It's basically a strip mall in the centre of town. Even tourists have noted how out of place the format is. The View Street side was lousy right from day one. Ideally there shouldn't be "back" sides along any downtown streets. The businesses and some of the minor changes over the years have made it work, but if they rebuild the whole thing properly it could be great instead of just okay. Imagine a top-notch pedestrian corridor running right through the middle from Yates to View. Not strip-mall style, not an afterthought beside a parking lot, but something really good. Something people will want to linger in. At this point I think everyone should have a much clearer picture re: the direction and destiny of this downtown neighbourhood. What it is and what it isn't. Even the little shoe store building only sort of got it right.
Neighborhoods: Harris Green
#21
Posted 22 June 2018 - 10:57 AM
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#22
Posted 22 June 2018 - 11:12 AM
#23
Posted 22 June 2018 - 11:15 AM
As long as any redevelopment doesn't involve even temporary closure of London Drugs. That'd be a terrible loss to downtown.
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#24
Posted 22 June 2018 - 11:19 AM
#25
Posted 22 June 2018 - 11:22 AM
The positioning of that building does not effectively allow it to be kept through. It infringes on the lot in a very harsh and dramatic way.
Agreed, but perhaps a staged reconstruction (i.e. relocating LD to a new Quadra Street frontage) could work.
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#26
Posted 22 June 2018 - 11:29 AM
Unless LD relocated to the old Staples building. There is a 2 storey LD in Vancouver.
But the tiny Staples loading dock is not really comparable to the current facility.
#27
Posted 22 June 2018 - 11:45 AM
I'll agree that the backside on View is not much use. Also, the parking lot is pretty cramped outside LD. There is a positive possibility of some hybrid commercial/residential development with underground parking. I do hope the store doesn't leave downtown as that's a great location for it.
#28
Posted 22 June 2018 - 12:56 PM
... I do hope the store doesn't leave downtown as that's a great location for it.
I'd chain myself to the entrance of the current store before I'd let LD leave downtown.
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#29
Posted 22 June 2018 - 08:03 PM
It would also suck to lose the walk-in clinic in there and not get a replacement anywhere near; it's the kind of business that seems to disappear forever even if it closes for unrelated reasons.
#30
Posted 22 June 2018 - 09:05 PM
How about if a sort of triangular footprinted residential-retail tower were to be constructed at the Yates and Vancouver corner replacing the current low-rise structure? The existing surface parking would be reduced to a relatively narrow pedestrian path parallel to the existing London Drugs. All parking would move underground. Another mixed-use tower could be constructed on the site the Market on Yates and its adjacent parking. Retail/commercial space would then run along the Quadra, Yates and Vancouver Street frontages. I am sure someone with superior tools can produce a better image, but here's the gist of what I mean.
I am unsure of the best way to address the current shortcomings of the View Street side, without tearing down the existing London Drugs building which I don't think would be worth the cost for what would be gained.
#31
Posted 23 June 2018 - 06:10 AM
Know it all.
Citified.ca is Victoria's most comprehensive research resource for new-build homes and commercial spaces.
#32
Posted 23 June 2018 - 07:14 AM
I think we can be sure that at least on building would be a rental to replace the net lose of a rental building.
#33
Posted 23 June 2018 - 07:30 AM
...They also now own the rental building at the corner of Vancouver and View, as well as all the buildings at the corner of Quadra and View...
I wasn't sure if the entire block was part of any redevelopment, but it makes sense. I'd be OK with tearing everything down and starting over as long as London Drugs remains open throughout. I'd be lost if it were to close or even temporarily relocate. I probably frequent this business more than any other in the downtown core.
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#34
Posted 23 June 2018 - 07:56 AM
#35
Posted 23 June 2018 - 03:07 PM
We use London Drugs at that location a lot! Any sort of closure would certainly not be welcome.
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#36
Posted 24 June 2018 - 05:43 AM
Does anybody know what's actually in the old Hickman Tye Hardware building at 910 View these days?
It's one of those rare downtown buildings with absolutely no exterior signage ... I never see folks going in or out of that building.
#37
Posted 24 June 2018 - 06:42 AM
A quick peek at the CRD map tells me that the property at 910 View is still connected to 1211 Quadra in an L shaped fashion. I believe that this is the original layout but I am going from memory here and we all know how unreliable that is.
So it would appear that Pewter Graphics is/was at that location.
https://www.pewtergr....com/contact-us
......no more brain twisters on Sunday morning for a while eh?
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#38
Posted 24 June 2018 - 07:53 AM
Does anybody know what's actually in the old Hickman Tye Hardware building at 910 View these days?
It's one of those rare downtown buildings with absolutely no exterior signage ... I never see folks going in or out of that building.
I was on Quadra and I heard blood-curdling screams so I ran around the corner and saw a group of people on the sidewalk and that white garage door was open. It was the Mexican family that operates that restaurant and they were celebrating a child's birthday by swatting a pinata.
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#39
Posted 24 June 2018 - 08:07 AM
And if you couldn't find it at Hickman Tye, you'd wander on down to Government Street to "Mac and Mac" to see if they had "one" there.
If neither HIckmanTye or Mac and Mac had what you were looking for ... well, it probably didn't exist!
Mac and Mac (Mclennan, McFeely, and Prior Ltd) was pretty amazing, and you could purchase everything from hand pumps and blacksmith forges ... to fine china there.
You're looking into the windows of Mountain Equipment Co-Op on Government St in these photos, same building as the original Gov't St. Mac and Mac, just reno'd.
Edited by Cassidy, 24 June 2018 - 08:09 AM.
#40
Posted 24 June 2018 - 08:24 AM
So it would appear that Pewter Graphics is/was at that location.
https://www.pewtergr....com/contact-us
That makes total sense ... and one could guess that Pewter Graphics uses the Quadra Street entrance to their facility.
The amount of equipment they show in their website couldn't fit into the space they have on Quadra, but could easily fit into the old Hickman Tye building.
Next door at 1209 Quadra was Keye Recording Studios, which was Victoria's only professional recording studio for many years
Edited by Cassidy, 24 June 2018 - 08:25 AM.
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