Pacific Metropolis

The Freedom Tower Redesigned

Just a few days before July 4th, and ahead of the July 6th IOC decision regarding who gets to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games (NYC is a candidate city, although Paris is the odds-on favourite to win), new plans for the redesigned Freedom Tower have been released to the public.

Including its spire, the Freedom Tower will rise to the symbolic height of 1,776 feet, with 69 storeys of office space set atop a 200 foot protective pedestal. The building itself will top off at 1,368 feet - the same height as 1 World Trade Center.

By comparison, Vancouver's tallest building, the Shangri-La, will be 60 storeys high, topping out at 642 feet.

So what's this got to do with Vancouver? Nothing much, really. Except for the fact that New York is still the great North American metropolis that continues to exercise considerable influence over hinterland cities like our own.

As in the past, highly symbolic projects such as the development of Central Park, the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, or the expansion of New York's highways system have played an enourmous role in influencing most other North American cities' development over subsequent decades.

(The creation of urban parks, the construction of skyscrapers, and suburban development were all touched off by the above examples).

This leads to the following question - what major projects might have a similar influence on Vancouver's character and development in the future? In general, the 2010 Olympic Games have already spurred a great deal of construction - but are there any specific projects that will inspire further development in Vancouver, or become iconic symbols of our city?

Or is Vancouver's nature - the mountains, oceans, forests - a sufficient symbol of our city's character, and of who we are?

And finally, what might Vancouver's influence be on development in other cities - in North America, and around the Pacific Rim? Comments appreciated - please add them below.

New Design is Unveiled for Freedom Tower [NY Times, registration required]

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Condos for the Savvy

Construction is currently underway at the corner of Drake and Seymour, where the 34 storey (337 ft) Elan building is going up. Scheduled for completion in early 2007, the Elan will have 229 units and several Smart Car owners once it is finished.

(They're giving away a $2000.00 Smart Car rebate, with the purchase of an apartment).

From all appearances - or, at least by looking at this rendering - it should be a beautiful building. There's definitely some slick marketing behind this package.

...except for one minor flaw. With a name like "Elan", it seems as though the building will likely attract annoying residents - many of whom will resemble Faith Popcorn, the savvy (and sassy!) futurist we all want to slap.

Even worse, the husbands of the building will probably be like Ed Begley Jr. (as portrayed in a cameo appearance on the Simpsons), whose little car is powered by his "own sense of self-satisfaction."

Oh well, we have to house these people somewhere. At least we know where we can avoid them.

The GVRD's Eight Town Centres

As part of the GVRD's Livable Region Strategic Plan that was adopted in 1996, the greater Vancouver region has been divided into eight Regional Town Centres, in addition to the City of Vancouver's metropolitan core. Several smaller Municipal Town Centres are also part of this network.

Included among the eight regional town centres are the following: Lonsdale/North Vancouver, Metrotown/Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond City Centre, Surrey Centre, Coquitlam Town Centre, Maple Ridge Town Centre, and Langley Town Centre. (Click on the map for a larger picture).

By creating these town centres, the GVRD sought to establish eight interconnected, but independent semi-urban centres that are able to provide a mix of residential, commercial, shopping and community services to local residents.

One of the key benefits of these smaller centres is their concentratation of mixed use services in several places throughout the wider metropolitan region, thereby bringing many of the benefits of the urban centre closer to where people live.

Unlike suburban housing developments, big-box retail centres, and office parks, these high-density areas make more efficient use of land for both residential and commercial purposes, while also streamlining the movement of people and goods between these urban centres.

For example, the GVRD notes that "a 100,000 square foot office building with underground parking located in a Regional Town Centre occupies approximately 8% of the land occupied by a building of comparable size with a surface parking lot in a business park location."

Furthermore, thanks to the development of these mixed use town centres, it is expected that people will also use their cars less often, since they will be able to walk, bicycle, or use public transit to get to work, or shop nearby where they live.

For a further explanation of the GVRD's network of town centres, click here.

A Well-Polished Apple

Named after a town in Roman Africa (what this has to do with Vancouver is anyone's guess), the Pomaria is a 31 storey (300 ft) residential building, that is currently going up at the corner of Howe and Pacific.

Scheduled for completion in early 2007, the Pomaria will have a total of 138 apartment units, of which 4 will be live-work. It's developer is also pursuing LEED certification by including such features as geothermal heating, dual flush toilets, and energy efficient light fixtures.

The building's most interesting feature, however, will be its three-storey Sky Gardens, which will be set into the 16th through 19th floors, and the 19th to 21st floors, according to an article (pdf link) from the Vancouver Sun.

Residents in the surrounding apartments will have windows that look out onto the gardens, in addition to private access to their common areas.

There is also some speculation that once the Sky Gardens' trees are fully grown, treehouses will be erected within their branches. Rumour has it that pre-sales of these treehouses have been brisk, with three of the four units having already been sold for $100,000 each. This in turn has prompted some commentators to warn that a treehouse bubble may be forming.

For pictures showing the progress of construction at the Pomaria, click on the link to the construction gallery, located here.

From Tallest to Smallest

To have a look at a fascinating diagram of several Vancouver buildings (both current and proposed), all lined up next to one another and ranked by building height, click here.

Visit www.skyscraperpage.com for similar diagrams of the world's tallest buildings, including this one below, featurning New York's tallest buildings.

Average Home Prices in Vancouver: 2000-2005

According to the Canadian Real Estate Association, the average price of a home in the Greater Vancouver region has reached $419,718 as of May 2005, a 12.4% increase over May 2004.

The CMHC has gone on to report (using CREA data - link to pdf) that the average price of a home in Vancouver has already climbed from just under $296,000 in 2000 to $373,877 in 2004.

• 2000: $295,978
• 2001: $285,910
• 2002: $301,473
• 2003: $329,447
• 2004: $373,877

Following Vancouver, Victoria had the second highest average home prices in Canada this May, at $373,685. Toronto was third at $346,474, while the average price of a home in Calgary was $259,903, according to CREA figures.

By comparison, during the first quarter of 2005 the median price of a home in San Francisco was $689,200 (USD). In Seattle, it was $321,100 (USD), and in Los Angeles, it was $474,700 (USD).  (Source: NAR - link to pdf).

Note - median prices are lower than the average; US prices are a rough comparison.

En Francais Tout le Monde

Social convention says that it is pretentious for a native English speaker to sprinkle his conversation with "the French".

For example, most people hate it when someone works such phrases as a bientot or je ne sais quoi into a sentence. And who doesn't cringe when they hear a person actually pronounce papier mache correctly?

So that begs the question, how will residents of L'Hermitage en Ville refer to their new building? Will they say things like, "we hope you'll join us at our place for some wine and cheese - we live at [insert pause for dramatic effect]...l'Hermitage en Ville".

Or will people sheepishly start calling it "the hermitage", as in - "come by my place for beers on Friday night. I live at the [clear throat, mumble]...hermitage. Maybe later we can hit the Cecil."

With unit prices ranging from $360,000 to over $1.5 million, our guess is that there will probably be a bit of both.

Regardless of what the occupants wind up calling their new building, everyone else may be interested to know that it will be 32 storeys (285 ft) high and have 203 apartment units. Located at the corner of Robson and Richards, it's scheduled for completion in 2006.

Taking one more swing at this pinata - in reference to the building's location, its marketers are quoted in the Vancouver Sun as saying, "It's urban; it's really urban."

Translation: It's a long walk to get to a seawall, whichever way you go. Building views for everyone!

German, Italian ambience the newest 'fins' (pdf link) [Vancouver Sun]

Vancouver's First Suburb

Before it became 'Vancouver's first suburb', Mount Pleasant was once "a dense forest, diagonally bisected by an ancient trail travelled by First Nations peoples and wildlife such as deer, bear and elk," according to the authors of the Greater Vancouver Book.

The neighborhood was named Mount Pleasant in 1888, after the Irish hometown of H.V. Edmonds' wife - a New Westminster council clerk who, in 1869, had bought land in the area, based on his speculation that the transcontinental railway would eventually end somewhere nearby.

In the 1880's, the trail connecting the former capital of New Westminster with the smaller sawmill town of Vancouver was upgraded and named the Westminster Road (today's Kingsway).  At the time, there were only a few stagecoach roadhouses located along the old trail.

As Vancouver started to grow in the late 1880's, people believed that Mount Pleasant "would develop as Vancouver's fashionable 'uptown'." Although the neighborhood did experience significant residential growth over the next 20 years, industry came to the area as well.

According to the City of Vancouver, by 1904, Mount Pleasant was home to "a tannery, two slaughter houses, four breweries, and a train station." Eight years later, Vancouver's first skyscraper, the Lee Building (pictured below) was built at 175 East Broadway, which was followed in 1915 by what is today known as Heritage Hall.

In subsequent years, much of the False Creek tidal flats and the mouth of Brewery Creek were filled in, stripping Mount Pleasant of its waterfront land. More industry arrived in the neighborhood during the 1930's, which resulted in the destruction of several homes and a decline in the area's prestige.

After struggling for several years with problems related to prostitution and drug abuse, the neighborhood is presently undergoing a renewal, with park and transit improvement projects planned by the city. Over the next few years, the area is also expected to benefit from the re-development of the Southeast False Creek community.

Click here to see more pictures of Mount Pleasant as it is today.

The View Cones

In order to protect Vancouver's mountain and ocean views, the City of Vancouver established 27 so-called view cones back in 1989, which limit any development that may restrict these views.

An example of a view cone is pictured below, which shows the protected view of Grouse Mountain, as seen from middle of the Granville Street bridge.

The following map (click on it for a larger picture) shows some other view cones in Vancouver, with a specific reference to the proposed development at 1133 West Georgia street.

Interestingly, the developers of 1133 West Georgia had to revise their original plans, partly because they needed to fit their building within the designated view cone (the map below shows how the original design intruded upon the view cone).

In order to meet this requirement, Arthur Erickson and his fellow designers came up with the innovative 45 degree twisting motion of the new building. Similarly, the Shangri-La, which is located acrosss the street, has been designed with a triangular shape, in part because of the need to preserve the same view cone.

For more pictures of other Vancouver view cones, click here.

Two Harbour Green

A total of 65 apartment units were snapped up at the yet-to-be-built Two Harbour Green during the beginning of June. Average sales price: $2.5 million. (Hey, it's waterfront property).

An additional 7 units, including the $7.2 million penthouse, were held back for prospective buyers, although they will likely be sold by the end of this month.

Construction of the 31 floor (345 ft) building is expected to be completed by 2007. In the meantime, it's 24 floor (263 ft) sibling, One Harbour Green is almost finished, while Three Harbour Green will also be completed in 2007, coming in at 34 floors (354 ft).

A link to photos of the construction at One Harbour Green is available here.