Downtown Vancouver Updates

[SFUVancouver]

Interesting news from VancouverMarket.ca

40-storey Tower Proposed for Downtown Site
Posted on February 18, 2015

Townline Homes has applied to the City of Vancouver to rezone the Quality Inn site at 1335 Howe Street from DD to CD-1 to permit a 40-storey residential building and includes:

• a density of 11.2 FSR
• 389 market condo units
• a 378 ft. tower with a 7-storey podium (height limited by view cone)
• 24,000 SF of transferred heritage density
• Average 6,500 SF tower floorplate
• a 37-space childcare facility

The site is 24,000 SF and is located mid-block, book-ended between two existing towers: an 18-storey with 7-storey podium building at 1379 Howe (The Executive Inn); and a 19-storey building with 7-storey podium building at 1311 Howe st. (Viva Tower).

The proposed project sits between two other active tower projects one block away: Vancouver House (59 storeys) and Tate (40 storeys).

Policies allowing rezoning include: Vancouver’s Downtown Capacity Review Study, Green Buildings Policy for Rezonings and the Downtown Official Development Plan.

Read more: http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2015/02/18/40-storey-tower-proposed-for-downtown-site/

[wrenegade]

I think we all knew this one was coming didn't we? Looks like some pretty good sized south-facing balconies there.

[officedweller]

Thanks!

Looks like the neighbourhood of 40 storey towers continues...

The last rough sketch we saw for the site was an oval floorplate tower.

Originally Posted by Built Form

Meant to go but couldn't, here's a render from the architects site.


http://www.rwa.ca/WhatsNew_list.html

Here's the other render of the current project from VnacouverMarket.ca.
Lots of balconies.

Odd comment, but...
I wonder if all those balconies will "mess up" the sightlines of Vancouver House when looking down Howe Street?
(or I guess Vancouver House will be offset to the left)


http://www.vancouvermarket.ca/2015/02/18/40-storey-tower-proposed-for-downtown-site/

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Odd comment, but...
I wonder if all those balconies will "mess up" the sightlines of Vancouver House when looking down Howe Street?

That's not possible. Vancouver House will appear to be on the east side of Howe, when looking south down Howe. If any building could block the sightline of Vancouver House from far away, then it would be Maddox.

The big question is what about that cockamamie idea of turning the hotel into a homeless shelter?

[Klazu]

I liked the original vision better, but no complains on the new one either. This area is going to look so great in just few years!! It will be crazy to have around ten 40+ floor buildings in Downtown South.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Thanks!

Looks like the neighbourhood of 40 storey towers continues...

The last rough sketch we saw for the site was an oval floorplate tower.

I think that is Tate, isn't it?

That squarish structure one block south is the proposed building.

Yup, this is a pretty progressive residential neighbourhood indeed. All we need is to add one or two malls, hotels and office buildings, and cut down on social housing.

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by Vin

I think that is Tate, isn't it?

That squarish structure one block south is the proposed building.

No. The blue oval building is the original proposal for the Quality Inn site. The taller square building in the distance (i.e., to the north) is Tate. And the building with the balconies to the left (i.e., to the west) is Salt, and the slightly shorter building with no balconies to the right (i.e., to the west) is Maddox:

Originally Posted by Built Form

Meant to go but couldn't, here's a render from the architects site.


http://www.rwa.ca/WhatsNew_list.html

[officedweller]

Yeah, the VIVA Tower (with sawtooth balconies) is just behind the blue oval building.
For retail there'll be Burrard Place and the Vancouver House cluster.

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by officedweller

For retail there'll be Burrard Place and the Vancouver House cluster.

There will also be some in the podium of Tate.

[Homeowner]

Originally Posted by vancouver604

http://www.news1130.com/2015/02/19/vanco...her-supportive-housing-project-downtown/

Looks like Salt and Maddox and Tate will be getting new neighbours - "There goes the neighbourhood"!

Nothing wrong with low income housing but you would think the city of Vancouver would build those homes around areas that have lower values. Why downtown? Why not along Fraser around 60th. There are many run down apartments along that area.

[Prometheus]

Does anybody know how to embed a static google street view image?

[VanK]

Originally Posted by Homeowner

Nothing wrong with low income housing but you would think the city of Vancouver would build those homes around areas that have lower values. Why downtown? Why not along Fraser around 60th. There are many run down apartments along that area.

AMEN to that.

[osirisboy]

^^noone knows! the city and province are screwed up when it comes to building social housing. also why do they clad those projects in expensive materials, it's as if the word budget isn't in their vocabulary. If I was homeless all I care about is being able to have a safe clean place. I couldnt careless if it was downtown.

[trofirhen]

Originally Posted by officedweller

Yeah, the VIVA Tower (with sawtooth balconies) is just behind the blue oval building.
For retail there'll be Burrard Place and the Vancouver House cluster.

Please excuse my confusion here.
Does all this mean the blue oval building will NOT be built, but replaced by the other 40-storey building?
Or are they both still on the books?
In the render, the 40-stoey building they're now talking about didn't really look like a 40 storey building.

[djh]

Originally Posted by Homeowner

Nothing wrong with low income housing but you would think the city of Vancouver would build those homes around areas that have lower values. Why downtown? Why not along Fraser around 60th. There are many run down apartments along that area.

Why?!

That's worryingly close to NIMBYism.

Putting poor people with other poor people only increases the poverty in a neighbourhood. Probably increases the chances of the neighbourhood remaining poor, probably increases the chances of the neighbourhood deteriorating.
It become ghettoised.

I would be very upset if CoV continued a policy of concentrating low-income people into one neighbourhood.

The answer is to spread it out. Sprinkles within each neighbourhood.

I think most sane people aspire to live better, so if you give (mentally healthy) people a nice neighbourhood, they will respect it and add something to the community. If you put them in hovels, they'll hate it and trouble will follow.

[officedweller]

Blue oval one is the OLD design. It will not be built.

[red-paladin]

Let's have a thread for 1335 Howe Street and we can move all posts relevant to that topic there.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by osirisboy

^^noone knows! the city and province are screwed up when it comes to building social housing. also why do they clad those projects in expensive materials, it's as if the word budget isn't in their vocabulary. If I was homeless all I care about is being able to have a safe clean place. I couldnt careless if it was downtown.

Yeah, too many of the social housing buildings look way better than market condos, and located on expensive downtown lands too. The authorities can build 15-storey "commie blocks" in clusters of 3 to 5 buildings. Make all the towers in one area look the same to save costs. That's how you solve housing problems.

One more thing: make drug-use a crime. Mental health problems, poverty and other kinds of addiction often come from drug use.

[Vin]

Originally Posted by djh

Why?!

That's worryingly close to NIMBYism.

Putting poor people with other poor people only increases the poverty in a neighbourhood. Probably increases the chances of the neighbourhood remaining poor, probably increases the chances of the neighbourhood deteriorating.
It become ghettoised.

I would be very upset if CoV continued a policy of concentrating low-income people into one neighbourhood.

The answer is to spread it out. Sprinkles within each neighbourhood.

I think most sane people aspire to live better, so if you give (mentally healthy) people a nice neighbourhood, they will respect it and add something to the community. If you put them in hovels, they'll hate it and trouble will follow.

Problem is, they are not sprinkling it out. In fact, most of the new ones are located around the downtown south neighbourhood. East vancouver and Westside should get their share too.

[osirisboy]

You are totally right!!!