Canadian Skyline Thread III

[Nouvellecosse]

The Phoenix skyline would be perfect for a Winnipeg-sized city.

[hipster duck]

^That's also the most flattering pic of the Phoenix skyline I've ever seen.

That's taken with a telephoto lens where a lot of skyscrapers in the back are really compressed forward. Knowing the area, the pic was taken from a lookout that's 27 km as the crow flies to the mountain in the background with the broadcasting towers on its summit. In Vancouver, that would be the same distance as Surrey Central to Grouse Mountain.

[Calgarian]

It's funny how bad the skyline is in some western US cities, Phoenix should have a Calgary level skyline, but it's more like Winnipeg. SLC is another one that's underwhelming for it's size. Denver is better, but still lacking...

[J.OT13]

I find Winnipeg and Salt Lake are very similar, with wide streets, lots of surface parking lots and a spread-out downtown area. But then Winnipeg's Exchange blows Salt Lake right out of the water. I find Winnipeg's skyline overall more impressive than Salt Lake's, and arguably more impressive than Phoenix's.

[jc_yyc_ca]

Originally Posted by Calgarian

It's funny how bad the skyline is in some western US cities, Phoenix should have a Calgary level skyline, but it's more like Winnipeg. SLC is another one that's underwhelming for it's size. Denver is better, but still lacking...

I would even say Winnipeg's is better due to it being a little more compact. The Phoenix skyline looks good with lens compression from a distance, but the buildings are quite spread out.

Then again, Phoenix is about the lowest hanging fruit when it comes to skylines. For its population, it's a bit of an enigma. Denver's an interesting one, it's a decent skyline, but I remember a time when it had a better skyline than Calgary, but that isn't the case anymore. It seems to be the case for so many US cities that haven't seen any kind of skyline growth in the past 20 years.

[Wpg_Guy]

A not usually seen angle of Winnipeg

Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy

From drone footage:

Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy

Portage Place redevelopment becomes visible
By Krista Sinaisky | November 3, 2025



A lot has been happening behind the scenes at Portage Place, and with the removal of the atrium’s north and south exterior walls, this work is now more visible along Portage Ave.

Over the next few months, the area over the former atrium will see existing bridges and glazing removed and Edmonton St. reconnected as part of the project’s vision to bridge north and south Portage neighbourhoods.

Concurrently, demolition and reconstruction will continue on the healthcare tower, and in later winter, the new Healthcare Centre of Excellence will begin to rise above the block between Edmonton and Carlton.
• Video Link

[jc_yyc_ca]

This is an old one of Calgary (some buildings are missing) of the Victoria Park skyline. Old, but one I've never seen before.


Source

[TorontoDrew]

Originally Posted by giallo

Metrotown

I'm hoping Vaughan City Centre turns out like Metrotown. So far, the architecture is in-line quality-wise.

[TorontoDrew]

An eye-level view of the crown steel assembly, looking southwest, image by UrbanToronto Forum contributor hawc

[jonny24]

Originally Posted by jc_yyc_ca

It seems to be the case for so many US cities that haven't seen any kind of skyline growth in the past 20 years.

On the flip side of this, I did the Architectural boat tour of Chicago this weekend and was actually surprised how many buildings were say 2015 and more recent

[MolsonExport]

Originally Posted by giallo

It's all subjective, I suppose. Phoenix is a city that doesn't spring to mind when I think of skylines or skyscrapers. Metrotown does, but that's only because I live within 10km of the place.


Phoenix




Metrotown

yep, as I said.

[jc_yyc_ca]

Originally Posted by jonny24

On the flip side of this, I did the Architectural boat tour of Chicago this weekend and was actually surprised how many buildings were say 2015 and more recent

For sure Chicago is one of the cities that has had good skyline growth. I would also say NYC of course, along with Austin, Seattle and some others like Philadelphia, Nashville, Miami. Probably a couple others I'm forgetting about, but for the rest of the US cities, even larger metros with healthy growth like Denver, Minneapolis, Dallas, Houston, etc.. There hasn't been the kind of Highrise activity we've seen in Canadian cities.

[Coldrsx]

[craner]

^That looks like a great unit - love the view.

[koops65]

Looks like a render to me.

[Architype]

View of Burnaby Metrotown, Nov 7 2025.


My view of Metrotown Burnaby about 4 miles away, similar to above, but some of the buildings in this view are actually in Vancouver.

[craner]

Originally Posted by koops65

Looks like a render to me.

Yes it does - still looks great though

[Coldrsx]

Soon to be built.

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by TorontoDrew

I'm hoping Vaughan City Centre turns out like Metrotown. So far, the architecture is in-line quality-wise.

It won't, regardless of what the architecture is like. Metrotown is successful because it has developed organically over several decades. It includes buildings of different scales and ages (including a semi-urban traditional main street), transitions seamlessly into the surrounding neighbourhoods, and has a few malls that - despite any shortcomings in terms of urban form - still act as major destination points.

Vaughan City Centre on the other hand is being built carte blanche in an industrial zone wedged between a couple of highways and a railyard. There's no existing urbanity to speak of, nor any clear focal points nor natural transitions to nearby residential neighbourhoods. It's only real asset is that it's at the junction point of several major transportation routes.






VCC could still potentially turn out as a successful project in its own right (though I'm very skeptical that it'll ever materialize into anything greater than a concentration of residential density), but whatever it is will be very different from Metrotown. The better comparison to Metrotown is North York Centre.

[Vantage]

Originally Posted by MonkeyRonin

Vaughan City Centre on the other hand is being built carte blanche in an industrial zone wedged between a couple of highways and a railyard. There's no existing urbanity to speak of, nor any clear focal points nor natural transitions to nearby residential neighbourhoods. It's only real asset is that it's at the junction point of several major transportation routes.

Metrotown looks about 25 times better in those photos. Vaughn