501 replies to this topic

[Mike K.]

The PR for The 834 states marketing for 608 will launch in 2010.

[Mike K.]

At today's groundbreaking ceremony for The 834 Dave Chard of Chard Development said marketing for 608 Broughton should begin by next Spring. Some 36 to 40 units are envisioned with floorplates starting at around 700 sq. ft.

[concorde]

From what I know of Chard, he won't start Broughton until the 834 is done. He also owns another property down in James Bay as well that he plans to develop.

[Mike K.]

This project is going forward this year. 37 higher-end units are planned.

[Rob Randall]

Marketing starts May 1 at the new sales office in Trounce Alley.

A traditional rectangular top has replaced the controversial curved crown. You can thank the folks at City Hall for that bit of conformity.

[aastra]

The folks at city hall SHOULD be concerned about the height of the ground floor and the gaping vehicle entrance.

[G-Man]

No no Old Town is all about the tops of buildings. Why do you think people even come to Victoria??? They don't even look at the ground floor!

[Kapten Kapsell]

This project's development permit was discussed at the Planning & Land Use Standing Committee meeting this morning; I imagine it will be issued soon.

[Baro]

Seriously, they got rid of the only defining/interesting feature of the building? WHY???

[AnonAnnie2]

***gasp!****

Old zoning for Broughton Street parking lot permits taller structure

Quote from article:

"It's an exception Victoria Coun. Pam Madoff never wants to see repeated in Victoria's Old Town."

"....."To me it's something to weep over," Madoff said this week.

[rjag]

I can only dream of term limits for councilors? Then I wouldnt have to listen to Madoffs inane comments. She is the poster child for Nimby's & obstructionists in Victoria.

If people like her were in postions of power 500 years ago we'd all still be stuck in Europe thinking the world is flat today.

[AllseeingEye]

The only thing that makes me 'weep' are the arcane attitudes of people like Madoff; oddly - thankfully in fact- she has been relatively silent in recent months, which is a refreshing change.

Only in Victoria could somthing as mundane as an 11 storey building be referred to as "towering". Do any of these people actually get off this rock and travel to see what other cities are doing in terms of urban renewal? Beyond hitting the World Class cities of Blue River or 100 Mile House, I mean? And I can completely understand why you wouldn't want a modern development, somthing with a bit of flair, style and panache when you could, after all, retain the current parking lot.

Good God this is a small minded in town in so many ways I can't even begin to count. RJag I really like your idea BTW on council term limits.

[Kapten Kapsell]

Should this be moved from "The Core" to the "Downtown Victoria" section of the forum? This definitely seems downtown (despite the pleas for 4-storey buildings in Old Town)...

[Rob Randall]

^Yes, this is well into Downtown.

As the article states, This was all Charman's doing in the late 80s. He demanded a rezoning just like Cadillac Fairview as more of a protest than anything else and the City couldn't say no. He came up with a plan for Mozart House, something that was a cross between a traditional office tower and Liberace's rec room. For reasons I don't know he never developed it but instead nearly 20 years later dreamed of a new version of the Mozart House a couple of blocks north on Yates. That came close to being built before it too fizzled and it was sold to Concert and they've been trying to fill the hole for couple of years.

Of course, the big tragedy is the loss of the curved roof element. Misplaced paranoia about how it would "distract" from Old Town means the building will still be prominent but not as visually interesting.

Because this did not require a rezoning, the DRA technically had no formal opportunity for input although Dave Chard was generous in having us over to view the design on several occasions while listening to our comments.

[Bob Fugger]

***gasp!****

Old zoning for Broughton Street parking lot permits taller structure

Quote from article:

"It's an exception Victoria Coun. Pam Madoff never wants to see repeated in Victoria's Old Town."

"....."To me it's something to weep over," Madoff said this week.

LOL, I wept myself when I read that - not because of the building size, but because we keep re-electing such myopic councillors. God, we're stupid.

[Mike K.]

Should this be moved from "The Core" to the "Downtown Victoria" section of the forum?

Somehow the thread ended up in the "core" when I merged it anonannie's post referring to this project.

[gumgum]

If good old Pam cares so much about preservation, why is she mute on the bridge debate?

[Ms. B. Havin]

Is Bill Cleverley channeling Curtis what-s-his-name (the guy who used to write about downtown development before Heiman took over, although she left a couple of years ago to work for the Province)?? How can anyone in their right mind go from "11 storeys" to "towering above" and still call themselves a reporter?

And yeah, what the rest of you said, especially rjag and AllSeeingEye. Ditto re. losing the fascinating curve at the top of the building: thanks for getting rid of the building's most interesting outward feature, fools.

Interesting comments in the TC from those opposed to this building: according to them, Victoria should remain small and "friendly," as opposed to "urban." The tourists should want to come here for the old buildings and lawns (sic!), not for the city's city-ness.

I feel like someone is putting a plastic bag over my head when I read stuff like that.

For the sake of a temporary (and artificially engineered) historical blip (namely, the manufactured image we have of being a tidy replica of Old Blightey), we're supposed to keep our downtown perpetually crippled? Perpetually beaten down and battered, like an abused chattel that we expect everything of ("Work for us, damn you!"), but that we beat with alarming regularity? That we don't love? That we don't nurture, and in whose growth and development we don't delight?

Where bad development and NIMBY attitudes meet is in their willingness to abuse downtown.
PS: I should rephrase that: Where bad development and anti-development meet is in their willingness to abuse downtown. In other words, those who oppose development have much more in common with bad developers than they'd like to admit: they both kill good developments. Chard has developed some very good buildings here, he's a good developer. Madoff-style anti-development hurts good development and plays into the continued abuse of downtown.

[aastra]

In other words, those who oppose development have much more in common with bad developers than they'd like to admit: they both kill good developments. Chard has developed some very good buildings here, he's a good developer. Madoff-style anti-development hurts good development and plays into the continued abuse of downtown.

That's absolutely right. I'm reading that article and shaking my head, because the anti-development crowd should be Chard's biggest supporter. His buildings aren't very tall and they're attractive buildings with good sidewalk presence. Is it really more important to knock 15 feet off the top than it is to get a good building?

If you look at the Magnolia Hotel, if you look at the Yarrow Building, we'll be about two stories higher than the Yarrow building and we'll be about the same height as the top of the Bay Centre. So it's not like we're going to be a skyscraper coming out of there," Chard said.

Interesting. Madoff seems to be worried that the building will be waaaay too tall, but Chard points out that it would be about the same height as the tallest buildings in the Old Town.

So how do we determine if something is too tall? Aren't we supposed to consider its context? Its actual context, and not some imaginary one?

Anyone who weeps because of this project should be bawling 24/7 about the Johnson Street Bridge.

Misplaced paranoia about how it would "distract" from Old Town means the building will still be prominent but not as visually interesting.

That's a hell of a point. Very well said.

[AnonAnnie2]

Ms. B. Havin you should consider writing about it, I like the way you put it!

I'll be happy to take the photo; a clear plastic bag over your head...it would be perfect - lets do it!