[James Bay] Tapestry / 701 Belleville Street | Seniors condos and rentals; commercial | 15- & 4-storeys | Built - completed in 2021

as long as the sale on seafoam spandrel doesn't return

But can there ever be enough seafoam spandrel?

I think you've captured Tapestry's best angles Brantasitc.

I was actually admiring the road, sidewalk, bike lanes, bollards and other street furniture. These are looking good!

Yes! The crosswalk and pedestrian island at Blanshard and Belleville is an especially good improvement.

why so many bollards?

Yes! The crosswalk and pedestrian island at Blanshard and Belleville is an especially good improvement.

But what is this? 

Future bike lane extension through the grounds of St. Ann's Academy?

 

Future bike lane extension through the grounds of St. Ann's Academy?

Probably. Carving out a chunk of the St. Ann's Academy property for through traffic was part of the vision for reconfigured traffic flows down there even back in the 1960s. We have no end of examples to demonstrate how today's bright ideas tend to be the same musty old plans from generations earlier, just repackaged.

Edited by aastra, 23 October 2020 - 09:24 AM.

Give me a choice between arbitrarily eating property for a bike path as versus arbitrarily eating property for a street extension and I'll take the bike path every time, but my point still stands about these never-ending traffic re-configurations. The supposed urgencies and necessities that will be used to justify such re-workings will tend to be very exaggerated if not 100% imaginary. Which is why so much of the work that gets done today will get undone or re-worked tomorrow.

That 1970 plan probably called for a four-lane 40 mph straight shot. Gotta keep those Chryslers moving.

Edited by Rob Randall, 23 October 2020 - 09:57 AM.

Edited by zoomer, 17 January 2021 - 09:28 PM.

big "for lease" signs there.  will a restaurant give it a go?

Actually, I think the building turned out rather nice. Maybe the province can buy it and just move some of the druggies there.

Actually, I think the building turned out rather nice. Maybe the province can buy it and just move some of the druggies there.

Zoomer: Two horrible ideas between us. Of coarse building proper institutions to hold and treat these unfortunates who are either drug addicted or mentally ill is just too obvious a solution. What is being done now is absolutely criminal.

 

Actually, I think the building turned out rather nice.

I'd say it's fine for what it is. There are things I like about it. But I also think it's not worthy of the prominent site. When you view it from other points on the harbour it's like a textbook example of putting something bland and ordinary in a prominent spot because we were afraid to put something distinctive and interesting there. The more a building tries hard to be inconspicuous, the more conspicuous it tends to be.

 

The more a building tries hard to be inconspicuous, the more conspicuous it tends to be.

For further reference, see also the upper levels of Yates on Yates.

..I also think it's not worthy of the prominent site...

More interesting options for the site were proposed over the years, but between the CoV council and the JBNA any "challenging" designs were swiftly rejected.

The more a building tries hard to be inconspicuous, the more conspicuous it tends to be.