Victoria Construction - #7

[aastra]

Maybe that's why "shear" is in the name? They expect someone or something to get sheared off at some point re: those protruding edges?

It's a weird design. To my eye it looks much more like Langford than James Bay. But James Bay has been at war with its own rather unique identity for decades, and there seems to be more to come, so it's not exactly a surprise.

I don't fault Telus Ocean for treating that corner as something of a back side. What bugs me is how committed they were to the premise, as if the back corner were in an alley never to be viewed by anyone but trash collectors or whatever. Just a bit more actual window, a bit more faux window, and maybe some soft glowing elements (you could claim the glow fits the nautical theme, glowing algae in the surf or some such thing). Even just 10% less oppressive would make a big difference, methinks.

Anyway, those who live in mushroom houses shouldn't throw gnomes.

[zoomer]

I like the glowing algae concept. Which makes me think - do architectural and development firms ever consult with potential end users - aka purchasers/renters?

Do they conduct focus groups? It feels as if they are in their own detached bubble and as a result we get ugly buildings and floor plans that most people don't want to live in. I'd even volunteer to be a CFP (Community Feedback Provider) - anyone else interested?

[zoomer]

Now, has anyone else noticed what appears to be an explosion of new restaurants, cafes and food services places downtown? Victoria already has the highest percentage of restaurants in the country, and we were led to believe that the industry was going downhill across the country for a dozens of reasons. I'm not sure why the sudden surge the past few months and it doesn't make sense considering unlike other provinces the BC government still allows for full time work from home for most employees.

This list is just what I've noticed walking around downtown and I know I'm missing a couple because I forget the names and there are about three others in the early stages of being built. Not a comprehensive list below.

The following two are in that former art gallery at View and Government which has been empty for quite a while, looks a fairly big investment resulting in Vancouver based Ayoub's Dried Fruits & Nuts (the Purdy's of fruits and nuts by the looks of it, lol) opening soon as well as still under construction the following two:

Meat and Bread Vancouver based (new to location - formerly at 721 Yates, closed in 2017 after two years of business)

Lee's Donuts - yet another Vancouver based chain, famous for their donuts, Seth Rogan's favourite donuts.

Kyoto Garden - right across the street in the former Monks Office supply store is Kyoto Garden, which is under construction, peeked in the door tonight, looks nice and quite big. A local independent Kyoto inspired Japanese tatami tea house with desserts, etc.

Citrus and Cane, just opened up this month. A tropical cocktail bar (plus food) is just down the Trounce Alley from the Kyoto Gardens. It's in the former Park's Kitchen (Korean) and they've been working on this location for a year now, looks really high end. Citrus and Cane is a local and used to be in the old Paul Motor's Inn, in the copper dome restaurant section.

Café Dépôt - Quebec based affordable coffee/cafe at 1483 Douglas (behind the bus stop before Pandora). Looks to be their first location in BC, opened a couple months ago.

Oakberry Açaí - Brazilian chain, 891 Fort in the former Starbucks at Fort and Blanshard which closed last year I believe.

Horin Ramen - a Japanese chain opened in January on Blanshard replacing Menbow Ramen

Driftwood Chinese Buffett - Island based chain opened in February replacing the closed Azuma Sushi.

Pretty Patty - Smash burgers plus - local independent, opened in April on the 600 block of Yates. Replaced a small pizza place I think.

Don Jose - Just up from that next to Circle K is this Vancouver based Mexican carnitas restaurant will be opening soon.

Birdman - lower Johnson opened in May and replaced the former Friends of Dorothy. Local restaurant by creators of Wind Cries Mary and Rudi. Trendy southern food.

Ful Canteen- local healthy food place (bowls, gourmet sandwiches, smoothies, etc.) in the Rotunda building opposite City Hall. Opened this month and replaced the bike shop that moved to the Atrium. Conveniently located a couple storefronts down fro Tacofino.

Dough Eyes Pizza a trendy pizza place on Pandora, opened this month and replaced Virtuous Pie (vegan pizza). Local restaurant by the owners of Cafe Brio and Brasserie L’Ecole.

Le Croissant Chaud - opened in May, a local French artisanal bakery and café on Broad street across from the under construction Marriott. I can't remember what used to be in that space but it wasn't food related.

Taste of Lebanon(600 block of Fort St) - local, replaced an Asian tea place. Opened in April

Otto - local, gourmet sandwiches - opened this month at the former Picnic location on Fort Street. I've been there twice already as it's nearby to me.

Montanka Cafe - don't know much about this one other than it appears to be local and they're spending a lot of money on the interior and it's a large space. Opening soon as they say. Ah, here's a description - " a Ukrainian-inspired café in the heart of Victoria’s Inner Harbour. We serve handmade crepes and croissants with a variety of savory and sweet fillings, fresh salads in to-go cups, desserts, and specialty coffee and matcha drinks. Our kitchen is built around wholesome cooking — all fillings are baked, not fried, prepared fresh with quality ingredients and minimal oil. No deep fryers, no shortcuts. Rooted in Ukrainian culture and folk art tradition, Motanka Cafe is a warm, welcoming space where good food meets good company"

Hey Happy - just outside of downtown in Cook St Village we have local coffee shop opening their third location in the former Starbucks location in September or October.

C.S. Chan - Also just opened a couple months ago in Cook St Village - a dumpling and wonton restaurant that has a location up in Sidney and a line of dumpling sauces sold in local grocery stores. Replaced part of a former health food grocery store.

From what I can recall/see online the only downtown restaurant that closed in 2026 and wasn't replaced (yet) was Odd Burger. Seems odd.. should be more?!

So that's 17 plus two in Cook St. Village with a loss of one.

[Vin]

Good news! Glad there are resilient food and beverage businesses jumping in to fill the vacancies. Some Vancouver chains have deep pockets as their businesses in the Lower Mainland are doing well.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by zoomer

Now if you want true ugliness, explain to me why anyone would design this? As many of you know I used to be a participant in the dwarf throwing contests at Monty's back in the early 90's, but even I can reach the plastic shiny tacky red wood (but not redwood) siding from the sidewalk. Someone is going to rip it apart, not me to be clear. 110 Menzies MappingVictoria project page

The bottom right photo is the view headed west towards the ocean.. just wild.



110 Menzies - July 20, 2026 by JohnnyJayEh, on Flickr

Looking back the other direction:



110 Menzies - July 20, 2026 by JohnnyJayEh, on Flickr

I hate to be too judgemental, but has there been an uglier building completed in the past 20 years? If there was a case for setting back a building this is it. That black metal fencing right up against the sidewalk makes the whole thing feel cramped as well. As part of the MappingVictoria research I did get a tour of the building last week and the inside is actually fairly impressive. Small but decent gym, a small co-working space, an excellent and very large rooftop on the rooftop of the section that's 5 storeys, with bbq's, firepits, shrubbery and a view of the ocean, mountains and cruise ships. Also underway is an extensive courtyard garden. The suites are small, but the hallways bright and wide. The interior quality construction looks to be of high quality, I looked at three suites and could not see any deficiencies, which is something you can't say about most new condos nowadays. While not air-conditioned the bedroom and living room have a circular panel in the wall you can pop out near the floor level and feed your portable air conditioner vent into. But starting at $2,400 or so for around 450 sq feet seems steep.

Looks like this one will age really badly, especially the wooden panels. Designer should have gone with more classic lines with heritage features: fit this city best!

[zoomer]

Yes, good news indeed - now I wonder if all these new places opening will be able to find and retain good employees? And of course today I realized I had missed about five other new openings plus some fast food (does that qualify as a restaurant?) such as Popeye's which opened a couple months ago at Yates and Cook. And this morning I passed by The Poke Lounge at Yates and Quadra and it's now closed with the building listed for sale. So yeah, I give up trying to track all this downtown, the construction is more than enough to keep me busy.

Vin, I also agree on the Shearwater apartment; just way too busy with cheap material. Maybe on paper it looked interesting but in real life it's a mess never mind probably more complex to build with way more future failure/leakage points with all the angles, joints, and multiple materials used.

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1050 Yates St construction update.

• Video Link

[Phil McAvity]

Originally Posted by aastra

Wow, so you paid $25 to walk down a street? That's expensive even by Victoria's standards.

It took a week but I was reimbursed the $25

Originally Posted by zoomer

At that point you should have just entered your vehicle as a classic car, wear an old fashion jaunty hat and speak with an upscale English accent. What are you driving nowadays?

I don't think my 2017 Ram 1500 truck would make it as it's neither a collector nor a car

Originally Posted by zoomer

As for Telus Ocean..well, the ass end is so of jarring that it's photogenic. Which in the end I'm ok with, lol. Pics from last week:

That's true, most people won't see it from this angle thankfully

Originally Posted by zoomer

How many people even know of Penwill Street? Exactly one block long and faces only two buildings - parking garage of the Executive House hotel and a non-entrance side of the Marriott hotel.
t.

When I drove cab 30 years ago Penwell St. was the street we would ask drivers (at least those of us that were road scholars) if they knew where it was because it was so obscure

[Phil McAvity]

Originally Posted by zoomer

Now if you want true ugliness, explain to me why anyone would design this? As many of you know I used to be a participant in the dwarf throwing contests at Monty's back in the early 90's, but even I can reach the plastic shiny tacky red wood (but not redwood) siding from the sidewalk. Someone is going to rip it apart, not me to be clear. 110 Menzies MappingVictoria

110 Menzies - July 20, 2026 by JohnnyJayEh

I hate to be too judgemental, but has there been an uglier building completed in the past 20 years?

I actually don't mind this building, I think it looks okay with the angled wooden balconies. How about that monstrosity of a seniors building at Belleville and Blanshard? That thing's pretty bad but the worst must be this crowning achievement that I think handily outuglies 110 Menzies. This is one of the ugliest buildings i've ever seen anywhere:

[aastra]

That rust cladding was being promoted pretty heavily for a while there. The CoV was even calling for it, if I remember my past controversies. But I also remember Ironworks was supposed to have some different cladding on the front side. It looked better to my eye when the rust panels would have been covering only part of it.

[Vantage]

Wow, how is that even real?

[zoomer]

Well, thats a super low res photo with the contrast and saturation turned up to max so it looks like crap. In real life I quite like it although the mural doesn't really fit in. Plus unlike the previous Shearwater example above, at least it's not a wood stain hardie board, but instead corten steel cladding.

Sorry this are so large but here's a better representation:







Source

[zoomer]

Phil - cool story about Penwill, lol.

And another building you hate but I don't mind now is that senior's building at Belleville and Douglas. Considering the prominent location yes it should have been better especially since it's not too far for a classic design if they would have refined the design and put more money in to start with. Replace the grey with a contrasting light orange brick or even a high end tile product.







source

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by zoomer

Well, thats a super low res photo with the contrast and saturation turned up to max so it looks like crap. In real life I quite like it although the mural doesn't really fit in. Plus unlike the previous Shearwater example above, at least it's not a wood stain hardie board, but instead corten steel cladding.

The previous image was probably taken very soon after the building was completed. Corten steel takes a while to 'settle in', and can look streaky for a few months. Your images appear to be more recent, and how the building was intended to look. How Shearwater will age depends on whether that's real lumber, (which it appears to be), and how the stain performs over time.

[zoomer]

Another building I was adamantly against is the Raven Apartments at Vancouver and View. City planners and councillors weren't too thrilled with it as I recall for a whole host of reasons but in the end they didn't reject it.

No retail or commercial at street level (not saying every single building needs it though) and a ridiculous main podium...heck there is no podium. This building would have been so much better if it had a proper and distinct podium. But the greenery is kicking in and obscuring that fact and it does pop in photos for some reason. And that too open/jarring side facing View Towers (Vancouver Street side by contrast is ironically too obscured by huge trees) will be obscured when/if that building is constructed.



Raven Apartments - 1124 Vancouver S - July 20, 2026 by JohnnyJayEh, on Flickr



Raven Apartments - 1124 Vancouver S - July 20, 2026 by JohnnyJayEh, on Flickr



937 View Street Fenced off - July 3, 2026 by JohnnyJayEh, on Flickr

[zoomer]

Originally Posted by Changing City

The previous image was probably taken very soon after the building was completed. Corten steel takes a while to 'settle in', and can look streaky for a few months. Your images appear to be more recent, and how the building was intended to look. How Shearwater will age depends on whether that's real lumber, (which it appears to be), and how the stain performs over time.

I went on a tour last week and the 'wood' panel bump outs can be reached from sidewalk level. I knocked on that shit, and definitely not real wood - it looks and feels so shiny and plasticky, truly an ugly siding when you factor in that over saturated colour. I'll admit to having full on hate for all hardie board and I'd love to it banned from all construction but we know that's not going to happen. Page 20 of the final plans indicates it's hardie board:

HORIZONTAL SIDING - WOODTONE - OLD CHERRY - FIBER CEMENT LAP - 4" EXPOSURE

As for the Ironworks building, I'll have to walk by this week and take some pics, because you're right, it changes as it ages and the pics I have are a few years old as are those realtor photos.

[aastra]

I can appreciate Ironworks, assuming it remains one-of-a-kind in that area. But please don't give us another building in the vicinity that also goes heavy with that same cladding. Like I say, the CoV seemed to be keen on the withered industrial vibe for a while there, as if it were the sum total of the identity and character of north downtown/Rock Bay. I wouldn't object to a bit of rust trim on some other project, but another overdose would be bad in my opinion.

[aastra]

For a while there the Raven's fortified ground level was looking like a great place to hole up when the zombies attack, but the greenery has really softened that impression now. Once again I observe how just a wee bit more personality on those ground-level units could have made for a major improvement.

Many projects in Victoria lately have been flirting with how extreme they can be with certain aspects. It seems to be a theme now. I'm often wishing they had dialed it back by 10% (whatever the "it" happens to be for any particular project). Dial back the severity of the Raven's ground level by 10%. Dial back the blankness of Telus Ocean's back corner by 10%. Dial back the grey on the Chatham St side of Spencer Block by 10%. Dial back the panels on Encore in Vic West by 10%.

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by zoomer

I went on a tour last week and the 'wood' panel bump outs can be reached from sidewalk level. I knocked on that shit, and definitely not real wood - it looks and feels so shiny and plasticky, truly an ugly siding when you factor in that over saturated colour. I'll admit to having full on hate for all hardie board and I'd love to it banned from all construction but we know that's not going to happen. Page 20 of the final plans indicates it's hardie board:

HORIZONTAL SIDING - WOODTONE - OLD CHERRY - FIBER CEMENT LAP - 4" EXPOSURE

Thanks. Made in BC, and fireproof, so I guess those are plus points. But the fact that it may not fade would be in the minus column!

[Phil McAvity]

I agree, those Raven apartments are ugly but at least you get a luxurious little fence with each unit. The Great Scaper and I checked it out in person awhile ago and we were both raven about how bad it is

Also, is it just me or are construction projects starting to completely take over the roads next to the site? It seems like a recent thing to me and they create big traffic backups as a result