Kelowna Construction

[Spoolmak]

The Okanagan has 2 fives guys, plus one in Kamloops. How many more floors til its topped out?

[Metro-One]

Looks like 7 more floors to go??

Thanks for the pics! I find it so strange that the only true tower u/c in Kelowna right now (a vacations destination city for Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton) is an office tower! One would think it should be a condo tower or a hotel tower / complex.

[wisla_krakow]

Originally Posted by Spoolmak

The Okanagan has 2 fives guys, plus one in Kamloops. How many more floors til its topped out?

where's the second one?

the one in west kelowna opened up in november.

[Spoolmak]

I guess that would be the only OK one? I thought Kelowna had one as well.

[hollywoodnorth]

thx for all the pics recently everyone

[Denscity]

Originally Posted by Xelebes

Really? Fatburger is nothing to write home about either. Carls Jr. must be real underwhelming.

I had a carls jr burger in Spokane and thought it was great. Slightly pricey but it was huge and has a generous amount of guacamole mmm. Spokane is an hour closer to Castlegar than kelowna is so haven't been to kelownas yet.

[Emtee]

Developers eager to get moving on Leon project

FRIDAY, 13 JANUARY 2012 11:08 RON SEYMOUR

The first multi-storey office building proposed for downtown Kelowna in more than a decade will soon by considered by city council.
Troika Developments has plans for a five-storey structure at 554 Leon Ave.
"The creation of new office space in a key location (supports) efforts for the continued revitalization of the downtown urban centre," Luke Turri, the city's land use planner, writes in a report to be considered by council at its Jan. 24 meeting.
The last similar office building constructed in Kelowna was the four-storey TD-Canada Trust structure, erected in 2000 at the northwest corner of Ellis Street and Leon Avenue, Turri said Thursday.
A seven-storey building, with residential suites on the top three floors, was built by Worman Commercial on Pandosy Street, between Leon and Lawrence Avenues.
Much of the new premium office space created in Kelowna in recent years has been located in the Landmark Centre, a cluster of buildings a five minute drive east of downtown.
Over the years, the City of Kelowna has tried a variety of measures to spur new development in the Lawrence-Leon corridor, with little result. Previous plans have included tax breaks, streetscape rejuvenation, and a pledge by the city to lease space in new buildings.
Troika's proposed building on Leon Avenue would have 1,315 sq feet of commercial space on the ground floor. Four storeys of office space would be topped by a landscaped, rooftop terrace, complete with a kitchen and seating areas for the use of building tenants.
Bob Guy, Troika's development manager, says the company has owned the property on Leon for several years.
"We just feel it's time to get moving on this project," Guy said. "We're very positive about the economy and the future of downtown Kelowna.
"We've already had some strong pretty strong responses from companies interested in space in the building," Guy said.

http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/local-news/developers-eager-to-get-moving-on-leon-project.html

From the proposal to council:

[vitc]

New Downtown Building Heights Policy 2012:

http://www.kelowna.ca/CityPage/Docs/PDFs...wntown%20Building%20Heights%20Policy.pdf

[Phil McAvity]

^Wow, that thing looks like it was put together by a high-schooler.

I like the Orwellian mantra too:

CAUTION

HEIGHT IS A PRIVILEGE

Oh yeah? For who?

Victoria has similar by-laws and they are all completely ridiculous given that City Council has to vote on each proposal anyway. Just another pointless layer of red tape and waste of taxpayer's money.

[Chadillaccc]

Come on now let's see some pics of Landmark 6!

and what is going on with the Monaco?

[Emtee]

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Come on now let's see some pics of Landmark 6!

and what is going on with the Monaco?

The most recent news regarding the Monaco is this press release from November 23 I think.

Monaco – Development Permit to be presented to Council February 2012
November 23rd, 2011
After five years of planning, the Monaco project has one last hurdle to clear. The Development Permit and 4th Reading will be presented to Kelowna’s new Council sometime in February.

The mixed-use downtown project will include two towers on a 4 storey podium. It will include 241 residential units, 9 work/live lofts, office space, ground floor commercial / retail, and non-profit gallery space. A residential hotel program will also allow Kelowna General Hospital long term stay options for out-of-town patients, including a shuttle program. The development will use the latest technology for energy management, including rain barrel catchments systems, passive solar capture systems, water conservation technology, care share programs, xeriscape planting and other sustainable features.

Due to its size, City staff currently recommends non-support of the development. On December 13th, the new City Council will have the opportunity to approve (or deny) the development, at which point the development will be constructed over the next two years.

This is the community’s final opportunity to convince Council that this is what Kelowna needs and wants for its downtown core.

The community is encouraged to write a letter of support to Mayor and Council at [email protected] and to cc: [email protected]

For more information, please check out our project profile at www.newtownservices.net/monaco-highrise or the following brochure . Please also contact Malindi Elmore or Keith Funk at (250) 860-8185 if you have any additional questions.

http://www.newtownservices.net/whatsnew/

The DP and 4th reading still haven't gone before council.

[GORDBO]

any new pics of Landmark VI out there? should be on what,16th floor by now?

[Phil McAvity]

Kev 427 it looks like you are the only person in Kelowna who can get the shots we all want-mo' Landmark!

[Metro-One]

I hope Monaco is approved, it would add a lot to downtown Kelowna. Would really help solidify the skyline.

Come May time, i am sure to be up in Kelowna, i frequent the Okanagan often from May to September, so i will get pics when i am there.

[bigcitydude]

ah Kelowna!! my wife and I will be one of the group of new people to the city by 2020-2024 living in the downtown area according to the Kelowna city page.

[Ogopogo Fan]

The Monaco goes before council on March 6th. City staff has recommended non-approval. I expect it will be rejected in its current form, as the variances sought are pretty extreme.

http://www.kelowna.ca/CityPage/Docs/PDFs...es%20Inc%2C%20526%20Doyle%20Avenue%2Epdf


They've started putting the glass on Landmark. The first few floors are done. I drove by the other day and it's looking really good.

[Metro-One]

Why, what do they want to change about it?

They don't honestly believe ti is too tall do they?

I think its styling matches the summer dry feeling of the Okanagan perfectly.

[Ogopogo Fan]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Why, what do they want to change about it?

They don't honestly believe ti is too tall do they?

I think its styling matches the summer dry feeling of the Okanagan perfectly.

I think it is mostly the separation distance between the buildings. Buildings over 22 metres are supposed to have 30 metres between them - this has less than ten.

[Ogopogo Fan]

Downtown Kelowna towers too big, say city staff .Monday, 27 February 2012 02:00 Ron Seymour .Two new highrises proposed for downtown Kelowna are too massive and bulky to warrant approval, city staff say.
Planners recommend council not endorse the Monaco project, which would see the construction of 22- and 26-storey towers at the northwest corner of Doyle Avenue and St. Paul Street.

The two towers would have a total of 250 residential suites and 13 premises for commercial or office space on the lower floors.

"If constructed as proposed, this project would be the tallest and most prominent buildings in the city and would dominate the skyline from all vantage points," reads part of a report by Alec Warrender, urban land use manager, that city council will consider March 6.

"The sheer bulk and massing of these two towers do not meet any of the design objectives envisioned for a livable and

vibrant downtown city centre," Warrender says.

Objections listed by staff include the overall height of the buildings and their width, along with the structures' potential to block other views, cast big shadows, and

create a wind tunnel effect at ground level.

Plans for the Monaco were first presented to city officials in 2007. The project has been on hold because of the downturn in the housing market, and the developer has revised some aspects of the project in response to staff concerns.

However, the current proposal would still require council's approval of seven variances, or exemptions from standard building practices. These relate to such things as setbacks from property lines, separation from existing buildings, and the towers' overall footprint on the building site.

When the project was considered by the now-defunct advisory planning commission in 2008, members

recommended council not grant most of the requested variances.

"It is imperative that the developers be forced to keep the buildings taller and slender (to) preserve daylighting and viewscapes," commission members said.

For their part, the developers say the Monaco is an attractive project that will contain a variety of suite sizes geared to several types of buyers, while helping enliven downtown Kelowna.

"What makes the Monaco viable and unique is that it's a diverse pair of towers," Tyler Dueck of Abbotsford-based Premier Pacific Properties said last April.

"There will be smaller and larger suites that investment, second-home and primary buyers will want, and it also has a shared four-storey platform with shops, restaurants, offices and some artists' lofts," Dueck said.

From: http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/front-...-too-big-say-city-staff.html#comment-768

[Metro-One]

So sad, these towers are not very tall or massive at all, Kelowna still has its head up its ass. What do they want? 5 story wood framed buildings??? Why don't they start striking down the sprawling sub divisions that are eating up the hillsides. No there are developments that take up too much space and destroy views!