725 replies to this topic

[Nparker]

...I agree that even for her supporters, Lisa jumped the shark on this one.

Do you think for even a moment her supporters will care?

[Moderation]

The mayor said. in her article    SFH in Victoria – has racist, exclusionary roots.  I agree with this statement.  A tree has many roots  and I am not saying that this is the only reason for SFH creation or the reason to change zoning regulations.

 

There were historically racist exclusionary elements in housing including SFH in BC and Victoria as is clearly indicated above. That is the point that I want to acknowledge. 

 

I will say it again that in my opinion mayors overall statement was a step too far.

[Mike K.]

If we want to dig deep enough, we’ll also have to scrap ever using the E&N Railway again, because train routes built in BC used Chinese labour in an expendable, and arguably racist way. Racism connected Canada, in other words.

Anyways, we've all made our points. The mayor is in the wrong and why she feels she has to double down is anyone’s guess.

[Nparker]

...The mayor is in the wrong and why she feels she has to double down is anyone’s guess.

Because Her Worseship is incapable of ever admitting she is wrong. Doubling down has been her modus operandi from day one.

[Victoria Watcher]

You don’t need a passport to take a trip down memory lane in Saanich this summer, but the municipality will gladly give you one.

 

Building on the popularity of its self-guided Heritage Walking Tour guides — which highlight properties with heritage value throughout the municipality — Saanich has unveiled a Heritage Passport, now available at its municipal hall on Vernon Avenue.

 

The booklet includes a map of seven heritage buildings and one structure — the Swan Lake trestle — in the municipality’s core and Quadra areas. The self-guided tour generally takes one hour and 15 minutes to walk, or 15 minutes to cycle, excluding stops to admire the buildings.

 

“A heritage building doesn’t necessarily mean it is old,” said Sonia Nicholson, vice-president of the Saanich Heritage Foundation, which produced the new passport. “The building could be a landmark in the community, be part of a story of significance, included because of the architecture it represents or the architect who designed it. Alone, without information, a building lacks context. With information, suddenly you have a story of the people who built it, lived in it and the area around it.”

 

The 24-page booklet — a joint project of the foundation and the district’s Arts, Culture, and Heritage Advisory Committee — is designed to engage the reader, regardless of age.

 

 

 

https://www.timescol...ildings-5601703

[aastra]

Martin Segger doing an interesting presentation on Shaw TV right now.

 

They showed a rendering of a redevelopment concept for the Wharf Street parking lot below Bastion Square that seemed to depict a reconstruction of the HBC warehouse building. Where is that concept from? The public space around it looked pretty darned good.

Edited by aastra, 11 September 2022 - 12:26 PM.

[Sparky]

^ Thanks for that tip. I’ve hit the record button.

aastra you get the nimble VV Sunday Award for that post.

[aastra]

They (Martin Segger/Chris Gower) showed the same Wharf Street image again later. I guess it was just conceptual, but it looked very good to my eye.

 

As always, these kinds of discussions give me hope but also grind my gears. For example, if Douglas Street was once a great street and people actually dressed in fine clothes to have their pictures taken at Yates and Douglas, then why not make it a great street again? New art installations won't make it a great street again. New lampposts won't make it a great street again. Those things were never key aspects of its original greatness, so why should those things be particularly relevant now?

 

(Modest and/or shabby buildings do not a great street make, is my point.)

Edited by aastra, 13 November 2023 - 11:39 PM.

[Victoria Watcher]

I think the Wharf Street parking lots will be developed by 2060.

[aastra]

You always want to rush things.

[aastra]

The other thing that I've been aware of for many years is this idea that you should never introduce new focal points or new "star" elements. Example: we should redevelop Rock Bay and open access to the waterfront there, but the end result should be a void. A flat and empty park space. Maybe a few irrelevant lowrise buildings here or there.

 

If there's nothing there then why would anyone go there? I've noted before how Victorians refuse to learn from their own examples, from their own successes and failures. Look at the Shoal Point development and how it put some serious "there" there at Fisherman's Wharf. The building itself serves as a visual enticement to draw people over. Walt Disney would have called it a "weenie".

 

 

Later on in Disneyland planning, he remembered his dog’s excitement at the sight of the “weenie” and how he could lead her wherever he wanted when he had one in hand. He translated this into the design of the park and coined the term “weenie” as a visual element that could be used to draw people into and around a space. A “weenie” is large enough to be seen from a distance and interesting enough to make you want to take a closer look...

 

The new marina building on the Songhees is another example of this.

 

I'm not saying there should be Shoal Point 2.0 luxury condo development beside the Powerhouse building in Rock Bay. But I am saying there should be something there, rather than nothing there. Something that has a definitive presence and identity, in order to transform that formerly anonymous spot into an actual place.

[aastra]

So what do we all think of the work they did on the Douglas Building? I gotta say, it looks pretty bland to me. Monotone. Although I suppose it's actually closer to what the place originally looked like.

Edited by aastra, 22 January 2023 - 10:29 PM.

[Nparker]

Anything is better than the 1990s pastel nightmare.

[aastra]

Insert Tinto Rocks joke here.

[Citified.ca]

104-unit Wellburn’s Market redevelopment loses bid for heritage restoration and seismic upgrade tax holiday

https://victoria.cit...de-tax-holiday/

[aastra]

Metro-One over at SSP has posted some new aerials of Victoria. This pic shows us just how un-Fernwood-ish some of that neighbourhood's modern housing projects can be, and right smack in the village area, too.

Seriously, just imagine if the outlined property below had been redeveloped as an extension of the village vibe rather than a stark contradiction to the village vibe. I've always regarded it as a huge missed opportunity, but this aerial really drives it home. It could have been something amazing.

--

 

 

[Nparker]

The only consideration was that the project was short.

[Barrrister]

I expect that most of Fernwood's character will eventually disappear under an onslaught of Missing Middle boxes. It will take time but it will happen.

[aastra]

Is it just me or is "the Laurels" looking like it needs some attention?

[aastra]

I admit I knew nothing about this property or its former owner. I just happened to be pondering that old stone wall and wondering what the old house must have looked like.

Lim Bang's death notice in the Daily Colonist in 1974 described him (aged 90 years) as "one of Victoria's oldest Chinese native sons"

 

952 Queens Street (Lim Bang residence)

 

Edited by aastra, 13 November 2023 - 11:36 PM.