Downtown Vancouver Updates - Page 541

Klazu · #**10801** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 2:53 AM**

Awesome stuff!

Out of those only Georgia Medical Building will be missed as the old art deco building was beautiful.

Caliplanner · #**10802** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 3:41 AM**

Klazu, doesn't the city of Vancouver have heritage building preservation laws to protect beautiful historical structures like the demolished art deco designed Georgia Medical Building???

NewWester · #**10803** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 7:25 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caliplanner

Klazu, doesn't the city of Vancouver have heritage building preservation laws to protect beautiful historical structures like the demolished art deco designed Georgia Medical Building???

We do now. Things were a little different a few decades ago when downtown was in a cycle of urban decay. There was actually a plan, one that included the viaducts and the Granville Building, to pretty much demolish historic Gastown and the DTES and replace that with freeway and some very concretey, modernist offices and condos. You can see the plan in the Vancouver Museum. But yeah, shame about that building: gorgeous.

officedweller · #**10804** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 7:49 AM**

The heritage trade-off was the recreation of the nurse sculptures and the new tower (Catherdral Place) being a high quality "future heritage" building. The old Georgia Medical Building had an L-shaped floorplan, low ceilings and the facade was crumbling (there was a net to catch debris). It would have been difficult / costly to integrate into a new building (as an attached facade or in some retained manner).

That said, the former Stock Exchange Building is now being retained in its entirety below the new Exchange Tower (i.e with lower ceiling heights on those floors, etc.).

I think that if the site were to have been redeveloped today, they would have kept the old facade or building and built behind it - but built much higher, so that a smaller proportion of the building would be represented by the old substandard floors. As it was, the Georgia Medical Building was I think 15 storeys and the new Cathedral Place is only 23 storeys.

Joat · #**10805** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 9:28 AM**

There are lots of beautiful vancouver buildings that have been lost over the years. The second hotel vancouver and the birks building are some others that come to mind.

You can see a bunch in this thread: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=148019

GlassCity · #**10806** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 3:23 PM**

Cathedral Place was envisioned to be a future heritage building??? The thing is hideous!

Jebby · #**10807** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 9:50 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Klazu

Awesome stuff!

Out of those only Georgia Medical Building will be missed as the old art deco building was beautiful.

At least parts of it were incorporated into Cathedral Place.

jsbertram · #**10808** Posted **Apr 1, 2014, 10:39 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jebby

At least parts of it were incorporated into Cathedral Place.

True Vancouverites know the names of the Rhea Sisters.

(it helps if you were a kid when the Georgia Medical building was still standing)

Klazu · #**10809** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 12:59 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by GlassCity

Cathedral Place was envisioned to be a future heritage building??? The thing is hideous!

I wouldn't call it hideous, but a bit underwhelming perhaps. It would look better if it would be a bit taller and the roof structure would be better designed.

NetMapel · #**10810** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 4:47 AM**

I kind of wish our city has more of those old-style looking buildings like the ones in Gastown. They do seem to add characters, only if they are properly maintained though.

trofirhen · #**10811** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 5:29 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by NetMapel

I kind of wish our city has more of those old-style looking buildings like the ones in Gastown. They do seem to add characters, only if they are properly maintained though.

Of curiosity, have you ever checked out the Dominion Building and the Sun Tower?

GlassCity · #**10812** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 5:35 AM**

The Dominion's nice, but the Sun Tower is just gorgeous.

spm2013 · #**10813** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 4:36 PM**

....

officedweller · #**10814** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 6:44 PM**

Renders were posted a while back.
Didn't know it was a new structure behind just a facade though.

djh · #**10815** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 7:16 PM**

Ready for Spring 2015? A commercial building in 1 year?

Wishful thinking.

spm2013 · #**10816** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 8:01 PM**

....

Delirium · #**10817** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 8:26 PM**

^ thanks. Looks great! I really like what they did facing the Woodward's courtyard -

photo: http://www.collierscanada.com/11665#.UzxxhvldXAQ

WarrenC12 · #**10818** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 8:30 PM**

For anybody who doesn't know exactly where that is, it's a fairly grubby alley right now, with garbage dumpsters and just plain garbage all over.

officedweller · #**10819** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 8:50 PM**

I was wondering where the garbage dumpsters would end up.
Presumably the new building would have a compactor instead, but the Cambie Hotel has some on the alley too, I think.

spm2013 · #**10820** Posted **Apr 2, 2014, 9:05 PM**

....