Victoria Construction - #7

[G-Man]

I have been so happy that this city has kept Tim Horton's out of town for so long. I still believe this to be rumour. Why would you want to build a nice urban condo building and then rent to a suburban hic coffee joint. It just does not make sense.

[trueviking]

video of 'aquattro'

http://www.aquattroliving.com/video/

have you guys heard of the robert bateman art gallery project out at royal roads?.....could be very juicy....there is an RFP out right now looking for a design team...some big names going for it i think.

[The Great Scaper]

That's seriously awesome! I really like this development. Thanks for sharing, also I haven't heard a word of the Art Gallery at R.R.A.

Interesting, thanks for sharing!

[Mike K.]

Thanks, TV.

First I've heard of the gallery.

[towerguy3]

Looking forward to the opening of the Presentation Center for the Twisting Torso (1133 W. Georgia) late next week. Interesting timing as they've just torn down the Shangri-La presentation center. I guess as one falls another one goes up

waz up with the Whitecaps Stadium?

[aastra]

Interesting aerial footage in that Aquattro video. Ultralight? Remote-controlled plane?

[aastra]

I copied Aria to give us some idea of what phase 2 will look like. Gives new meaning to the term "flipping condos."


In my opinion the Sussex building is the only one in this bunch that distinguishes itself. The Falls certainly will, and Aria might...but the others are pretty ordinary. No different than anything you might find in any other city. I realize this is what many Victorians want, but I'd prefer distinctive buildings.

[Holden West]

Yes, I agree. And if you replaced the Marriott with Callisto, you'd improve the Y-lot 100%.

Sussex is definitely aging well. It's interesting to compare it to its sister building, Cathedral Place.

[zoomer]

Replace Belvedere with Callisto and I would have to agree as it's one of my favourite buildings in the entire Dominion of Canada.

Cathedral Place however sucks mildly...and the roof is horrible, cheap, dated and tacky! I prefer the original it replaced, (can anyone find pictures of it?). Sussex Place will stand the test of time better than Cathedral Place, but I do wish they didn't leave the bare concrete at the top, but instead matched the brick at the podium in a daring art deco explosion. It wouldn't be that hard to still do actuallly!!

[The Great Scaper]

One thing I am happy about is that those massive parking lots are gone.

Thanks for the comparison and the photoshop job. I agree the Y lot is really blah. There are also the exact same buildings as The Astoria and Belvedere in Vancouver too. I think the Falls will help a lot, and if the Crystal View ever gets approved it too will make a big difference as well to the blah architecture.

[The Great Scaper]

So this is the news flash of the day....

Langford by Homedepot is getting massive bowling alley! The development is suppose to be complete and opened within two years.

[Holden West]

Too bad it wasn't a year early they could've used the old Mayfair lanes alleys instead of scrapping the wood for countertops.

I hope they build it up to the sidewalk and not put a giant parking lot in front of it. Ah, who am I kidding. Of course they will.

[SHOFEAR]

I spent the long weekend in downtown Victoria (it honestly blew me away) but I had some questions. Whats up with those two boarded up buildings on the waterfront right next to the blue bridge? Those look prime for renovations and they have to be pretty damn old. Second, whats up with the bricked up window or door in the stone retaining wall that holds the road up from the parking lot in the harbour? It's a little quirk that caught my eye and I'm wondering if there is a story to it.

[zoomer]

/\ First time in Victoria? Interested in hearing more of your impressions.

As for the stone wall:

6. Wharf Street Parking – The gateway to Victoria for most gold miners was the Enterprise Wharf (now a parking lot below Wharf Street). To feed the hungry miners, cattle were unloaded from ships and kept in large corrals, then herded through town to the slaughterhouses. Ships from around the world brought goods that were stored in warehouses that lined the waterfront.

The Hudson's Bay Company's brick warehouse was the biggest building in the colony when it opened in 1859. Gold pans, flour, frying pans, boots, blankets and ammunition were sold here. The enormous building was demolished in the 1940s, but the stone and brick foundations still form part of the Wharf Street retaining wall opposite Bastion Square.

from this site:

as for those abandoned buildings...well, a long story about an elderly widow who owns them (I'll let someone else explain!) There are rumours that finally something may get done there.

[m0nkyman]

I can tell more than most about those buildings, but it would have to be in person....

[zoomer]

/\ would you have to kill us after?

another link about the wharehouses

[Holden West]

Nice pic of the back end of the "Northern Junk" building. Some of you might recall the 90s band "Northern Junk", named after the infamous building.

Times Colonist, 2006:

City staff have met with the Oak Bay owner of the Janion, who also owns three other significant downtown heritage buildings. But beyond keeping the buildings secure from intruders, there appears to be little interest in either selling or revitalizing the buildings.

Clara Beatrice Kramer, owner of the Janion, said this week she didn't want to discuss the buildings with the Times Colonist because she objected to the newspaper calling the building abandoned. "It's not abandoned. I have my man go around and take care of things," she said.

Kramer also owns the Northern Junk Company building on Wharf Street and the Morley Soda Building in Waddington Alley.

[The Great Scaper]

I took this photo of the Janion Building a few days ago!

[Holden West]

I have a picture I took of the Janion 20 years ago but I won't bother posting it because it looks the same!

[The Great Scaper]

Hey if you have that photo I'd love to see it just for curiosity!