CF Pacific Centre Developments

[SpongeG]

huffington post has 5 renders - don't know how to post em from there, its a slideshow...

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534351

in the render view for grnaville/robson - it looks like they have eliminated the robson entrance and will only have a granville street entrance - i have to say thats a great decision that corner entrance used up so much useable space - exepct great window dispalys for vibrancy

[trofirhen]

Originally Posted by logan5

Was there ever any thought of connecting Pacific Centre to Robson Square? Or I guess the parkade is in the way.

If feasible, I think that would be a great idea.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by itinerant

There was a plan when the street was redone that the lighting in this block was going to have coloured tops, and be generally more animated. What happened with that?

That seems to have evaporated...

Originally Posted by osirisboy

i meant georgia, the expansion PC had wanted to

Could be that the new rotunda entrance allows for a building to be butted up against the Georgia facade
and still maintain an entrance facing Granville.

The Robson & Granville entrance looks like a mall entrance (you can see an escalator going down)
and there is a sign marked "Nordstrom" along Granville. The facade looks like a second skin. Eaton's had an entrance along there
- the "problem" was that there were some steps down to reach the retail floor (not handicap accessible)
because of the slope on Granville Street
- maybe they will raise the floor of the main floor(?)
But that would bring the Robson & Howe and Robson & Granville corners above grade...

Also realized from the HuffingtonPost renders that the Granville facade will have a taller setback than the Howe side
(setback is above level 5, not level 6)
- probably to reduce the bulk hovering over Granville Street.
I'm hoping for uplights shining onto the underside of that canopy on Granville and
maybe some neon striping on those ribs above the Granville Nordstrom entrance.

Overall, I'm think that it's almost too varied. It doesn't provide Nordstrom with a "solid" presence.
It feels a bit disjointed (but that could be a consequnce of Nordstrom taking almost the entire floorplate at grade)

NOTE: Figured I'd post them all since they are large renders.


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534319


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534377


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534338


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534351


http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534347

[officedweller]

Anything look familiar?
James Cheng's TO Shangri-La:

Originally Posted by ProjectEnd

One of the best images of SL yet methinks:



Source

[Hourglass]

One of the articles I read mentioned a landscaped rooftop garden. Wonder if that'll happen?

The huge roof area would be perfect for that.

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by GeeCee

If you don't see this as an improvement on what's already there, you're delusional.

A five-year old with some finger paints could improve on what's already there. Thus, saying that this is an improvement is saying nothing at all. In fact, if the best thing you can say about this building is that it's better than what is there now, then you are admitting that this building is pretty lame.

A good building should inspire you. It should add beauty, not just paper over ugliness.

[osirisboy]

Wholly the building is fine and it interests me just plenty.

[Coldrsx]

Quite a Vancouver reclad. Love the west elevation.

[Millennium2002]

I think they mentioned at CBC yesterday that they were planning to do "multi-tenant retail"... but from the renders it's speculative whether that'll happen at the surface or within the building itself (aka extension of existing mall at lower levels?)

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/britis...ic-centre.html

[osirisboy]

the multi tenant is regarding the lower level. its the extension of the mall.

[officedweller]

The Province said that Nordstrom's main entrance would be at Robson & Howe - interesting orientation away from The Bay.

I'll bet the main rooftop gardens are the patios at the bottom of the atriums and the top of the protruding box at Robson & Howe. I could see a green roof over most of the real roof, maybe with a smaller patio area. Maintaining anything larger as a manicured garden would be expensive - i.e. it would be the size of the Robson Square gardens...

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by itinerant

The Granville Street render omits the street lights, so you'll have to use your imagination as to what that looks like... presumably it would improve the interest along that side.

I agree that it would have been preferable if Nordstrom did not have the entire floor plate at ground level so that more frontage could have been taken up with smaller scale retail (and maybe a restaurant or two). That would also have given some opportunity for a variety of signage and lighting.

There was a plan when the street was redone that the lighting in this block was going to have coloured tops, and be generally more animated. What happened with that?

I think the glass pavilion could also be a mall entrance replacing the one in TD tower perhaps? Or an office entrance. Or both.

This is so bland. But, it could be made a bit more exciting with a few tweaks I am sure. Those fins, for instance. Is there any reason they need to be so monotonously, regular? Why not have some fun with the shapes and put a ripple into the facade? Or perhaps accentuate the now-squared-off rotunda to give the building some more angular shape? Some modern angles here and there, plus some interesting lighting could make a huge difference.

One more thing... can we please redo that elevator and escalator/stair entrance to the Canada Line to something a lot more interesting than a purely functional box in the middle of the street? Just asking, but it would be very nice if someone listened. maybe open up the entrance stairway so that it encompassed more of the plaza into a wide bowl that opened down to the Mall below?

When the Canada Line station opened, there were rumours that the plaza between the TD tower, Sears, and the Canada Line station would be rebuilt as a single-story extension between TD Tower, Sears and provide a new Mall entrance.

It seems that idea has faded away, but the rebuilding of the other plaza south of the Four Seasons is still being floated around.

I was surprised to find that the elevator at City Centre from street level to Mezzanine also goes down into the Pacific Centre parkade levels.

[jsbertram]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Changing City Updates has a render of the rotunda side.

Comments:

Not keen on the overhang - it even overshadows the Nordstrom sign in the render (a setback would give the store more prominence)
- the glass colour appears to pay homage to TD Tower!

The colour of the Nordstrom cladding unfortunately reminds you of Eaton's/Sears at Toronto Eaton Centre.

BUT - there is a lot of glass fronting Granville Street - not sure what's on show however...

And I'm wondering what that glass pavilion is on the plaza (beyond the station elevator) - Changing City suggests it's the office entrance.

Also - does it look like the entrance is even with the Granville sidewalk? (as opposed to the current few steps down?)


http://changingcitybook.com/2012/09/...nville-street/


http://citysightseeingtoronto.com/blog/?p=949

It makes sense to make the existing 'breezeway' between the TD Tower and the Nordstrom building the office entrance for the upper floors above Nordstrom. From the renders, the NE (Granville / Georgia) and SW (Robson / Howe) corners of the building appear to be Nordstrom store entrances, and the SE corner (Robson / Granville) seems to be the entrance down to the expanded lower-level mall (apparently escalators only).

Its too early to say if the rebuilt 'breezeway' between the buildings will actually be connected to the rest of the TD tower main floor to create a common space between the two elevator cores.

[jlousa]

We'll be able to see the plans soon enough, it'll be at the DPB on Dec 17.

725 Granville St
Interior and exterior recladding of the existing department store, from basement level 7. Change of use from retail to office from levels 4 to 7. Interior alterations in parking levels to add elevator lobbies and pits.

[trofirhen]

Looking at the range of verdicts on the new upcoming Nordstrom building, it seems to elicit everything from a "yes, I like it," to a "WTF piece of SXXX" type of response.

IMO, this is perhaps due to the fact that it is where it is - right smack downtown - and that as such, people were expecting a whole lot "more" - something daring, perhaps assymetrical to give it interest, perhaps with coloured lighting ... the list goes on.

While it's true that the building is conventional, uninspiring (unlikely that tourists will stop to photograph it in particular) and very mainstream in the "ordinary" sense, maybe it's better to try and be as positive about it as one can.

The West elevation (the picture of it overlooking the Art Gallery) looks glassy and airy, and the rest ... well, although not an architectural wonder is, at least, presentable.

Presentable? OK, put it this way; think of the existing bulding that's been there for decades now. It's a bathroom fixture and a standing joke, and has been so for decades.

The new Nordström store, while undramatic and undaring, is at least fairly pleasant and inoffensive, and I think that, over time, people will come to accept it as their disappointment over "what could have been" wanes.

[wrenegade]

Originally Posted by jlousa

We'll be able to see the plans soon enough, it'll be at the DPB on Dec 17.

Where do you find this information on the city's new website? I know where UDP meetings/minutes are listed but can't find anything beside a list of members for the DPB. Thanks.

[jlousa]

Check your pm.

[Pinion]

Originally Posted by trofirhen

maybe it's better to try and be as positive about it as one can.

What's the point of that? Nothing wrong with an honest discussion about yet another lost opportunity.

[officedweller]

Originally Posted by jsbertram

When the Canada Line station opened, there were rumours that the plaza between the TD tower, Sears, and the Canada Line station would be rebuilt as a single-story extension between TD Tower, Sears and provide a new Mall entrance.

It seems that idea has faded away, but the rebuilding of the other plaza south of the Four Seasons is still being floated around.

I was surprised to find that the elevator at City Centre from street level to Mezzanine also goes down into the Pacific Centre parkade levels.

I think it's just postponed.
The elevator access was required as part of teh rezoning for the plaza development - for handicapped access during off hours to the parkade.

Originally Posted by jsbertram

It makes sense to make the existing 'breezeway' between the TD Tower and the Nordstrom building the office entrance for the upper floors above Nordstrom. From the renders, the NE (Granville / Georgia) and SW (Robson / Howe) corners of the building appear to be Nordstrom store entrances, and the SE corner (Robson / Granville) seems to be the entrance down to the expanded lower-level mall (apparently escalators only).

Its too early to say if the rebuilt 'breezeway' between the buildings will actually be connected to the rest of the TD tower main floor to create a common space between the two elevator cores.

I think that breezeway is just used for storage now. I remember when it was open and provided an indoor walkway through TD Bank into Eaton's. I think any plaza entrance would eventually be blocked by the above-mentioned plaza project - so an office entrance on the NW corner of the Sears building makes some sense (and Howe is more of an "business" street than Granville).
One thing is certain though - the breezeway needs to be enclosed because of wind sheer off the tower.

The mall entrance in TD Tower was added in the 1980s (I think) - not sure what it was before then - but it blocks a through routing on that side of TD Tower.

It'll be interesting to see if they use the existing Sears elevator bank (along Howe) or install completely new ones for both Nordstrom and the office.

I do get the sense that the facades will be a mishmash of various (repetitive) entrances to mall, Nordstrom, office, Nordstrom, etc..

[punface]

Originally Posted by officedweller

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/09...#slide=1534319

Does anyone know if there could be any significance in the omission of that little Canada Line emergency exit building from this picture? Could those down escalators also lead to a second entrance to City Centre Station (which I think I had seen a rumour about before) ?