88 replies to this topic

[G-Man]

Peter was perhaps the best bartender this town has ever known.

[Mike K.]

Another fine establishment on par with the Douggie is the Cecil (it has a different name here but it's owned by the chain that runs the Cecil in Van) just east of Head St in Esq.

[Galvanized]

^Is that the one with the torn up facade?

I've never been in the Bar at the Dougie but went to the coffee shop that was there before the liquor store, it had a second floor and you could watch some interesting stuff happen outside while you sipped your coffee.

[Holden West]

The Vancouver Cecil is the nasty old building with the shabby whale mural up against the Granville St. bridge.

http://www.flickr.co... ... 778&size=l

Heh.

[Mike K.]

I did it again. It's no the Cecil -- it's something else but its on the DES/downtown border. I do have a good story about the Cecil though.

But that's for another day.

[Holden West]

It was interesting when they pulled down the Hotel Douglas sign they uncovered the original sign:

[Holden West]

Funny how they give it an Italian name to honour the original owner. I bet he called it The Prince George instead of an Italian name to emphasize his supposed patriotism and to downplay his Old World background (recall the Kaiserhoff Hotel riot).

[G-Man]

I believe it is honouring the heritage of the new and current Italian owner.

[aastra]

The first stage of the renovation, which could top out at $20 million...

Interesting that a small building like that one would cost so much to renovate. So why were some people so suspicious of Townline's estimate for the Bay building?

[renthefinn]

The cecil in Vancouver is one of the best places I've ever been to!

[Barra]

I talked to the architect who is doing the renovation. the Italian name is due to the heritage of the new owner, and has nothing to do with Victoria. Too bad - I think they should have called it "The Prince George" - just so that they could use that sign.

Heck - I would put up a building and call it the Prince George just so that I could use that sign!

Remember the "SALLY" on Cormorant that used the neon SALLY sign from the dress shop that used to be around the corner? what a great sign. When I grew up the SALLY stores were the epitome of where the best dressed ladies bought their clothes. That sign should really have been saved. It should be in a neon museum somewhere (not the one in LA - we should have one in BC. It would have the ONLY sign, and the Ovaltine Cafe sign and the Helen's dress shop sign with the girl on the swing....)

[Holden West]

The Sally sign was great. And yes, the Sally store was a real snazzy, high-class shop--a great link between the Bay and the rest of the city. The building's still there but it's been split up and looks like hell. That whole stretch of Douglas used to be really vibrant and now it all looks like crap. The Sally part of the sign went around the corner and became the sign for the Sally Bun store until it changed hands and the sign disappered. The Sally Bun relocated to Fort Street's Antique Row minus the huge neon sign. Too bad, it would have looked great there.

I think the Douglas owners came up with the Rialto name before they uncovered the Prince George sign. I wish they'd incorporate it somehow. Maybe they could name the restaurant after it, although Prince George doesn't sound all that appetizing.

[Baro]

What are they going to do with the sign?

hang their own new sign over it?
That would be a shame to loose such a pretty sign that's part of the building.

[rayne_k]

They could have called it the Hotel Giorgio.. hmmm it doesn't look as appealing spelled out as it sounds, but at least it might have worked with the old name..

[VicHockeyFan]

Douglas Hotel's $10-million upgrade signals end of an era
Last-of-a-kind bar, one that opens at 9 a.m., to shut down next week

Darron Kloster
Times Colonist


Saturday, March 17, 2007



CREDIT: Ray Smith, Times Colonist
JOELLE ENGLISH: Champagne, balloons, fur coat from patrons.

Frank has sat in the same corner of the Douglas Hotel bar nearly every morning for the last 34 years.

An early morning volunteer in a downtown soup kitchen, the "70-something" senior has a beer or two in the Dougie to end his day and then takes a bus right outside to get home to Saanich.

But the routine he's enjoyed for decades is ending March 24 when the often-notorious beer parlour closes and the 95-year-old hotel starts a $10-million renovation aimed at the upscale tourism market.

The closing marks the end of an era. The Dougie at the corner of Douglas Street and Pandora Avenue is the last watering hole in the city -- and one of the few remaining in B.C. -- to hold a liquor licence that allows a 9 a.m. opening. Most bars open closer to lunchtime.

Regular patrons, who range from pensioners and dock workers to addicts and the homeless, are left with few choices as the once-popular no-frills beer parlours have all but dried up.

There were 25 regulars drinking beer on this weekday morning and the mood was sombre as news filtered through that a closing day was set.

Patrons pointed out souvenirs they would take home -- a John Deere sign, a dusty plastic plant, a battered wall panel with knuckle prints and a favourite chair. A farm worker said regulars would likely drift to Soprano's a few blocks away. Others, he said, will visit the Esquimalt Inn or Big Bad John's further down Douglas Street.

None of the alternatives, however, open as early as the Douglas, which one patron said will likely leave some of his pals drinking on the street.

A manager at Soprano's said the bar is ready to take refugees from the Douglas "on a case-by-case basis."

"Some of them already come here," he said. "Some we know and won't allow."

The Douglas was a regular hangout for drug dealers and prostitutes for years but cleared away much of the activity in the late 1990s.

James, 60, has been going to the Douglas since 1970. He said it is the last bar of its kind. Everything new is aimed high-end, he said.

"I'm sad about this ... it's a social club here. People have been coming here for years, so it's like a family," he said.

Bartender Joelle English has worked the morning and afternoon shifts for the past seven years. She said although patrons have known for more than a year that closing was inevitable, it has hit the regulars -- and her -- hard.

"I care about these people," English said. "A lot of the focus of this place has been about violence or drugs, and that's sad because it's not all about those things. It's a place where people can come and feel comfortable and not be judged.

English said she's had champagne and balloons -- even a fur coat -- given to her by patrons.

She said older clients will likely drink at home. Some will miss the conversation and slip into depression. Others will try fitting into other bars. Some will fall through the cracks and end up on the street.

"Every town needs a Dougie," English said. "It gives us a sense of where we're from. It lets people know they do belong and they have a place to call home."

The Douglas will be renamed as the Hotel Rialto -- to reflect owner Danilo Danzo's Italian heritage -- and refurbished floor by floor starting early next month. The renovation of the historic building falls into a timeline with a massive revitalization of the entire neighbourhood, including the former Bay building and the Radius office-residential development along Caledonia Avenue.

The fourth floor of the Douglas will be gutted first and finished in May.

The new hotel will have 30 rooms when completed next year.

There were no concrete plans announced for the space now occupied by the bar, but it could turned into either a restaurant and lounge or a spa.

© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2007

[m0nkyman]

A farm worker said regulars would likely drift to Soprano's a few blocks away. Others, he said, will visit the Esquimalt Inn or Big Bad John's further down Douglas Street.

Oh lucky you....

[Ms. B. Havin]

I'd prefer to see the name go back to "Prince George." "Rialto" is a lovely name and all, but doesn't have any of the sturdiness of the historical name, which only has it because it was there first. I mean by that: I'd say the same thing about "Rialto," if that were the original name plastered over by "Hotel Douglas." Does that make sense? Ok, maybe not, but my vote is for "Prince George." "Rialto" is (to adapt a phrase from NYT architecture critic) generic soft-core internationalism by comparison, despite the "heritage" connection with the new owner.

[VicHockeyFan]

From today's TC:

It appears the Douglas Hotel marquee, shown in yesterday's TC lying on a scrap heap at Selkirk Recycling, has escaped the shredding machine.

Selkirk spokesman Reid Hudson said the photo of the familiar sign drew several calls to his office, including one man who wanted to purchase the sign. So the 93-year-old Douglas Hotel -- being redeveloped into a high-end boutique hotel called the Rialto -- may yet live on in somebody's garage or basement.

Shredded steel from Selkirk is usually barged to Tacoma, Wash., and melted down for other consumer goods.

[Holden West]

I see they've powerwashed the terra cotta "Prince George" sign and it now looks shiny and clean. I think that's a good sign that they're going to keep it, although how they'll incorporate it into the "Rialto" persona I don't know.

Also, they've been pulling the pieces of the 1960s slate wall off the Pandora facade revealling the original glazed terra cotta exterior. It's great that it's still there. It appears they just slapped the mortar directly over the old exterior so now it just crumbles cleanly off the slick surface like a teflon frying pan.

[Nparker]

You have to wonder was ANYTHING designed well in the 1960s? In general such a hideous decade for achitecture (at least in this city). Centennial Square being the crowning mis-achievement.