The Great Canadian Skyline Thread! II - Page 225

Calgarian · #**4481** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 6:12 PM**

I wish Calgary had something like Yonge & Dundas or Robson & Granville, sadly this city is still too vehicle oriented (at least the people here are anyway), even downtown.

Chadillaccc · #**4482** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 6:17 PM**

Yeah, the best we have is Olympic Plaza :S

softee · #**4483** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 7:40 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by logan5

Robson and Granville probably rivals it pedestrian wise ( Robson/Granville actually looks busier on Street View), and with the Sears building getting a reclad and another redevelopment across the street, Robson and Granville will probly beat Yonge and Dundas, using your criteria.

The streetview scenes of Yonge and Dundas look much quieter than what I'm used to seeing. I'm guessing that they must have been taken quite early in the morning. Go there on a nice summer day in the late afternoon and it's an absolute madhouse. Within Canada and the U.S., only Times Square has it beat in that respect.

softee · #**4484** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 7:50 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mrs Sauga

What I don't about Y&D is that only the north, south, and west sides feel like a major city. East side feels like London or Windsor. The entire square should be surrounded by skyscrapers.

A 40 storey building is proposed for Dundas Square and Victoria street. Demolition of an exiting structure has already occurred.

Chadillaccc · #**4485** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:00 PM**

... and most of the land to the east of the square is owned by Ryerson. The tower Softee just mentioned would do wonders for the look/feel to the south of the square, it'll be about 122 meters, mostly residential with some offices and ground floor retail. It's called 258 Victoria.

shappy · #**4486** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:09 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martin Mtl

Tell me about it. It's a challenge to avoid it when I visit Toronto, but I will go out of my way to do so. Toronto needs a nice, green, artsy, downtown square. Nathan square won't do it with its all-concrete landscape.

Trinity Square is nice and rivals YD Square in size (though it's nowhere near as busy). But I know what you mean... Queen and Soho would be good place for a space like that.

Surrealplaces · #**4487** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:14 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Yeah, the best we have is Olympic Plaza :S

I would say that Stephen ave as a whole is the best we have for that kind of thing. Olympic Plaza...... it's a good spot to host a small crowd of 2-3k, but it's not a great public space. It has improved over what it used to be though.

It's too bad Central Memorial park didn't have more highrises around it, it's a nice public space.

Chadillaccc · #**4488** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:16 PM**

Stephen Ave is a street, not a wide, large, traffic-less public square.

Surrealplaces · #**4489** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:19 PM**

A nice possiblility of a busy intersection/public space that we have is 7th ave and 8th street. Once they do demo that fugly building and make that park space it will have good potential. That intersection is already busy at all hours.

17th ave and 8th street when that Shopper's parcel gets developed also good potential. It's the Beltline's two busiest corridors intersecting, and you've got the park there.

17th and 4th street SW, has awesome potential if the NW lot ever gets developed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Calgarian

I wish Calgary had something like Yonge & Dundas or Robson & Granville, sadly this city is still too vehicle oriented (at least the people here are anyway), even downtown.

Surrealplaces · #**4490** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:21 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Stephen Ave is a street, not a wide, large, traffic-less public square.

During the day though when it's closed to traffic it's arguably the best public space. After hours, yeah, it's a different ballgame.

Chadillaccc · #**4491** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:23 PM**

Oh definitely. But I just wouldn't equate it to a Square like Y&D or Robson square. Would be nice if the city created a nice decent-sized square in a heavy pedestrian traffic area and then just mandated mixed-use density around that area

Razor · #**4492** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:26 PM**

^ Great shots of Vancouver and Toronto..Times square New York is busy 24-7...It's not there yet, but I can see one day where Dundas square will be the same way.

Surrealplaces · #**4493** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:37 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Oh definitely. But I just wouldn't equate it to a Square like Y&D or Robson square. Would be nice if the city created a nice decent-sized square in a heavy pedestrian traffic area and then just mandated mixed-use density around that area

No, definitely not the same as Y&D or Robson. If Olympic Plaza was located in the middle of Stephen ave rather than at the end, it would have really potential, but that will never be.

Surrealplaces · #**4494** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:40 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Razor

^ Great shots of Vancouver and Toronto..Times square New York is busy 24-7...It's not there yet, but I can see one day where Dundas square will be the same way.

Yup, Times Square is in a league of its own. The first time I visited Times square was back in 1992 in November and it wasn't anything like it is today...it was about the same business as Y&D on a summer day now. Today Times Square is saturated beyond belief with Tourists, I'm not sure Toronto will ever see that kind of Tourist traffic....at least in my lifetime.

Chadillaccc · #**4495** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:47 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surrealplaces

No, definitely not the same as Y&D or Robson. If Olympic Plaza was located in the middle of Stephen ave rather than at the end, it would have really potential, but that will never be.

Yeah, I'd agree with that. and if the majority of the plaza wasn't sunken and surrounded by steps.

Razor · #**4496** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:49 PM**

^ I was on Times Square maybe 4 years ago, and ya a typical monday night on Times square is like Yonge and Dundas on the last Saturday before Christmas, and that's being generous..Y&D still shuts down pretty much after 2:00 A:m...Times square goes all night....It's on it's way though...Running the subways all night can change things up.

rousseau · #**4497** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:49 PM**

"Yonge and Dundas Square" is a terrible name. It's clunky and awkward. Doesn't roll off the tongue.

It needs a better name.

Ramako · #**4498** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 8:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by rousseau

"Yonge and Dundas Square" is a terrible name. It's clunky and awkward. Doesn't roll off the tongue.

It needs a better name.

I'd rename it "Rae Square" after Kyle Rae, the former Councillor who spearheaded its creation.

Calgarian · #**4499** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 9:11 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

Stephen Ave is a street, not a wide, large, traffic-less public square.

Robson & Granville is just an intersection too though, no one was talking about Robson Square (which is nice, but I found it underwhelming).

17th and 4th is probably the closest Calgary will come to Robson & Granville. For public squares, Eau Claire plaza will likely become our premier public space once the renovation happen, and the RKTL 6 tower project is finished in a decade.

Chadillaccc · #**4500** Posted **Apr 5, 2013, 9:20 PM**

There's actually a small square in front of the London Drugs and across the street around City Centre Station at Granville and Georgia (I only mentioned Granville and Georgia, and Robson Square, not Robson and Granville).

If you think Robson Square is underwhelming, I couldn't imagine your true feelings about Olympic Plaza

haha