[Halifax] The Grainery Lofts | 23 m | 6 fl | Completed

[Dmajackson]

I apparently forgot to post this when I noticed it awhile ago but there is an excavator on site so construction is probably going to be very soon.

[alps]

That's exciting -- great to have more people living down there. It IS ugly, but in a boring, somewhat harmless way. Nothing tacky like some other similar projects nearby.

[someone123]

It mostly just seems bland for me, which is not so bad for an average apartment building on a sidestreet. The real benefit is the little bit of added density this will bring to the area.

[macgregor]

Originally Posted by someone123

It mostly just seems bland for me, which is not so bad for an average apartment building on a sidestreet. The real benefit is the little bit of added density this will bring to the area.

I agree. It will help the neighbourhood and that street especially give up the industrial feel. It's definitely bland though. Maybe it suits it's namesake (South Bland St)???

[Dmajackson]

I've updated the first post in this thread.

[halifaxboyns]

Originally Posted by alps

That's exciting -- great to have more people living down there. It IS ugly, but in a boring, somewhat harmless way. Nothing tacky like some other similar projects nearby.

This is an example of where a design committee really should've been in place before this was built. It's not my favorite; but the inside isn't too bad. A couple friends of mine live there.

Although I still the best development on that corner is Geoff Keddy's 'boat house' on the opposite corner. He's a pretty funky architect, even if he can be a little out there sometimes.

[Jstaleness]

I drove by the site yesterday. It didn't look like anything was happening. I didn't see any excavators or construction of any kind.

[sdm]

Originally Posted by Jstaleness

I drove by the site yesterday. It didn't look like anything was happening. I didn't see any excavators or construction of any kind.

Seems like there is nothing taking place yet

[Dmajackson]

Still nothing occuring on site ...

[sdm]

Originally Posted by Dmajackson

Still nothing occuring on site ...

I heard that it might be delayed and or postpone.

[Dmajackson]

Loft Living in The Deep South - Infomonkey.net

According to this article on Infomonkey this proposal is now called The Grainery because of its proximity to the Fire Elevators opps I mean the Grain Elevators

Occupancy date is now scheduled for 2012.

[Jstaleness]

It looks as though this is the final design. At least it won't be visible from the water. Pretty well hidden down that street as well. Not complaining about LEED Gold though.

[phrenic]

I talked to the architect on this the other night at the AGNS event. It is now called the Grainery Lofts or something similar. The concept behind the building is a warehouse to loft conversion. Therefore, their plan is essentially to make the interior and exterior of the building look and feel as if it were an old brick warehouse that was converted into residential units - stereotypical NYC style exposed brick lofts.

Based on the things he was telling me, I think I'd like to live there. I cautioned that the quality of materials and finishings inside and out will determine if they achieve the look and feel they're going for or if it will be a faux mess. He agreed, but time will tell.

He wasn't keen on a start date but did emphasize that it would be finished sometime in 2012, as we've heard already.

[planarchy]

Originally Posted by phrenic

I talked to the architect on this the other night at the AGNS event. It is now called the Grainery Lofts or something similar. The concept behind the building is a warehouse to loft conversion. Therefore, their plan is essentially to make the interior and exterior of the building look and feel as if it were an old brick warehouse that was converted into residential units - stereotypical NYC style exposed brick lofts.

Based on the things he was telling me, I think I'd like to live there. I cautioned that the quality of materials and finishings inside and out will determine if they achieve the look and feel they're going for or if it will be a faux mess. He agreed, but time will tell.

I agree. This building, looks good and is actually based on a concept and context. Materials will certainly make or break it, but this type of building is well suited for the area. And with that ridiculously out-of-place suburban Cul-de-sac sitting next to it (http://bit.ly/9L7j3a) - this thing looks even better.

[EGS]

There's a post about this project on the Square Feet blog:
http://halifax.infomonkey.net/blog.d...?post_id=16565

[eastcoastal]

The thing about warehouses converted to lofts is that... well, they used to be warehouses. Does this strike anyone else as just as silly as recreating some Victorian streetscape? It feels like they are inventing a false history, or pedigree, for the project.

Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions too quickly... perhaps being inspired by those types of spaces is OK... I just get scared when something is described this way. The fine line between inspiration and recreation is a tricky one.

[worldlyhaligonian]

A little bit of Flickr content:

Credit: radio_free_rlyeh on Flickr

[JET]

Originally Posted by eastcoastal

The thing about warehouses converted to lofts is that... well, they used to be warehouses. Does this strike anyone else as just as silly as recreating some Victorian streetscape? It feels like they are inventing a false history, or pedigree, for the project.

Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions too quickly... perhaps being inspired by those types of spaces is OK... I just get scared when something is described this way. The fine line between inspiration and recreation is a tricky one.

recreating a Victorian streetscape sounds like a great idea. Much better than some of the boxes that have gone up.
Gladstone St is basically a recreated Victorian streetscape, and done fairly well. I would have preferred a bit more detailing, but overall not bad.

[eastcoastal]

Originally Posted by JET

recreating a Victorian streetscape sounds like a great idea. Much better than some of the boxes that have gone up.
Gladstone St is basically a recreated Victorian streetscape, and done fairly well. I would have preferred a bit more detailing, but overall not bad.

I agree that gladstone st. is successful. Because it has a good scale relationship to the street. I wouldn't say that it's a recreation though - I feel like it's inspired by victorian (or more likely, georgian side-entry) houses that are part of the fabric of old halifax... but don't ask me how I draw the line between "inspired by" and "recreation of."

[someone123]

At the end of the day it mostly just matters what the quality of the design is: overall appearance, function, and how it relates to its surroundings.

I don't mind the idea of recreations. Many of the old buildings in Halifax can be seen as recreations since they borrow from classical and earlier styles (old CIBC bank building on George with its big columns is a good example of this). The difference between those and some less successful buildings is that they had a much higher level of workmanship and overall quality of construction.

I think a simple brick apartment building could look good. The Waterford condos on Hollis Street are not too bad and they were built in 2003 or so. That is very much a "background" building that adds to the area by improving the context for the real gems like Government House.

As has been mentioned before, just having a mid-sized development off of Inglis is also pretty helpful for the area. That is a part of the city that needs more housing.