General Vancouver Updates

[VancouverOfTheFuture]

Originally Posted by Firebrand

I noticed that most Canadian cities have huge networks of pedways, especially in Montreal and Toronto, while Vancouver only has a few of them. (Pacific Central is the only one that comes out of my head.) Does it have to do with our weather here being mild, or does CoV prefer to have everyone walk outside, even in ten months of rain?

yes, yes they do. they see it as being forcing people onto the streets is how you activate streets. if you build underground connections with shops etc. then your streets will be empty.

it is a way to force people to use a street without having to make a street attractive for people to use. plus, it also makes the numbers look good "see, people DO use the streets!!!"

[Metro-One]

We have 3 (or 4?) disconnected underground sections.

The largest and most big city in feel is Pacific Centre.

Then there is the waterfront underground walkways / shopping plaza. The food court there is always busy.

Then the Bental underground network.

Last there is a small underground shopping area / food court under Harbour Centre.

It is frustrating that essentially no towers built in the last 15 years connect to any of these networks. Pacific Centre is the only one that has seen any form of expansion when Sears became Nordstrom.

Correct me if I am wrong but is 753 Seymour the first new tower to have a direct underground connection to be built in Vancouver since before 2000?

[Jalapeño Chips]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

Bentall has an underground network, it can get a bit confusing but I was amazed at how much stuff was down there, food courts, stores, restaurants, coffee places, travel agents, etc. who knew

It is great down there. It has an old-school 80's feel to it, in fact, very little has changed since then. I like it!

[Firebrand]

Originally Posted by VancouverOfTheFuture

yes, yes they do. they see it as being forcing people onto the streets is how you activate streets. if you build underground connections with shops etc. then your streets will be empty.

it is a way to force people to use a street without having to make a street attractive for people to use. plus, it also makes the numbers look good "see, people DO use the streets!!!"

I don't understand why CoV has this fetish of people walking on city streets. Are they trying to picture themselves as some outdoor utopia? Vancouver is not Los Angeles. But at least they have some underground pedways like the Bentall one that's been mentioned. (*cough* Burnaby *cough*)

[VancouverOfTheFuture]

Originally Posted by Firebrand

I don't understand why CoV has this fetish of people walking on city streets. Are they trying to picture themselves as some outdoor utopia? Vancouver is not Los Angeles. But at least they have some underground pedways like the Bentall one that's been mentioned. (*cough* Burnaby *cough*)

yes, that is what they are trying for. a utopia where everyone walks, bikes, or transits with no cars around. that is exactly what they want

[Firebrand]

Originally Posted by VancouverOfTheFuture

yes, that is what they are trying for. a utopia where everyone walks, bikes, or transits with no cars around. that is exactly what they want

Looks over functionality, basically.

[Aroundtheworld]

As someone who comes from a city that actually has winter, I find it ridiculous when Vancouverites complain about the weather here. You live in Canada's Miami when it comes to weather. The weather is amazing here compared to other places. It is not 10 months of rain and clouds and there's little need for the kind of structures you see in Calgary and Winnipeg that make the urban landscape look like crap.

[osirisboy]

Originally Posted by Aroundtheworld

As someone who comes from a city that actually has winter, I find it ridiculous when Vancouverites complain about the weather here. You live in Canada's Miami when it comes to weather. The weather is amazing here compared to other places. It is not 10 months of rain and clouds and there's little need for the kind of structures you see in Calgary and Winnipeg that make the urban landscape look like crap.

Totally agree with this.

[csbvan]

Originally Posted by Aroundtheworld

As someone who comes from a city that actually has winter, I find it ridiculous when Vancouverites complain about the weather here. You live in Canada's Miami when it comes to weather. The weather is amazing here compared to other places. It is not 10 months of rain and clouds and there's little need for the kind of structures you see in Calgary and Winnipeg that make the urban landscape look like crap.

Yes! It also rains a lot in Melbourne and they don't cower from it...and that's in a country with, obviously, a far better climate than Canada.

[s211]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

We have 3 (or 4?) disconnected underground sections.

The largest and most big city in feel is Pacific Centre.

Then there is the waterfront underground walkways / shopping plaza. The food court there is always busy.

Then the Bental underground network.

Last there is a small underground shopping area / food court under Harbour Centre.

It is frustrating that essentially no towers built in the last 15 years connect to any of these networks. Pacific Centre is the only one that has seen any form of expansion when Sears became Nordstrom.

Correct me if I am wrong but is 753 Seymour the first new tower to have a direct underground connection to be built in Vancouver since before 2000?

If there's one thing I like about Calgary, it's the Plus 15 system. In the winter time, it was absolutely necessary for traversing around downtown.

Of course, if planners had their way, they'd knock them all down. However, because the network is so pervasive and the connected buildings have so much second floor uses dependent on the plus 15 traffic, I think the market keeps the planners in check. I do also note that new buildings continue to connect to the plus 15 network there, because the market sees their value.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

We have 3 (or 4?) disconnected underground sections.

The largest and most big city in feel is Pacific Centre.

Then there is the waterfront underground walkways / shopping plaza. The food court there is always busy.

Then the Bental underground network.

Last there is a small underground shopping area / food court under Harbour Centre.

It is frustrating that essentially no towers built in the last 15 years connect to any of these networks. Pacific Centre is the only one that has seen any form of expansion when Sears became Nordstrom.

Correct me if I am wrong but is 753 Seymour the first new tower to have a direct underground connection to be built in Vancouver since before 2000?

With the recent unhealthy smokey air outdoors, it would be very beneficial for all of us to be able to walk around the city underground or over covered pedestrian bridges. Dailyhive reported that breathing this air is equivalent to smoking 7 cigarettes per day. I guess planners of the yesteryears had more foresight than the current and recent administrators. There were so many missed opportunities, like the Shangri-la, 745 Thurlow, Bentall 5, The Hudsons, Telus Garden... just to name a few. These could all be connected to the current underground/aboveground passageways. Hopefully Holborn would have the foresight to connect to the Bay better once the parkade area is developed. The current underground passages in downtown Vancouver are curently very well-utilized.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by Aroundtheworld

As someone who comes from a city that actually has winter, I find it ridiculous when Vancouverites complain about the weather here. You live in Canada's Miami when it comes to weather. The weather is amazing here compared to other places. It is not 10 months of rain and clouds and there's little need for the kind of structures you see in Calgary and Winnipeg that make the urban landscape look like crap.

Trying saying this again in the middle of the very wet winter. I would rather walk in covered areas than having to hold an umbrella or covered in uncomfortable hoodies. Trust me, everyone looks miserable walking outside then.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by csbvan

Yes! It also rains a lot in Melbourne and they don't cower from it...and that's in a country with, obviously, a far better climate than Canada.

Well define "a lot"..Melbourne gets about half the precip of Vancouver, and our wettest month sees close to 4x the amount of rain as their wettest. Temps in their wettest month are around 19, where ours is 9 - that makes a huge difference in terms of how comfortable it is do thing outdoors.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

Correct me if I am wrong but is 753 Seymour the first new tower to have a direct underground connection to be built in Vancouver since before 2000?

The only other I can think of is the Vancouver Convention Centre West's passage to Canada Place (but that's just connecting 2 halves of the same facility).

[officedweller]

1102-1138 East Georgia Street

The site is currently zoned I-2 Industrial, but the area falls within the Downtown Eastside Community Plan, allowing a mix of uses, including residential. Allowable density in the neighbourhood has been identified for up to 2.50 FSR for mixed-use proposals in the I-2 zone through a rezoning.

The proposal is for a 4-storey mixed-use family-oriented development, including:
◾37 residential units (20% are social housing);
◾2 studios, 4 one-bedrooms, 1 two-bedroom & 30 three-bedrooms;
◾a total density of 2.50 FSR; and
◾16,145 of creative/production/retail space on the ground floor.

http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2018/08/17/37-family-oriented-units-proposed-for-strathcona-site/


http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2018/08/17/37-family-oriented-units-proposed-for-strathcona-site/


http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2018/08/17/37-family-oriented-units-proposed-for-strathcona-site/


http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2018/08/17/37-family-oriented-units-proposed-for-strathcona-site/


http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2018/08/17/37-family-oriented-units-proposed-for-strathcona-site/


http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2018/08/17/37-family-oriented-units-proposed-for-strathcona-site/

[svlt]

Originally Posted by Aroundtheworld

As someone who comes from a city that actually has winter, I find it ridiculous when Vancouverites complain about the weather here. You live in Canada's Miami when it comes to weather. The weather is amazing here compared to other places. It is not 10 months of rain and clouds and there's little need for the kind of structures you see in Calgary and Winnipeg that make the urban landscape look like crap.

Agree as well. Vancouver is the one major city in Canada that can afford to just embrace the weather. I know a blustery windstorm in late November at +3 is terrible to be outside in, but I've lived in Calgary through three winters... it is not comparable. The +15 practically permits people to move around the CBD on some winter days. A down filled shell going down to your upper thighs is essential for someone living in Vancouver, IMO.

[GenWhy?]

The Sustainability aspects of that East Georgia project are pretty tough and I'm sad the City made them gut the cool mews that ran from Georgia through the development to the lane. Community seems supportive overall which is nice. The fact that these are essentially almost all townhomes is awesome.

[GenWhy?]

Originally Posted by svlt

Agree as well. Vancouver is the one major city in Canada that can afford to just embrace the weather. I know a blustery windstorm in late November at +3 is terrible to be outside in, but I've lived in Calgary through three winters... it is not comparable. The +15 practically permits people to move around the CBD on some winter days. A down filled shell going down to your upper thighs is essential for someone living in Vancouver, IMO.

As a side note, try having been from and gown up in either Edmonton or Winnipeg and living here now... practically a tropical paradise. I had to retire most of my winter clothing moving here.

[GlassCity]

I live in Winnipeg now, and even here the pedway system is controversial because it takes people off the streets. And to be fair, it really does - on a weekday the pedways are packed, and the streets are close to empty. I'm hardly exaggerating.

So you can disagree with this view, but don't act like it's some loony utopian thing. There is nothing wrong with encouraging people to get outside, just like there's nothing wrong with offering people the chance to stay indoors as they walk around. Both have different tradeoffs.

[mcminsen]

Source: https://www.vancourier.com/community/oak...al-includes-affordable-housing-1.2181338



March 10 ’16, my pic




Aug.23 ’18, my pic