown in 2024, starting with repavement of the heavily damaged road.

Doesn't sound like car-free project is a screaming success for business owners:

Pedestrian-only Water Street gets the thumbs down from Gastown businesses
Some retailers and restaurants say business has dropped off a cliff since the city launched a pilot project to make Vancouver's Water Street a pedestrian only zone
Author of the article: John Mackie
Published Jul 30, 2024

The City of Vancouver had high hopes for a pilot project that turned three blocks of Water Street in Gastown into a pedestrian-only zone in July and August.

But some businesses say that so far, it has been an unmitigated disaster.

“Our accounts are off 30 per cent over our historical levels in Gastown,” said Peter Buckley, president and CEO of the Old Spaghetti Factory. “The Spaghetti Factory has operated in Gastown for 54 years. Outside of COVID, when we were closed down, we have not seen guest counts at this level in 54 years.”

Jackie Haliburton of Angel clothing at Powell and Carrall streets said her business is down 30 per cent as well. So did Kim Briscoe of Kimprints, a framing company on the main floor of the Hotel Europe.

Nancy Bendtsen of Inform Interiors said the decrease in foot traffic has been even more dramatic.

“Our business is down I would say 20 to 30 per cent, but our traffic is down 80 per cent,” she said.

Buckley feels the street closure has made locals leery of coming to Gastown.

“The local market, for all intents and purposes, has given up trying to get into Gastown,” he said. “If you’re coming from the east, you have to drive through one of the more difficult neighbourhoods in all of Canada (via Hastings Street in the Downtown Eastside).”....

... Bruce Clarkson of the Gastown Residents Association said the Water Street closure has led to some issues for residents.

“It’s partly a Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde scenario,” he said. “During parts of the day, it looks really pleasant, has sort of a Disney World-type feel. On the other hand, we’re often dealing with issues (at night) such as security and noise.

“We have residents who have lived here for decades, who for the first time are complaining about how noisy it has become.”..

https://vancouversun.com/news/pedestrian...-the-thumbs-down-from-gastown-businesses

[s211]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Doesn't sound like car-free project is a screaming success for business owners:

Pedestrian-only Water Street gets the thumbs down from Gastown businesses
Some retailers and restaurants say business has dropped off a cliff since the city launched a pilot project to make Vancouver's Water Street a pedestrian only zone
Author of the article: John Mackie
Published Jul 30, 2024

The City of Vancouver had high hopes for a pilot project that turned three blocks of Water Street in Gastown into a pedestrian-only zone in July and August.

But some businesses say that so far, it has been an unmitigated disaster.

“Our accounts are off 30 per cent over our historical levels in Gastown,” said Peter Buckley, president and CEO of the Old Spaghetti Factory. “The Spaghetti Factory has operated in Gastown for 54 years. Outside of COVID, when we were closed down, we have not seen guest counts at this level in 54 years.”

Jackie Haliburton of Angel clothing at Powell and Carrall streets said her business is down 30 per cent as well. So did Kim Briscoe of Kimprints, a framing company on the main floor of the Hotel Europe.

Nancy Bendtsen of Inform Interiors said the decrease in foot traffic has been even more dramatic.

“Our business is down I would say 20 to 30 per cent, but our traffic is down 80 per cent,” she said.

Buckley feels the street closure has made locals leery of coming to Gastown.

“The local market, for all intents and purposes, has given up trying to get into Gastown,” he said. “If you’re coming from the east, you have to drive through one of the more difficult neighbourhoods in all of Canada (via Hastings Street in the Downtown Eastside).”....

... Bruce Clarkson of the Gastown Residents Association said the Water Street closure has led to some issues for residents.

“It’s partly a Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde scenario,” he said. “During parts of the day, it looks really pleasant, has sort of a Disney World-type feel. On the other hand, we’re often dealing with issues (at night) such as security and noise.

“We have residents who have lived here for decades, who for the first time are complaining about how noisy it has become.”..

https://vancouversun.com/news/pedestrian...-the-thumbs-down-from-gastown-businesses

From the "no sh!t Sherlock" department. Anybody with a degree in common sense would know that this was a no-win project.

But I guess a degree in political science trumps reason: looking at you, City transportation department. Ever stepped outside your theoretical bubble?

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Doesn't sound like car-free project is a screaming success for business owners:

But it would be interesting to see why it's dropped off a cliff since there wasn't a ton of street parking so it's hard to say that is the main reason.

The death of retail in Gastown has probably done more to kill off foot traffic than the road closure.

[dleung]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

Demo footage for 1818 Alberni

https://www.instagram.com/p/C9p41InSXgE/

Really wish they spent more time designing the podium and less on the tower. This is replacing a really valuable stretch of Denman that had an Italian restaurant, French bistro, Japanese izakaya, local pizza chain, Mongolian BBQ, and a bike shop



The ubiquitous glass/canopy storefront combo is barely an improvement:


There was a time when more effort was put into textured retail frontages

[GenWhy?]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

But it would be interesting to see why it's dropped off a cliff since there wasn't a ton of street parking so it's hard to say that is the main reason.

The death of retail in Gastown has probably done more to kill off foot traffic than the road closure.

I could see it as a result of the earlier street repair / traffic / road closures and now with a one way Water and Cordova Streets currently not operating as intended. I think you now need to drive west of Hastings, then take Abbott to get into the parkade by VFS

[dreambrother808]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

But it would be interesting to see why it's dropped off a cliff since there wasn't a ton of street parking so it's hard to say that is the main reason.

The death of retail in Gastown has probably done more to kill off foot traffic than the road closure.

Yes, as per usual correlation is not causation. I would be curious to hear from a more rigorously investigated perspective. I'm not saying that going pedestrian-only isn't a factor or even the main factor, but the fact that it's successful in other cities makes me suspicious.

[csbvan]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Doesn't sound like car-free project is a screaming success for business owners:

Pedestrian-only Water Street gets the thumbs down from Gastown businesses
Some retailers and restaurants say business has dropped off a cliff since the city launched a pilot project to make Vancouver's Water Street a pedestrian only zone
Author of the article: John Mackie
Published Jul 30, 2024

The City of Vancouver had high hopes for a pilot project that turned three blocks of Water Street in Gastown into a pedestrian-only zone in July and August.

But some businesses say that so far, it has been an unmitigated disaster.

“Our accounts are off 30 per cent over our historical levels in Gastown,” said Peter Buckley, president and CEO of the Old Spaghetti Factory. “The Spaghetti Factory has operated in Gastown for 54 years. Outside of COVID, when we were closed down, we have not seen guest counts at this level in 54 years.”

Jackie Haliburton of Angel clothing at Powell and Carrall streets said her business is down 30 per cent as well. So did Kim Briscoe of Kimprints, a framing company on the main floor of the Hotel Europe.

Nancy Bendtsen of Inform Interiors said the decrease in foot traffic has been even more dramatic.

“Our business is down I would say 20 to 30 per cent, but our traffic is down 80 per cent,” she said.

Buckley feels the street closure has made locals leery of coming to Gastown.

“The local market, for all intents and purposes, has given up trying to get into Gastown,” he said. “If you’re coming from the east, you have to drive through one of the more difficult neighbourhoods in all of Canada (via Hastings Street in the Downtown Eastside).”....

... Bruce Clarkson of the Gastown Residents Association said the Water Street closure has led to some issues for residents.

“It’s partly a Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde scenario,” he said. “During parts of the day, it looks really pleasant, has sort of a Disney World-type feel. On the other hand, we’re often dealing with issues (at night) such as security and noise.

“We have residents who have lived here for decades, who for the first time are complaining about how noisy it has become.”..

https://vancouversun.com/news/pedestrian...-the-thumbs-down-from-gastown-businesses

Not Kimprints! Typical suburban boomer trash from the Sun. Selectively chosen businesses that aren't a fit for Gastown anymore. Meanwhile, the great failure is that it's too loud at night. Wow, sounds totally ineffective! A pedestrian area with too many people! If you honestly believe parking on Water Street drives business, then I've got a stadium and retractable roof in Montreal to sell you.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Indeed. Note how the complaints in the article come from lingerie, framing and interior decorating: businesses that rely on pickup from drivers from across town.

I'd sure like to hear from restaurants, bars and other cruise ship-adjacent tourist traps which the closure is actually supposed to benefit (Old Spaghetti Factory doesn't count, they're kept alive by nostalgia alone).

[GenWhy?]

So if these businesses are down 30% (in July I assume?) since previous years. Wasn't too clear in the snippit.

"turned three blocks of Water Street in Gastown into a pedestrian-only zone" also this is not true.