Saskatoon Construction

[circle33]

Pretty swanky. It'll be like living in the not too distant future.

[socialisthorde]

Anyone notice that the configuration of the buildings has changed. If you compare the renderings on the Lake Placid website to these new ones the hotel and retail have switched positions. Also the comercial is shown in the old renderings as having a slightly curved front, whereas in the new rendering it looks completely flat. Not meaning to be picky, and I still like it, but I liked the original better.

[swilley]

i don't think it has changed, this seems the be looking at it from the corner of 2nd and 19th, while the others all look at it from the riverbank.

[socialisthorde]

I realize that the viewing angle is different, but even taking that into account, viewing through the courtyard (ie. looking at the concave side of the residential tower), in the orignial (as portrayed below), the comercial is to the right of the residential tower, while from the same perspective in the new rendering, the hotel would be to the right. No big deal, just interesting.

Originally Posted by SASKFTW

...available at http://www.riverlanding.ca/project_update/phase1/urban_centre/pdfs/rfp_lake_placid.pdf

[swilley]

The curved part of the commercial building you think is on the right ( in your rendering), is actually the curved part on the left ( in this rendering, which is the new commercial building that was added after the original plan was put out).

[kgc087]

The falt building is along 19th while the curved is along spadina or whatever the road facing the river is. As well I've noticed the hotel is no longer curved, that would be to lower construction costs. It still looks stunning and well in my opinion is the best development in SK.

[midnightrambler]

Just for fun... They already did sell out of the condos...

[joelpiecowye]

took some more night shots

all of them are dri photos but the last one which is my first attempt at hdr photography, problem is i am only using the trial version which wrecks the photo afterwards
oh well i guess,
enjoy












hdr my first try ever



dont get why the building is so bright compared to rest

[socialisthorde]

[QUOTE=kgc087;3885369]
BTW, nice pictures joel. I'm interested in HDR too, so please continue to share your efforts and what you learn.

Edit: Which building are you referring to?

Edit 2: Suddenly your explanation of the new RL render makes perfect sense Swilley.

[A4Regina]

The new render is a big improvement IMO. The more glass, the better, Especially in Saskatoon where everything is brick and stucco!
I like the blue L.E.D strips that sort of outline the buildings, it'll look great in the skyline at night!
Im excited to see saskatoon in around two years, it'll be so different.

[jaysfan99]

Originally Posted by A4Regina

The new render is a big improvement IMO. The more glass, the better, Especially in Saskatoon where everything is brick and stucco!
I like the blue L.E.D strips that sort of outline the buildings, it'll look great in the skyline at night!
Im excited to see saskatoon in around two years, it'll be so different.

I think it will be really cool. Can't wait for the construction to start soon.

Is anything in the plans for Regina? Been a few years since I've been up that way. What is the update on the new stadium for the RIDERS?

[swilley]

College drive development...

http://www.jbblackestates.com/

[swilley]

Originally Posted by socialisthorde

Edit 2: Suddenly your explanation of the new RL render makes perfect sense Swilley.

Good, I was starting to wonder about you...

[kgc087]

I think the condos along college are going to be an excellent addition to the area and will hopefully promote similar developments to happen along the whole road. I think the architecture is a bit off and well the interiors are predictable but none the less its a fantastic stepping stone to developing a denser and more unique area!

[jaysfan99]

Originally Posted by swilley

College drive development...

http://www.jbblackestates.com/

I like it! Looks nice. Need more of this on College. Maybe the corner of College and Clarence is next.

[Ruckus]

Real cost of parking spaces hidden
Robert Patrick, Special to The StarPhoenix
Published: Friday, October 31, 2008

Following is the opinion of the writer, an assistant professor in the department of geography and planning at the University of Saskatchewan.

I feel compelled to contribute a perspective on parking, especially given all the attention this topic has received in recent weeks with a four-part series in The StarPhoenix.

Most of us disassociate the space occupied by city parking lots as a form of land use and a feature of our urban environment. We view these spaces as a necessary component of our mobility needs, and thus give little thought to the impact they have on our cities and on human behaviour.

Despite all the recent attention paid to parking fines, the truth is that parking comes at a bargain price -- it's often free. Relative to the more expensive commercial lots that blight our inner cities, cheap metered rates encourage curbside cruising by motorists in search of that metered stall, or better yet, a non-metered stall.

This practice adds to street congestion, noise and air pollution, and raises a safety risk to pedestrians and cyclists. In a study by parking "guru" Donald Shoup, a planning professor at the University of California, American motorists park free on 99 per cent of all trips! The Canadian percentage is similar.

As we all know, nothing can be "free," not even "free parking" -- except in Monopoly! Urban land is well taxed, so surely someone must be paying for that "free" parking space.

So, how is it that motorists get free parking? It goes something like this: First, developers are required to offer up valuable land for parking when they undertake site development. The cost of this land is then passed on to the owners of the building, who then pass it on to consumers in higher rents or higher food prices.

This practice of bundling the cost of parking into pricing to give the illusion of "free parking" really is a subsidy to motorists, and a disincentive to other mobility options such as public transit. In the case of inexpensive (free after 6 p.m.) metered parking, cities act as landowners and subsidize motorists.

One solution is to offer developers the option to pay the city a development fee in lieu of parking spaces. The fee can then be used by the city to create appropriately priced, publicly owned parking.

The developer of a given project then is able to add more building space for people, not cars. These publicly owned parking areas become revenue generating for the city, with profits reinvested in the immediate neighbourhood on such items as card-swipe smart meters, urban art, bike lanes, and landscaping.

Another nagging aspect of parking relates to minimum parking space requirements set by civic bylaws. The legacy of minimum parking requirements lurks in every North American downtown. Civic bylaws bulge with minimum parking requirements that prescribe the number of parking stalls for increments of seating in everything from hair salons to movie theatres.

Prescribing a minimum number of parking stalls serves to oversupply parking, encourages car use, impairs the urban landscape and restricts urban design. More than one innovative mixed-use development has not come to fruition because of inflexible minimum parking requirements.

Some city planning departments have moved from minimum parking requirements to maximum parking requirements as a way to encourage developers to maximize site planning to meet the needs of people, not vehicles. Adding more rooms to a housing project or more green-space to an urban development certainly is better than an oversupply of paved parking stalls for cars.

Taking the lead from Europe, some North American employers have questioned the whole idea of providing all those "free" parking spaces for employees. Remember, those spaces are not free.

As employers begin to realize the cost in land taxes of providing all those "free" spaces, decisions have been made to offer instead transit passes, van-share options and car-pool alternatives. Employers can sell or convert the parking areas to a higher and better use.

Along with the high cost of energy and the connection between automobile use and climate warming, urban air quality and human health, it is time to rethink the design of our cities.

A good place to start might be in the parking lot.

© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2008

Source

[Ruckus]

Originally Posted by swilley

College drive development...

http://www.jbblackestates.com/

A nice addition to College Drive.

And I'm with ya jaysfan99, the corner of College and Clarence needs something soon, what a waste of a prominent Saskatoon corner.

[kgc087]

I forgot to mention but I was talking with a friend who owns a business along 2nd Ave. and he said he has noticed alot of construction people surveying the back alley there (he backs the midtown parkade) and he said he has a rumour of a 30 storey office tower going up.

[jaysfan99]

Originally Posted by kgc087

I forgot to mention but I was talking with a friend who owns a business along 2nd Ave. and he said he has noticed alot of construction people surveying the back alley there (he backs the midtown parkade) and he said he has a rumour of a 30 storey office tower going up.

I hope that's true, and not just a rumor.
I was downtown today. Looks like the KG is getting close to finishing the exterior.

[Ruckus]

A tour of Downtown

1 - King George


2 - Rumley


3


4 - KG and 23rd Street


5 - 2nd Avenue Lofts


6


7 - 1st Avenue


8


9 - Capitol 4 Theatre converted to office space


10 - 19th Street re-configuration


11


12 - Site of rumored 30 storey...


13 - Gathercole Arches


14


15 - Persephone shows


16 - Prairie Wind


17


18


19 - River Landing


20 - A couple of ducks


21 - Open for interpretation...


22


23- Shooting from Senator Sid Buckwold Bridge - Launch Time in foreground, Arts Tower-U of S campus in background


24 - Nutana


25 - Nutana


26 - River Landing Phase II


27


28


29 - Former pumphouse...


30


31


32


33 - Hi


34


35 - Picnic table at Rotary Park


36 - Walking onto the Traffic Bridge


37


38


39


40 - Leaves and Feathers


41


42


43 - Exploring Uranium


44 - Laying pipe


45 - I went inside hoping to capture some photos of the model, no luck, they said no...at first they thought I was the media.


46 - 3rd Avenue streetscape


47 - 3rd Avenue streetscape


48 - 3rd Avenue streetscape


49 - Civic Square Cenotaph


50


51
New skin for The Milroy


52


53 - 5th Avenue


54 - Back on 23rd Street


55 - 23rd and 5th Avenue


56 - 4th Avenue side of Sturdy Stone Centre


57 - Crossing 4th and 3rd Avenue to catch my bus home.


___________________________

Church seeks support for condos
Neighbours oppose traffic; development would aid church area seniors, says pastor
Rod Nickel, The StarPhoenix
Published: Monday, November 03, 2008

A developer and local church will make a second attempt this week to win over Adelaide-Churchill residents to their plan for a 120-unit seniors condo development.

Saskatoon Full Gospel Church wants to subdivide its six-acre site at Ruth Street and Haultain Avenue and sell the western four acres to condo developer Medican in exchange for it building a new church at the east end of the site.

More than 100 residents, many with concerns, attended a community meeting in June. That's an unusually high turnout for a zoning change application, said city development services manager Tim Steuart.

Since then, Medican has redesigned its plans and will take them to the neighbourhood Thursday.

Bill Ryan, a resident of the neighbourhood for 36 years, remains opposed.

"It will just destabilize our community in that it's a huge thing," Ryan said.

Traffic is one of the biggest concerns, he said. Adding another 100-plus cars will only further congest an area that's seen a big increase in traffic since the opening of Stonebridge and the Clarence-Circle interchange to the south, Ryan said.

"We can hardly back out some times," he said.

The design, reconfigured since the last public meeting, moves most condo units to the centre of the site and away from homes along Ruth Street and Clarence Avenue. The building tapers from three storeys in the centre to two storeys closer to homes, said architect Alvin Fritz in a phone interview from Lethbridge, Alta.



Source - Star Phoenix - Monday, November 3rd, 2008

Moving the condos further away from Ruth is meant to reduce shadows on private yards.

"It's going to be very attractive and appealing, designed to fit into the neighbourhood," Fritz said.

The plan includes 180 parking stalls and 30 visitor stalls. The new church building will have a K-12 Christian school for up to 120 students.

The site is currently zoned for one- and two-unit dwellings.

The church has a memorandum of understanding to sell to Medican. The deal would give the church a new building and a walking-distance housing option for many of the church's parishioners, said pastor Terry Noel.

"We finally found a group of developers who would allow us to fulfill our own vision as well," he said.

Noel said he doesn't sense an "overwhelming" community resistance. The condos would benefit seniors who have lived in the area most of their lives but might be looking at downsizing, he said.

"We took seriously the concerns of the community and we've addressed those concerns."

A public meeting on the condo project and zoning change is scheduled for Thursday at 7 p.m. in Hugh Cairns VC School. The next step would be city administration preparing a report for the municipal planning commission. After its review, the city would advertise the proposed zoning change and forward the application to city council.

[email protected]

© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2008

Source