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Yello on Yates
Uses: rental, commercial
Address: 819 Yates Street
Municipality: Victoria
Region: Downtown Victoria
Storeys: 15
Yello on Yates is a mixed-use rental residential and ground floor commercial tower spanning the 800 blocks of ... (view full profile)
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[Downtown Victoria] Yello on Yates | Rentals; commercial | 15-storeys | Built - completed in 2018

Condo Commercial

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#121 wendywelch

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 01:33 PM

The problems I have with this project are:

 

-the architectural design is fairly boring and out-of-date, a big wide rectangle similar to the kind of apartment buildilngs they built in the 1970s

 

-the building is too large for the given space and neighbouring buildings

 

-the building fills the entire lot giving no empty space for tenants or pedestrians (there is a walkway but it will only be opened to public from 9am-5pm)

 

-the bottom floor is designated for retail; downtown Victoria currently has a 39% vacancy in retail spaces so should we be adding more empty spaces to the mix with such a large vacancy rate? All these empty retail spaces are definitely decreasing the vibrancy of our city.

 

-while the building is fulfilling a much needed type of residency (rentals), there is a caveat in the plans indicating it only needs to contain rental units for ten years; what happens after ten years? Will tenants get evicted? I would be relunctant to move into a buildilng that is only deemed rentals for a short time period. This seems like a short-term solution to our lack of rental spaces problem.

 

I understand that most people on Vibrant Victoria are very pro-density and pro-highrise, which is fine but my argument is that if we have to have highrises, can't they be examples of great innovative architecture? Can't they take into consideration the surrounding area and street level activity? Why do they have to be revved up, colour-added, versions of 1970s apartment complexes?

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#122 MarkoJ

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 01:44 PM

I understand that most people on Vibrant Victoria are very pro-density and pro-highrise, which is fine but my argument is that if we have to have highrises, can't they be examples of great innovative architecture? Can't they take into consideration the surrounding area and street level activity? Why do they have to be revved up, colour-added, versions of 1970s apartment complexes?

 

Innovative architecture often comes with heavy increases in construction costs.  A rental project needs to be economically feasible; therefore, there is only so much opportunity for innovation.  

 

Here is a good article on something innovative....note the comments by the Bosa VP -> http://www.theglobea...rticle24934190/


Edited by MarkoJ, 14 June 2015 - 01:45 PM.

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#123 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 01:52 PM

-the building is too large for the given space and neighbouring buildings

 

-the building fills the entire lot giving no empty space for tenants or pedestrians (there is a walkway but it will only be opened to public from 9am-5pm)

 

-the bottom floor is designated for retail; downtown Victoria currently has a 39% vacancy in retail spaces so should we be adding more empty spaces to the mix with such a large vacancy rate? All these empty retail spaces are definitely decreasing the vibrancy of our city.

-

 

I'm not sure how it's too large.  The Wave is next door, the building on View is 18 or 20 floors.  We need height and density in this part of downtown, if we are to keep "old town" lower and less dense.

 

I'm not sure what tenants or neighbors would do with empty space for pedestrians or tenants.  I really don't know why it needs a walkway, but our City seems fixated with them.

 

The retail, that's a tough one.  The idea is to keep the block lively with comings and goings.


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#124 sebberry

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 02:32 PM

I bet we'll be kicking ourselves in 15 years when the Capitol 6 building has fallen into disrepair and we look back at the lost opportunity to develop both of these lots together.


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#125 wendywelch

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 05:09 PM

I'm not sure how it's too large.  The Wave is next door, the building on View is 18 or 20 floors.  We need height and density in this part of downtown, if we are to keep "old town" lower and less dense.

 

I'm not sure what tenants or neighbors would do with empty space for pedestrians or tenants.  I really don't know why it needs a walkway, but our City seems fixated with them.

 

The retail, that's a tough one.  The idea is to keep the block lively with comings and goings.

By "empty space", I mean space that is not just building. The Wave has a great patio and backyard area for residents to use which is a good way to compensate for its large scale. The Era has a nice open space beside it which can be enjoyed by both residents and pedestrians.

The proposed 819 Yates building is too wide in proportion to the height. I like some of the previous suggestions on this site to have one part much taller (the side on Yates) and the other shorter. That would create a more dynamic design. And I know talk about "views" is somewhat a taboo subject on Vibrant Victoria, but with this kind of structure, the visibility of sky for people living in The Metropolitan, The Wave and 860 View would not be so dramatically altered and there will be still some open air space to connect all these buildings to the downtown Victoria skyline.


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#126 wendywelch

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 05:10 PM

I'm all for retail if the spaces could be filled. I'm very concerned about Victoria's growing retail vacancy rate.


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#127 Nparker

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 05:30 PM

...The proposed 819 Yates building is too wide in proportion to the height. I like some of the previous suggestions on this site to have one part much taller (the side on Yates) and the other shorter....

I don't entirely disagree with this. I'd love to see a more slender 25-storey tower on Yates Street and even just a relatively short podium extending to View Street, but that's never going to happen.



#128 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 05:35 PM

I'm all for retail if the spaces could be filled. I'm very concerned about Victoria's growing retail vacancy rate.

 

I'm not really all that concerned about the retail vacancy rate.  Presumably consumers are still getting what they need, and maybe saving some money while doing it.


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#129 Nparker

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 05:47 PM

My concern with not building ground floor retail is that we'll end up with more dreadful ground floors like the Rotherham building, or the Capital Six theatre. I am not sure what else would be suitable for the ground floor on this part of Yates Street since I can't imagine townhouses being very popular here.



#130 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 05:52 PM

I dunno, townhouses face View on the other side of the parking lot more or less.  There must be a way to dress it up to look cool on the outside, even if the units are very secure and the real entry is inside the building.


<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#131 Nparker

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:01 PM

The volume of pedestrian traffic is much higher on Yates than View. I know I wouldn't be too keen on a steady stream of people trotting past my townhouse, unless only a solid, blank wall of my unit faced Yates and that would make for a hideous ground floor for this or any building. I say stick with retail and in time, as the residential density continues to increase downtown these vacancies will fill up.



#132 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:03 PM

The volume of pedestrian traffic is much higher on Yates than View. I know I wouldn't be too keen on a steady stream of people trotting past my townhouse, unless only a solid, blank wall of my unit faced Yates and that would make for a hideous ground floor for this or any building. I say stick with retail and in time, as the residential density continues to increase downtown these vacancies will fill up.


You could probably make it look exactly like town homes, but indeed have the solid blank wall.
<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#133 jonny

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:15 PM

The townhomes at the 834 house commercial tenants.

#134 Mike K.

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:27 PM

Those are commercial or live/work units at 834, aren't they?


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#135 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:28 PM

Fake fronts.

 

http://www.dailymail...ound-world.html

 

Fake fronts, bars, restaurants etc.

 

http://www.scoutingn...-new-york-city/


<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#136 Nparker

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:37 PM

Fake fronts...

This doesn't exactly created a vibrant street front though does it?


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#137 VicHockeyFan

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:39 PM

No it doesn't.
<p><span style="font-size:12px;"><em><span style="color:rgb(40,40,40);font-family:helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">"I don’t need a middle person in my pizza slice transaction" <strong>- zoomer, April 17, 2018</strong></span></em></span>

#138 Mike K.

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 06:44 PM

We're going to be seeing a rise in demand for live/work units in lieu of commercial spaces in these second tier retail spaces (and by no means do I suggest the unit quality is second tier, but the location as far as "central" retail is concerned it is). Lawyers, accountants, consultants, etc., these folks are having to front two places -- a home and a small office. Combine the two in an effective way and you've got a fantastic business case for professionals who may or may not have a need for an employee or two.


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#139 aastra

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 07:45 PM

If we don't like the widescraper format then we should stop encouraging widescrapers. Note that there was a great proposal on this very site a few years ago that involved a curved modern tower on Yates and a lowrise wing on View. I wish Chard had done the same thing and I wish that the city had recommended it, too. We just never seem to learn.

 

Re: shared space for tenants, didn't we establish that there will be a rooftop deck on the View Street side? That's a lot more than I've ever had in any building that I've lived in.

 

 

...can't they be examples of great innovative architecture? Can't they take into consideration the surrounding area and street level activity?

 

You're not going to get great innovative architecture without big $$$$, and big money won't be a factor unless you're building 35-story buildings and selling the cheapest units for a million bucks each. We need to understand that Harris Green isn't going to be commanding this sort of thing. Only the most expensive sites in Victoria would even begin to command this sort of thing. But then again, truly innovative architecture is always going to be the exception simply by definition. If we're expecting every building to be innovative then we're probably misunderstanding what the word means.

 

 

Why do they have to be revved up, colour-added, versions of 1970s apartment complexes?

 

Is this a shot at Chard's Capitol 6 proposal specifically? The criticism wouldn't seem to be relevant to most of the other newer buildings. I've said it before, I'll say it again, the average 21st-century condo building in the city of Victoria is much, much better than the average 21st-century condo building in any other Canadian city not named Vancouver. There's a huge amount of variety, which is all the more impressive considering Victoria's stiff height restrictions. Just browse what's going on in other cities and you'll understand immediately. Also, what's happening in Victoria today re: residential buildings is vastly superior to any other era of multi-unit residential development in Victoria's past. No contest.


Edited by aastra, 14 June 2015 - 07:47 PM.


#140 MarkoJ

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 08:34 PM

Those are commercial or live/work units at 834, aren't they?

 

Yes they are live/work units but all three happen to be used as commercial.......lucky enough as they haven't had hot water for months :)


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