Vancouver House (1400 Howe St) | 151.5m | 52Fl | Completed

[bb1510]

If you take a look closely at unit 5501, the purchaser upgraded all the terrace doors to retracting pocket doors to the full width of each "box" for the entire unit.

I'd imagine it wouldn't be cheap but better to pay now cause I would imagine strata wouldn't let someone do it later down the road

Don't have any photos but you can take a look at the southern facade and count down (lower PH is 58th marketing right and PH terrace is 60?)

[SFUVancouver]

Originally Posted by mcminsen

Dec.14 '19, my pic

Interesting tenant for this space. Hopefully the student population should add some vibrancy.

I have barely heard of University Canada West so I just did some cursory reading... and it's not a pretty story.

It's a private for-profit school that is almost wholly focused on international students from India. It was started by the former president of UVic in a former elementary school. It was almost instantly granted 'university' status by the BC Liberals while still working out of that interim facility and with the new-found designation it expanded its course offerings and bought a Victoria-area arts school (whose students promptly quit en masse). They opened a Vancouver campus and scaled back the course offerings in Victoria and ultimately announced a complete closure of the Victoria campus the day after the tuition refund date passed but offered to let students continue their studies in Vancouver, but at their own cost to move. Classy.

Its founder bailed fairly quickly and it's been sold a few times and is now owned by a Dutch company that owns degree mills around the world. A string of presidents with solid educational leadership experience (BCIT, KPU, etc.) have been involved, but they don't hang around long.

Perhaps (hopefully) they've turned the corner somewhere along the line? It devalues Canadian post-secondary to call a small private for-profit college with generic business and MBA (ha!) programs working out of a few floors of an old office building downtown a 'university'. It's a matchbook college, and it's clearly making enough money to afford a fancy new campus, and it targets international students who want a Canadian 'university' degree but didn't have the grades and/or resources for Canada's public universities. That just doesn't sit very well with me.

[Tetsuo]

Originally Posted by SFUVancouver

It's a matchbook college, and it's clearly making enough money to afford a fancy new campus, and it targets international students who want a Canadian 'university' degree but didn't have the grades and/or resources for Canada's public universities. That just doesn't sit very well with me.

Like many others, targets those who want an avenue to Canadian PR&Citizenship

[cairnstone]

There are very few actual true private schools in Canada that are recognized for extended education. I bet there are hundred or more in the metro area that cater to the ESL system. Many are using ESL school programs as a way to live it large here. And they are from a variety of places. China, Brazil, Mexico. Its has been referenced that ESL schools are adding to the housing crisis as much as AIRBNB. But its so hard to track.

I have had as clients so called "hosts". They would rent blocks of units in buildings then fill them with bunk beds and rent them out. It was so sketch and gross, nothing like seeing a studio with 6 people living in it.

Every once in a while a news article shows up but the bigger issue is never talked about. Many of them work in the underground work force for cash. Have no health insurance and some are being trafficed

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by cairnstone

There are very few actual true private schools in Canada that are recognized for extended education. I bet there are hundred or more in the metro area that cater to the ESL system. Many are using ESL school programs as a way to live it large here. And they are from a variety of places. China, Brazil, Mexico. Its has been referenced that ESL schools are adding to the housing crisis as much as AIRBNB. But its so hard to track.

I have had as clients so called "hosts". They would rent blocks of units in buildings then fill them with bunk beds and rent them out. It was so sketch and gross, nothing like seeing a studio with 6 people living in it.

Every once in a while a news article shows up but the bigger issue is never talked about. Many of them work in the underground work force for cash. Have no health insurance and some are being trafficed

Welcome to Canada's ESL Economy. This has totally been stoked by federal Liberal policies.

[frank]

Originally Posted by SFUVancouver

Interesting tenant for this space. Hopefully the student population should add some vibrancy.

I have barely heard of University Canada West so I just did some cursory reading... and it's not a pretty story.

I happen to work in the industry, so maybe I can contribute something. You've got most of the things right, here's some additional context: in order for a postsecondary institution to be able to recruit internationally, they have to be on the IRCC's 'Designated learning institutions list'.

IRCC allows only institutions that have granted authorization to confer degrees at the provincial level (in BC, under 'Degree Authorization Act'). The private institutions are closely regulated by the Ministry of Advanced Education (through the Degree Quality Assessment Board), that has very broad powers to enforce the Act. If one is curious, you can see what degrees are currently authorized to be granted (and new degrees under review) here. Yes, it even regulates the use of the term 'University'. You can be assured there are no diploma mills on this list.

The second owner was Eminata, an outfit of some notoriety (not the good kind) in Lower Mainland. The current owner (the third) is UK-based (only incorporated in Netherlands). The lease is probably both long and expensive, so I suppose that is a commitment for the long term future of the university from the owners.

[cairnstone]

Yup and as a society we don't really notice them but they are a huge part of the society here. I have several friends that are hosts to the 18 under group. With out them I doubt they would be home owners

[rofina]

I'm sure Frank knows better than most, but educating is an unreal export for us. This is big business, and the right type of export for us to offer.

My biggest beef is with people not staying after they graduate, maybe this has changed since the early 2000's late 90's. I always thought it a shame to have all these wealthy foreigners come here, make Vancouver their home for 5 years, and take their education elsewhere to start business or practice whatever it is they studied.

[SpongeG]

don't want to keep it off topic but I live near Coquitlam College and I have noticed in the last year that most of the students there are coming from India now. Previously it was mainly Chinese, Korean and Arabians, now its like 75% Indians that seem to go there.

[red-paladin]

Let's get back to the topic of this thread, though.

[jollyburger]

Not sure if it was mentioned but London Drugs has open February 2020 signage up.

[whatnext]

Is the school in the lower building west of the Howe onramp? I looked in and the units seemed to all be furnished with the same generic modernist pieces? Is it a dormitory of sorts?

[mcminsen]

Dec.23 '19, my pics

[jollyburger]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Is the school in the lower building west of the Howe onramp? I looked in and the units seemed to all be furnished with the same generic modernist pieces? Is it a dormitory of sorts?

You were looking into the rental units.

UCW is taking space in the podium buildings still being built. I just grabbed the floor plans for those two podium buildings and if they are taking 90,000 square feet then it looks like there's no room for any retail in any of the two other podium buildings because if you add up all the space it's 87K feet of usable space.

Level 1 6,433
Level 2 20,704
Level 3 26,585
Level 4 23,912
Level 5 7,211
Level 6 2,161

https://rezoning.vancouver.ca/applications/1412-1460howe/documents/fsrcalcs_rev.pdf

[officedweller]

That would put a kink into the retail success of the area.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by jollyburger

You were looking into the rental units.

UCW is taking space in the podium buildings still being built. I just grabbed the floor plans for those two podium buildings and if they are taking 90,000 square feet then it looks like there's no room for any retail in any of the two other podium buildings because if you add up all the space it's 87K feet of usable space.

Level 1 6,433
Level 2 20,704
Level 3 26,585
Level 4 23,912
Level 5 7,211
Level 6 2,161

https://rezoning.vancouver.ca/applications/1412-1460howe/documents/fsrcalcs_rev.pdf

That's a shame as it will not contribute much to street life.

Interesting the social housing units are furnished. The furniture looked Structub-ish, I wonder how long it will last.

[Changing City]

Originally Posted by whatnext

That's a shame as it will not contribute much to street life.

Interesting the social housing units are furnished. The furniture looked Structub-ish, I wonder how long it will last.

They're not social housing - their market rental. Presumably offered as furnished apartments, although legally they have to lease for a minimum 30 day lease, unless they've been allowed to offer them as short-term lease. (I haven't seen anything to suggest that's the case). There's no website for them it would seem, just a phone number.

[Feathered Friend]

[Hourglass]

Vancouver House profiled on CNN article about most anticipated buildings in 2020:

https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/anticipated-buildings-2020/index.html

[GeeCee]

Not quite sure what's so anticipated about it, it's essentially complete!