Vic Suites (Hollis & Morris) | 32 m | 10 fl | Complete

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

... Out here in Bedford a cliff had to be blasted away to build a sidewalk on the Bedford Highway so even small projects can be costly.

I guess it can be expensive providing appropriate infrastructure for a city

[Jstaleness]

I was driving past this on Hollis last night. A few lights were on in the building. I liked the effect it had on the red balconies from street level.

[Dmajackson]

Well at least nobody can say this doesn't stand out some ... taken from King's Wharf;

[someone123]

The red balconies look great from that angle.

Hopefully as time goes on we'll see more interesting designs like this one and fewer plain precast-clad buildings. There's a lot of potential for the Cunard block.

[beyeas]

We drove past this early Saturday morning on the way to the market, and the sun from the east was streaming through the red glass. My wife (who isn't someone who usually pays attention to developments like I do) looked up and said "WOW, that is one smart looking building". It really does look great... foam cornice aside, it is my favourite building in the last while. Trillium is looking better now that they are putting the bronze sections on, but still is far behind Vic Suites in terms of street appeal.

[pblaauw]

I went by this last Saturday night, and there were some balconies that had lights on them, shining through the red glass. It was an awesome sight, and if anyone has a chance to go by there at night, it would make a great photo op. I saw some photos from someone who moved in to one of the suites, on FB. The view was toward Halterm, etc., and was kind of lacking. :/

[kph06]

Photos by me:

[RyeJay]

Originally Posted by kph06

The VIC is lookin' great!! And soon Fenwick will have a similar angled roof.

[pblaauw]

Originally Posted by RyeJay

The VIC is lookin' great!! And soon Fenwick will have a similar angled roof.

How soon? I'm getting impatient!

[someone123]

Great shots. I quoted your post in the Canada section construction thread.

The Vic seems to be pretty visible and has been well-received. I hope it is part of a continued trend -- as people accept that modern looking buildings can be attractive maybe we'll have less of the faux Victorian stuff.

[hoser111]

It will be a HUGE improvement when all of those power lines are buried! ...love that shot adjacent to Fenwick.

[someone123]

Originally Posted by hoser111

It will be a HUGE improvement when all of those power lines are buried! ...love that shot adjacent to Fenwick.

I actually think they look kind of cool in this shot, but they should be buried.

[RyeJay]

Originally Posted by pblaauw

How soon? I'm getting impatient!

Fenwick renos start next year.

Give it a couple years and it'll look like an entirely new building.

[Jstaleness]

I didn't have time to back and read all the old posts, but if I ever said that the red balconies where a bad idea than I'm sorry. I guess I might have been thinking about the old red balconies that were on the former Brunswick Towers. (Ocean Towers now).
I thought nothing would have impressed me more than the trillium this year but the Vic is one of the coolest buildings I've ever seen. There are other buildings in the world that used red glass but I wasn't able to find any on a white backdrop.

[Aya_Akai]

One of those absolutely stunning beautiful clear days we had last week I just happened to have off from work. I did nothing all day, but I had set the day aside to go admire Vic at sunset with the sun coming through the balconies on the side of the building..

Anyway, I'd like to share these with you guys, I think this building, as small as it is, in the grand scheme of Halifax makes probably the biggest impact to me, it really stands out, just stunning. Overall, I have to agree with what Jstaleness said above... one of the coolest buildings I think I've ever seen.









Photos © Me

[Keith P.]

Originally Posted by HaliStreaks

One of those absolutely stunning beautiful clear days we had last week I just happened to have off from work. I did nothing all day, but I had set the day aside to go admire Vic at sunset with the sun coming through the balconies on the side of the building..

Anyway, I'd like to share these with you guys, I think this building, as small as it is, in the grand scheme of Halifax makes probably the biggest impact to me, it really stands out, just stunning. Overall, I have to agree with what Jstaleness said above... one of the coolest buildings I think I've ever seen.

This particular view, except from somewhat more to the south, hit me between the eyes tonight as I sat in traffic after a meeting downtown. From the angle I was at on Lower Water the building was just stunningly good-looking. I diverted my route to turn up Morris in order to see the entrance, which is still under construction. We have seen a number of pictures of it from the Hollis-Morris perspective and it is far less impressive from that angle - the gray faux-shingle treatment really does not work for me. But from the Water St side it is fabulous. My thought was of what a cool place to live it would be and what a fabulous view it would have on the harbor side. The terraces on the penthouse level would be incredible.

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by Keith P.

This particular view, except from somewhat more to the south, hit me between the eyes tonight as I sat in traffic after a meeting downtown. From the angle I was at on Lower Water the building was just stunningly good-looking. I diverted my route to turn up Morris in order to see the entrance, which is still under construction. We have seen a number of pictures of it from the Hollis-Morris perspective and it is far less impressive from that angle - the gray faux-shingle treatment really does not work for me. But from the Water St side it is fabulous. My thought was of what a cool place to live it would be and what a fabulous view it would have on the harbor side. The terraces on the penthouse level would be incredible.

You're right, it's not stunning from the Hollis/Morris angle, but I think it "behaves" in an urban form kind of way. Hollis/Morris kind of blends into the streetscape - albeit with questionable materials... what I'd call an urbanist statement. The water side is more of an architectural statement. I'd say the two are balanced pretty well.

[HRM]

Agreed. The Lower Water Street elevation is inspiring and gives hope for the future of architecture in Halifax. South Beach written all over it. But the Hollis/ Morris intersection is a real mish mash of materials with no long-term histories. Horror stories of cement fibre are now starting to become main stream. But overall a real nice bulding.

However the only concern I have is how well the cream panels and red balcony glass age over time, especially given the harsh elements of a maritime location. Salt from the harbour and sun will be a real test for the cream metal panels. And these things get dirty real fast. Especially with the continuous exhaust from 18 wheelers rolling past all day. This stuff is going to be blown onto the panels and possibly turn the panels blackish/grey in a few years. I hope this does not happen as this will really deter from the clean look.

[pblaauw]

I absolutely love the last photo. Very nice.

[Dmajackson]

Hopefully I'll have some better photos on Friday