775 replies to this topic

[Mike K.]

What would Victorians do if a building took up an entire Victoria-sized mini block?

[Nparker]

I guess we'll find out when the Cook Street widescraper portion of this development gets built.

[aastra]

Wide buildings can block views side-to-side and cast broad (rather than long/narrow) swaths of unbroken shade. If you like that kind of thing then it's no problem. However, Victorians have been complaining about that kind of thing for decades. This is why that new breed of small-footprint buildings in the 2000s was such a relief for many people. Corazon, Juliet, 834 Johnson, Legato, etc. showed Victorians a more pleasant format for dense midrise/highrise living.

Suffice it to say, a telephone pole can be tall, but because a telephone pole is narrow it has limited potential to block side-to-side views and cast a wide shadow. A brick wall might be shorter than the telephone pole, but because the brick wall is continuous & without interruption it would fully block the view of anyone who can't see over it, and it would also cast a broad/unbroken shadow. A telephone pole would be one of many elements within the view. A brick wall would BE the view for anyone who can't see over it.

 

We've talked about these fundamental issues so many times before.

 

Just consider how many large buildings occupy the following scene, and yet you can still see a long way between the buildings. In some spots you can see for blocks. In other spots you can see for miles. But insert two or three 15-story widescrapers into this same view and the entire scene would be much less pleasant.
 

Edited by aastra, 31 March 2023 - 02:24 PM.

[aastra]

In the following pic just consider how much depth you used to be able to see looking north/northeast toward the Cook/Pandora intersection and beyond. From that balcony you used to be able to see many things, and you used to be able to see between things, and you used to be able to see a mix of foreground things and background things. Lots of depth, many layers. But now you can only see one wide thing.

 

Edited by aastra, 31 March 2023 - 02:29 PM.

[Mike K.]

Bayview One
Shoal Point
Parc Residences
Jukebox
Shutters
Wave
Yello, etc.

Variety is the spice of life.

[aastra]

Shoal Point raises the issue re: the esthetics of the buildings themselves. Yes, wide buildings can be very impactful re: diminishing the depth of a view, and when they're clustered together they can throw wide swaths of shade and make a district seem much more confining than it needed to be. But what about the architectural design aspect?

If a wide building is detailed & ornate or otherwise architecturally interesting one way or another -- something like the Empress Hotel, or the broad side of Christ Church Cathedral, or Shoal Point -- then the wide building itself can be making a contribution to the view. So even though elements behind the wide building have been obstructed, the wide building is nevertheless adding some value and visual interest of itself.

 

In other words, excessive width and an overdose of plain cladding panels are like a one-two punch re: screwing things up.

[Mike K.]

All great points, aastra.

 

I agree, that it's not necessarily so much the width, as it is the quality of materials.

[lanforod]

You’d get bored if all the buildings were wide and all those wide buildings were high quality interesting materials too though. Like you said, variety. Nothing beats nature at beauty. Stop blocking those views unnecessarily.

[Mike K.]

Luckily, not all buildings are wide.

As Watcher says, it will all work out.

[Nparker]

The problem here is that one wide and one extra wide building are much too close together. This is not good design.

[baconnbits]

Really don’t mind it here
Other design was way too busy for me. The whole block I guess so anything that creates a bit more space from original plan

[Mike K.]

The building is officially complete.

Details: https://victoria.cit...n-harris-green/

$375-$2,900/month for studio through three-bedroom units. Parking is either $350 or $360/month, not mentioned in the release, but stated in the comments.

[Victoria Watcher]

Those parking rates. I’d be willing to bet that’s the highest residential parking fees in this city.

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 02 May 2023 - 02:51 PM.

[Mike K.]

It’s the highest I’ve ever seen, yes.

[Victoria Watcher]

It’s the highest I’ve ever seen, yes.

 

If only we had a parking expert on this board.  

[Biro]

Ready to Respond 🚒

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