52 replies to this topic

[aastra]

So what's the premise here? Not enough construction in Victoria? Mike, maybe you should set up a colour code so that we can know which way the wind is blowing each day. For example, a red flag could indicate that Victoria is a mega-city full of towers and that there's new construction happening on every corner, whereas a green flag could indicate that Victoria is a tiny town and that nothing is happening or ever will happen. Maybe have three steps in between. So Monday might be red, whereas Tuesday might be green, and Wednesday might be somewhere in the middle. That sort of thing. You might want to reverse the red and green occasionally.

[29er Radio]

aastra I like it. The city's website actually provides something like this on the planning page. You can access a map that lays out all the permit applications submitted. It might be possible for the tech guys to sift through that info in a meaningful way to ascertain what is going on from day to day. I think the city uses flags as well.

[Mixed365]

Toronto on a world scale is the leader, not just on a national scale. New York City has 80 highrises under construction and the next highest is Dubai with 46.

 

Presumably that list refers to highrises, right?

This just blew my mind. 

[lanforod]

What is the definition of 'highrise' in these threads? Over 10 stories, 20, 30?

I'm thinking we don't have any true highrises in Victoria, and maybe just 1 on the whole island.

[Mike K.]

35 meters and taller, or roughly 12 residential floors is what SkyscraperPage defines as a highrise building. Victoria has 53 highrises.

 

Skyscrapers are roughly 150 meters or taller. Vancouver has four, Calgary has 17, and Toronto has 55.

[Mixed365]

35 meters and taller, or roughly 12 residential floors is what SkyscraperPage defines as a highrise building. Victoria has 53 highrises.

 

Skyscrapers are roughly 150 meters or taller. Vancouver has four, Calgary has 17, and Toronto has 55.

Vancouver will soon have 5 with Vancouver House!

[Mike K.]

Yup, and six if you count Burrard Gateway.

[aastra]

 

I'm thinking we don't have any true highrises in Victoria.

 

See, today would be a green day. Orchard House, Roberts House, Promontory, View Towers, the Executive House, Astoria, the Falls, Camosack Manor, North Park Manor, Chateau Victoria, 1010 Yates... they're not even towers. They're perfectly inoffensive little lowrise buildings. Mushroom houses lifted from a storybook.

 

But tomorrow, when somebody proposes a new building about the same height as the above, and outrage flows like hot lava because such a towering skyscraper surely has no place in Victoria, that would be a red day.

 

Seriously though, if you set your definition of a highrise at 25 stories then you're going to eliminate a few hundred highrise buildings from Vancouver's total. Probably 9 out of 10 buildings in this shot, for example.

Edited by aastra, 24 September 2014 - 01:15 PM.

[lanforod]

Depends on the definition. I'm fine with 35 metres for highrise as long as there is another class for proper skyscrapers at 150 metres+.

[lanforod]

Yup, and six if you count Burrard Gateway.

 

Do these include Trump Tower? That one will be the 2nd highest at 188 metres, just a few stories shorter than the Shangri-La at 66. Looked like it was around the 30 floor stage when I saw it a few weeks back. To keep mike happy, the 'correct' info link: http://skyscraperpag...uildingID=35657

[Mike K.]

^

 

Yup, six includes Trump.

[Danma]

One thing to consider when looking at projects here is that having 1/3 the population doesn't mean that we should have 1/3 the projects... Building heights got higher due to the need of demand in the context of the area. For instance, a 40 story condo can go up in Toronto because it's surrounded by office towers where those people can work, and vice versa, and all cities are in a constant cycle of bootstrapping their density based on its surroundings (Dubai being the example that proves the rule.)

 

When we discuss height and density in Victoria, regardless of population, it is based on the value proposition for landowners based on demand (which is driven higher by surrounding density) and the cost/benefit ratio of height.

 

If you were to compare Victoria to a similar metro area, I think it's not out of line – someone mentioned Halifax. I'll mention Asheville, NC as a similar metro area (Ashville being 460k or so) and if you look at its density, it's similar or a bit lower than Victoria's.

 

Anyways, the core point is that growth is relative, and that when you look at projects, its based on demand, based on existing base, based on many factors rather than a simple ratio of projects/10,000 people.

 

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That being said, 30 projects in proposal is a good number. Looking forward to seeing more execution of these downtown, as I like many of the projects that have come lately.

[Mixed365]

This little beauty is currently under construction at Cook and Linwood Ave. For a better idea, it is more so Cook + Quadra + Cloverdale RIGHT behind the Thrifty's. Wasn't sure where to put it, so I figure I put it here on this thread. 
 

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