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Building tall and urban "form" in Vancouver


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#21 Jackerbie

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 12:23 PM

Aaaand one more, because it's a curvy departure from the stacked block form in the three previous examples. This was approved in July last year, one of Bing Thom's last designs before he passed away:

 

vancouver-first-baptist-church-tower-2.j


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#22 Nparker

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 12:27 PM

Vancouver and Victoria are barely 100 km apart on the map, but a galactic distance in architectural risk-taking.



#23 lanforod

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 04:04 PM

Vancouver and Victoria are barely 100 km apart on the map, but a galactic distance in architectural risk-taking.

 

When Vancouver was Victoria's size, what risks did they take?  :1954_dancing:



#24 Nparker

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 04:11 PM

When Vancouver was Victoria's size, what risks did they take?  

I think historic pictures of Vancouver would bear out that it has been more architecturally progressive for a long time. Victoria has been less progressive in recent decades than it was in its past.



#25 Jackerbie

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 04:26 PM

When Vancouver was Victoria's size, what risks did they take?  :1954_dancing:

 

Vancouver has quite the history of building tall, actually! Vancouver had a census population of 26,000 in 1901, and 100,000 in 1911. Victoria is currently around 84,000.

 

Dominion Building, commissioned in 1906 and completed in 1910. Tallest building in the British Commonwealth at the time.

Vancouver_Dominion_Building.jpg

 

Sun Tower (formerly the World Building, after the newspaper that occupied it) was commissioned in 1911 and completed in 1912. Surpassed the Dominion Building as the tallest building in the British Commonwealth at the time.

Vancouver_Sun_Tower.jpg


Edited by Jackerbie, 23 February 2018 - 04:27 PM.

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#26 RFS

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 04:29 PM

Now that is a handsome building
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#27 GaryOak

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 04:40 PM

I wonder if someone proposed a tall building with an ornate facade, might it have a larger chance of getting built.

#28 aastra

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 04:54 PM

 

I wonder if someone proposed a tall building with an ornate facade, might it have a larger chance of getting built.

 

Like the original concept for Sussex Place all those years ago? Or the much more recent mini-tower concept for Northern Junk? Dead on arrival, both.

 

I've wished for a legitimate Merrick-style highrise in downtown Victoria for quite a while now. Something in the same family as Shoal Point, Swallow's Landing, Aria, etc. These are distinctive and uniquely Victorian modern buildings (uniquely Victorian = that odd marrying of romantic & fanciful with safe & subdued).


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#29 Nparker

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 06:48 PM

Did Vancouver ever go through a phase where floors were chopped off buildings to make them shorter and ornamentation removed or covered up to "modernize" facades?



#30 Nparker

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 06:52 PM

...Dominion Building, commissioned in 1906 and completed in 1910. Tallest building in the British Commonwealth at the time...Sun Tower...Surpassed the Dominion Building as the tallest building in the British Commonwealth at the time.

 

Both remain beautiful buildings and confirm that Vancouver has a history of embracing its "big city-ness" while Victoria has tried to shun it.



#31 aastra

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 06:54 PM

 

Did Vancouver ever go through a phase where floors were chopped off buildings to make them shorter and ornamentation removed or covered up to "modernize" facades?

 

I think every place did (except maybe Port Townsend, lucky ********).



#32 aastra

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 07:15 PM

 

Both remain beautiful buildings and confirm that Vancouver has a history of embracing its "big city-ness" while Victoria has tried to shun it.

 

Vancouver has actually preserved many of its most prominent historic buildings, too. The Vancouver Block, the Dominion Trust, the Marine Building, the Sun Tower, & a few others. But then again, the Birks Building was a staggering are-you-kidding-me loss, and in tandem with the Georgia Medical Building was surely a net loss re: "big city" essence as compared to what ultimately replaced those buildings. The Scotiabank tower in particular is just not worthy. The Birks building was like a slice of 1910s Manhattan and the Scotiabank tower that replaced it is like a slice of 1980s Edmonton or Halifax.


Edited by aastra, 10 September 2018 - 02:47 PM.


#33 Nparker

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Posted 23 February 2018 - 07:28 PM

To be certain, Vancouver has not got it right 100% of them time when it comes to preserving their architectural gems (what city has?). Even so, Victoria seems to pride itself on moving away from what it once aspired to be (a modern city) and tries to preserve (and create) some mythical, faux-European, semi-medieval village quality.



#34 Jackerbie

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Posted 25 June 2018 - 03:37 PM

Vancouver just received a big splash of something that ain't your typical vision glass or seafoam spandrel!

 

Onni-Charleson-Public-Art-960x1390.jpeg

 

via https://urbanyvr.com...ncouver-skyline


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#35 Jackerbie

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Posted 25 June 2018 - 03:39 PM

^ No word on whether it will be replaced with green netting in the future, a la The Wave.


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#36 Nparker

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Posted 25 June 2018 - 04:32 PM

It reminds me of Matisse's late period cut-outs.


Edited by Nparker, 25 June 2018 - 06:20 PM.


#37 Mike K.

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Posted 25 June 2018 - 05:46 PM

Whoa, that’s different. Is that film on the glass?

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#38 Jackerbie

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Posted 26 June 2018 - 07:25 AM

Whoa, that’s different. Is that film on the glass?

 

It looks like it's coloured spandrel. Would a film hold up in the wind and rain outdoors?



#39 Mike K.

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Posted 26 June 2018 - 08:08 AM

I guess Vancouver's buildings now have to differentiate themselves with coloured spandrel as the sea green glass has become like red brick in the rust belt.


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#40 Nparker

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Posted 26 June 2018 - 08:11 AM

I guess Vancouver's buildings now have to differentiate themselves with coloured spandrel as the sea green glass has become like red brick in the rust belt.

Or perhaps all remaining sea green spandrel glass has been used up on the Encore project.


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