Downtown Vancouver Updates

[leftside]

[QUOTE=eduardo88;3288661
I love the look of this...wall to wall buildings, it looks so european and dense without the need for height. I wish we could have something like this all along the canada line. doesn't neccessarily have to be so high, i'd be happy with 4-5 stories, just i wish we could have more of this type of constructions...especially if theres ground floor retail to encourage pedestrian activity[/QUOTE]
I think that's the Bowman Lofts. I'm also a big fan of that type of construction though I also like tall buildings (in the right location).

[Canadian Mind]

how does one build wall-wall anyways? wouldn't it be difficult to put a facade or even just weatherproofing along the wall with and inch or less of space to work with?

[LeftCoaster]

Easiest way is to put waterproofing at the top and sides.. treat it as an interior wall.

[jlousa]

Weather proofing? If it's wall to wall, (in europe there are even shared walls) there is no need as there isn't weather to contend with. You build right up to the existing wall and cap any gap at the top. Using exterior grade materials is sufficent.

[jlousa]

The following project has been on the Development permit board for awhile. Is this a new project? I know it's not Atelier but is it another project we already knew about? I can't keep track of them all.

175 Robson st (At Cambie St currently a parking lot)
This new construction is a mixed use complex with retail units on the street level but is mainly a hotel and residential tower with conference facilities, restaurant and lounge on the second level and spa and amenities on the third level. The tower is 20 storeys high.

[osirisboy]

^^this is the hilton hotel site kitty-corner to raffles (not sure if its still a hilton though)

[SpongeG]

some coverage of the tree cutting...

Downtown Chainsawing

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - The sound of chainsaws permeated the air Saturday morning in downtown Vancouver.
Many bystanders were shocked to see trees coming down at the corner of Robson and Howe.

Bystanders weren't sure what was going on, "I don't know the necessity of it. I don't know what the reason is for the trees to be sacrificed...Didn't they vote on it? It's a crazy idea," said some.

The trees are being removed on either side of Robson at Howe along the sides of the Provincial Courts and across the street at the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Senior staff at the art gallery say they were not informed about the tree removal.

Meanwhile, BC's Labour Minister, Olga Illich, says the building that encompasses the courts and art gallery has an underground membrane that needs to be removed, and the trees had to come down, "They have to come out so that they can repair the membrane that's sitting underneath them. They are sitting on a membrane and they have to be removed for that reason."

Illich says the work has nothing to do with plans for the future contruction of a giant umbrella structure over Robson Square.

http://www.cknw.com/news/news_local.cfm?...23aPBIny&wids=410&gi=1&gm=news_local.cfm

[mr.x]

^ on CTV, they said the tree roots were causing leaks in the offices below....sort of like how overgrown tree roots cause concrete sidewalks to buckle.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by jlousa

The following project has been on the Development permit board for awhile. Is this a new project? I know it's not Atelier but is it another project we already knew about? I can't keep track of them all.

175 Robson st (At Cambie St currently a parking lot)
This new construction is a mixed use complex with retail units on the street level but is mainly a hotel and residential tower with conference facilities, restaurant and lounge on the second level and spa and amenities on the third level. The tower is 20 storeys high.

It'll be a hotel by the same group that operates the Hampton Inn next door. We posted elevations last year (slightly skewed floorplate part way up the building and a courtyard garden on the roof. The current application shows the same architect as last year so it shoud be the same design.

*******

WRT the trees - that's a surprise, but you'll be seeing that more and more with "green" roofs. When the upper levels of the courthouse were re-membraned (over the past 2 years) all of the trees were extracted for the planters, stored off site and returned - but they were much smaller trees (Japanese maples and knarled pines) and the roots would have been more contained (easier removal). I suppose it a surprise because they were viewed as "street" trees rather than being on a roof.

[officedweller]

Downtown's 'signature' sites could be growing up, up, up
City looking at new building height policies

Cheryl Rossi, Vancouver Courier
Published: Friday, January 18, 2008
The concept of rezoning in Gastown, Chinatown and along Hastings to allow taller or denser development is nothing new, says a city planner.

Trish French, assistant director of central area planning for the city, said a building height study for the heritage precincts--Gastown, Chinatown, the area around Victory Square, and Hastings, roughly from Richards to Gore--should be released in June or July.

Those keen to preserve the districts' heritage character were concerned after council approved a last minute addition to the city's EcoDensity initiative by NPA Coun. Suzanne Anton. Anton moved that in order to support heritage projects, provide replacement housing and meet environmental goals, the city consider policies to relax density and height restrictions for "signature" sites.

Buildings in the heritage precincts are typically 70 to 75 feet tall or six or seven storeys. Clauses already in place allow the city to consider height increases in some areas. The tallest buildings permitted are 100 feet or 10 storeys. The tallest building on the Woodward's site will be 400 feet tall.

French says citizens don't need to worry about heritage areas merging with the city of glass. "You want to make sure that you still have heritage streetscapes in a very strong way," she said. "There's also the experience of how does the area read in the context of the cityscape and skyline. We don't want to lose the differentiation that this heritage area has."

The city is developing a revitalization plan for Chinatown and considering rezoning to allow buildings that are up to 150 feet tall to attract more residents and rejuvenate the commercial area.

The city could permit buildings taller than 150 feet on signature sites, and these sites are being determined. They could be special places in terms of street grids and gateways to neighbourhoods.

"A landmark site, for example, in another context is where the Marine Building is at the end of Burrard Street, where it forms a termination of that visual axis," French said.

Will the B.C. Electric Building at Hastings and Carrall be a signature site?

"I hear that the developer thinks of it as a signature site, and it certainly is an important site in the area," French said. "I don't know whether it will end up being a signature site."

She doesn't expect towers to grow out of the facades of historic buildings. "Most of the time we don't like to do that for any kind of significant heritage building. That particular kind of heritage approach is an approach of last resort."

Prior to the Nov. 27 council meeting where Anton's motion passed, the city had 12 proposals from developers requesting height or density relaxations in exchange for refurbishing heritage buildings, providing social housing or childcare space downtown.

The city told them it wouldn't approve the developments on an individual basis, French said. It will wait until policies arise from the heritage precincts height study and its Metropolitan Core Jobs and Economy Land Use Plan, which aims to ensure downtown Vancouver has enough commercial space to supply jobs.

The city is also reviewing its practice of trading extra floor space and other incentives with developers to facilitate costly heritage building upgrades. French expects this study to conclude in about six months.

Consultation with the city's Heritage Commission and citizens has yet to begin.

A public meeting about the city's EcoDensity initiative is planned for Feb. 16 in Chinatown and French expects density and building heights will be topics of discussion.

She anticipates that consultation around the height study will occur in April or May. She said council will need to develop strategies that prioritize various needs.




© Vancouver Courier 2008

[Aylmer]

How many meters is that (150ft)?

[Yume-sama]

Originally Posted by AylmerOptimist

How many meters is that (150ft)?

A mere 45.72

[mr.x]

ugh....i was expecting something like 400-500 feet. 150 is nothing...in fact, i would call it an insult to EcoDensity.

[jlousa]

Depending on how the 150ft is used, you could have alot more density then at some sites that have 400ft limit. Wall to wall buildings at 150ft house a lot of people. The FSR could be as high as 15 (probably closer to 10 though) which is higher then any site I can think of.

[AKA-007]

I'm all for densifying these sites downtown so long as the streets don't become plugged with cars. It can already take forever to get anywhere down there depending on the time of day.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by officedweller

The city is developing a revitalization plan for Chinatown and considering rezoning to allow buildings that are up to 150 feet tall to attract more residents and rejuvenate the commercial area.

The city could permit buildings taller than 150 feet on signature sites, and these sites are being determined. They could be special places in terms of street grids and gateways to neighbourhoods.

I agree woth JLousa and would expect that the 150ft buildings would end up forming a tall street wall, rather than the typial tower & podium form. That would be interesting.

[LeftCoaster]

150ft is almost too tall for a street wall... I like something more in the 70ft range, tops.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by LeftCoaster

150ft is almost too tall for a street wall... I like something more in the 70ft range, tops.

70 feet gives you only 7-storeys in an area which will be the future of Downtown Vancouver.....150-feet is doable for a streetwall: you need to visit Hong Kong!

[officedweller]

Compared to, say, 3 storey townhouses in downtown south?
The difference in feel between earlier podiums and the newer Robson Street buildngs - L'Hermitage, Raffles, L'Aria on Robson and R&R - is significant.

[hollywoodnorth]

Business in Vancouver January 22-28, 2008; issue 952

Yale Hotel owner strikes heritage deal with city

Tentative agreement includes bonus density and the retention of low-income housing

Glen Korstrom

Will Lin’s dream to replace Vancouver’s aging Cecil Hotel with a 25-storey residential tower while upgrading the adjacent historic Yale Hotel is inching closer to reality.

The Rize Alliance Properties owner, who bought the Yale Hotel for approximately $10 million in mid-2006 and the Cecil Hotel for “millions” of dollars soon afterward, has reached a tentative agreement with City of Vancouver planners for his 20,000-square-foot Granville Street site at the north end of the Granville Bridge.

“The deal now is that we have a report to council as a major project coming down the pike, and it’s going to be seeking council approval soon,” said Lin. “There’s a heritage revitalization agreement involved where we would upgrade and retain the Yale Hotel and the commercial space, the Yale pub. It will be designated a heritage building when completed.”

Lin’s tentative agreement with city staff requires that he retain and upgrade 44 subsidized housing rooms at the Yale that have single-room occupancy (SRO) zoning. Lin will give those rooms to the city when his proposed project is complete. In exchange, he expects the city to allow him to build a 165,000-square-foot tower. Current density rules provide for a maximum 100,000-square-foot tower.

Lin presented his case to a City of Vancouver urban design panel on December 19, and that panel urged Lin to redesign his tower to be a taller and more slender 255 to 260 feet tall instead of its originally proposed 225-foot height.

Lin must get city approval to change the site’s zoning from “downtown district” to “comprehensive development.” He fears delays from the city’s backlogged rezoning department could scuttle the project.•