2010 headquarters?

[mr.x]

i agree....building office space/storage space for what VANOC needs would cost hundreds of millions, costing more than the most expensive venue and would take up much more than the surplus.

VANOC is gonna rent office space in downtown, and storage space probably in Richmond.

[Guardian]

What a far cry from old times of the Winter Olympics now.

[Kenadian]

Digging back on this one, but VANOC recently issued an RFP for office space planning and design (it actually closed last week).  I suspect they are gearing up for their headquarters.  And I'd be willing to wager that it will be in the Yaletown in the old Seagate Softwear building.  Its a block from BC Place and is a great old wearhouse reno'ed into office space...open concept with exposed brick and wood beams and all 97,000 sq. feet will be available on January 1, 2006.

[baron-pierreIV]

LAOOC set up hqrtrs in a defunct Hughes helicopter plant in the Marina, with satellite offices at UCLA (Ceremonies) and downtown LA (for design and ticketing).  They saved a ton of money being housed in the old structure.  The bldg in UCLA (later to be renamed the Peter Ueberroth building) was actually a gift of LAOOC to UCLA for allowing them the use of Pauley Pavilion (gymnastics), the Tennis Center and the dorms (1/2 the Village).

Atlanta went more upscale w/ more modern offices at the Inforum downtown.

[mr.x]

Digging back on this one, but VANOC recently issued an RFP for office space planning and design (it actually closed last week).  I suspect they are gearing up for their headquarters.  And I'd be willing to wager that it will be in the Yaletown in the old Seagate Softwear building.  Its a block from BC Place and is a great old wearhouse reno'ed into office space...open concept with exposed brick and wood beams and all 97,000 sq. feet will be available on January 1, 2006.

sounds good. got any pics?

[Kenadian]

840 Cambie...again, a wild guess but this is a gem of a building inside.

[mr.x]

looks good from the outside. i could imagine it with some 2010 building banners and a Olympic rings sign in the front door.

[baron-pierreIV]

looks good from the outside. i could imagine it with some 2010 building banners and a Olympic rings sign in the front door.

Uhmmm...in terms of security, I don't think they'd want to advertise that fact too loudly.  They all get rather low-key about it.

[Kenadian]

I thought that too.  In fact, the building they are in right now has a rather unique security concern on the main floor...and no I do not mean Starbucks.

[mr.x]

City's Olympic committee joins race for more office space

LEASING I - Demand for a diminishing pool of space is putting pressure on rents

 

Fiona Anderson

Vancouver Sun

June 4, 2005

The Vancouver Olympic Committee is one of a number of tenants competing for a diminishing pool of prime commercial office space in downtown Vancouver, and putting upward pressure on rents.

Although posted lease rates have remained the same, the net effective rent has gone up on average between $2 and $4 per sq. ft. in the last 12 months, CB Richard Ellis' senior research analyst Chris Clibbon said in an interview.

"And that's changing monthly," Clibbon said. "This market is really taking off."

The Olympic committee currently leases 20,000 sq. ft. in the downtown core, but it has asked brokers to find it space where it can expand to 220,000 sq. ft. by 2009.

"It is a real challenge in this market," Clibbon said, "because that's the size of an office tower in Vancouver and they want to be in contiguous space so they want to be in one building."

Another possible tenant competing for limited office space is the Canadian Tourism Commission which, Prime Minister Paul Martin announced in March, would be relocating to Vancouver from Ottawa. The commission will be looking for about 20,000 sq. ft. or approximately one and a half floors of space.

The current vacancy rate is now 10.2 per cent, the lowest it has been since the burst of the high-tech bubble which squeezed vacancy rates to a low of 3.9 per cent in 2000, Clibbon said. Top-quality buildings like the Terasen Gas building, Cathedral Place and the Shaw Tower have felt the strongest demand over the last 12 months.

"Landlords really control the market," Clibbon said. "They are raising the rates, and tenants don't really have much of a choice because there are not many alternatives downtown."

A big problem, Clibbon said, is that there is no room for more office towers to be built in downtown Vancouver. One of the last available spots was the site where the Shangri-La hotel-residence is being built.

Vancouver city planner Paul Nowlan said there has been a lot of successful residential developments downtown which has led to increased pressure from developers to build residential buildings on land set aside for commercial use. The city has responded by undertaking a comprehensive study called the Metropolitan Core Jobs and Economy Land Use Plan. The plan aims to address the need for space for office and other commercial use downtown, Nowlan said.

© The Vancouver Sun 2005

[Kenadian]

It was quietly announced in Vancouver business circles that Bentall 5 is being topped out to 35 floors.  If you see the building, you will notice they are removing the glass peak and adding a crane.  That will add a bit of space and most of the space has been leased to Bell and a large law firm.  That will add some space to Vancouver's market.

www.bentall5.com

[mr.x]

It was quietly announced in Vancouver business circles that Bentall 5 is being topped out to 35 floors.  If you see the building, you will notice they are removing the glass peak and adding a crane.  That will add a bit of space and most of the space has been leased to Bell and a large law firm.  That will add some space to Vancouver's market.

www.bentall5.com

I guess VANOC didn't get to the building fast enough.....it would have been perfect.

[vanhope]

I'm glad that they are going ahead with the expansion of Bentall 5.  I really like that building.  Perhaps somebody can answer this question.  I remember hearing so much about a huge crystal like sleek tower that was going to be built on Howe Street right beside the Metropolitan Hotel across from Pacific Centre.  There is currently a 3 level parking garage.  The model was beautiful.  What happened to that plan?  The project should have started by now.  Thanks.

[mr.x]

I'm glad that they are going ahead with the expansion of Bentall 5.  I really like that building.  Perhaps somebody can answer this question.  I remember hearing so much about a huge crystal like sleek tower that was going to be built on Howe Street right beside the Metropolitan Hotel across from Pacific Centre.  There is currently a 3 level parking garage.  The model was beautiful.  What happened to that plan?  The project should have started by now.  Thanks.

From what I heard, there are some financial glitches with the project. It's 550 feet tall with 52 storeys. Awesome looking building, technological as well.......it will have North America's largest automatic car park. It was scheduled to be finished by 2007, now it's more likely by 2008.

Vancouver's Skyline in 2008

[Kenadian]

VANOC didn't stand a chance at Bentall 5.  Sure...it meets their needs.  There will be 15 new floors of office space open up at 18,000 square feet per floor (270,000 total), but Bentall was not going to build all that new space for an operation that was only going to stick around for 4.5 years (and the building won't be done until 2007) when most buildings lease out space for terms of 10-25 years.

I have an inkling of where VANOC will go.

[Guardian]

Man, I can't even remember where OCO'88 was based in, during the preparation time for Calgary 1988. However, with the Winter Olympics being as big as it is now, I guess that a "big" office space for VANOC is needed in this case.

[mr.x]

Vancouver to get its own turning Calatrava-like turning torso!!!

Erickson touch on tower

Three-surface building would be Vancouver's second-tallest

Frances Bula

Vancouver Sun

June 7, 2005

VANCOUVER - An Arthur Erickson-designed skyscraper that promises to be Vancouver's most unusual and striking building is on its way to city hall for approval.

The slim, elegant, glass-covered building rises from its triangular base to its summit in a way that gives the 167-metre tower -- which would be the city's second highest after the Shangri-La across the street -- a sense of grace and movement.

The tower will appear to twist 45 degrees from bottom to top. Each floor will be offset 0.75 of a degree from the one below.

"We wanted to do something as simple, as straightforward, and as structurally honest as possible," said Erickson, who was brought in to help with the design after the first plan for the building at 1133 West Georgia was unanimously rejected by the city's urban design panel three months ago.

Now, Erickson, working with the original team at Musson Cattell Mackey, is back with a design that appears to respond to all the criticisms of the first design.

The surfaces on the three faces of the building, which create an optical illusion that the building is actually bending, are what Erickson calls "hyperbolic paraboloids" -- a technique that employs nothing but straight lines, yet the surface is curved.

When the first design of the building came to the urban-design panel in March panel members said it was disappointing and ordinary for what would be a prominent building. Panel members said the building, which consisted of a kind of inverted glass vase shape that flared out at the top, set on a stone base, was too broken up and that it should have simple, straight lines going from top to bottom to emphasize the building's height. It was also criticized for lack of "green" considerations.

Erickson's design emphasizes the vertical lines of the building, replaces the stone base with glass, and incorporates elements like solar tubes on the roof to help cut the building's power demands by up to 30 per cent. It also opens up half the small, mid-block lot to a public plaza in one part, which would be lit at night by fibre-optic lights embedded in the pavement, and an enclosed "palm court" in another part.

Developer Simon Lim, for whom this is the first major project in Vancouver, said he recognizes that he will also have to negotiate with the city about other public amenities that need to be provided.

In the unique universe of Vancouver development, where there appears to be a limitless demand for downtown condos, the city's planning department extracts considerable benefits from developers in exchange for permission to build higher than what normal zoning would allow. Developers of the Shangri-La tower on the other wide of West Georgia ended up giving $12 million in benefits that included everything from an outdoor public art gallery to restoration of the heritage church next door to money for the city's housing fund.

Lim's tower would be almost double the normal density allowed for that site. He is planning to buy 200,000 square feet of heritage density, a mechanism the city uses to allow owners of heritage buildings to sell off imaginary space in order to help pay for the costs of preserving Vancouver's small stock of older buildings. It's widely expected that Lim will buy much or all of the space being generated by the Woodward's project, on which he was an unsuccessful bidder.

Vancouver Sun

[argentak]

I'm confused. Is this a latest version of the plan of the skyscraper with trees on top?

[mr.x]

I'm confused. Is this a latest version of the plan of the skyscraper with trees on top?

Yes, this is a revised plan of 1133 West Georgia. The city did not approve that one because it did not meet their sustainability standards. It still has the same height, being the second tallest tower in the city when completed.

This revised plan though is much much better than the old IMO.

[argentak]

Yes, this is a revised plan of 1133 West Georgia. The city did not approve that one because it did not meet their sustainability standards. It still has the same height, being the second tallest tower in the city when completed.

This revised plan though is much much better than the old IMO.

Does it still have trees on top?

I see two bushily things on the side...

[mr.x]

Yes, this is a revised plan of 1133 West Georgia. The city did not approve that one because it did not meet their sustainability standards. It still has the same height, being the second tallest tower in the city when completed.

This revised plan though is much much better than the old IMO.

Does it still have trees on top?

I see two bushily things on the side...

Not much info has been released and this is the only conceptual rendering/model we've seen. Don't know yet.

The proposal will be submitted to the city tomorrow.

[mr.x]

Good news, the city's urban panel has approved it. Now, it'll go through city council and public consultation.

Erickson tower called 'stunning, evocative'

 

Frances Bula

Vancouver Sun

Thursday, June 09, 2005

VANCOUVER - A unique new "twisted" tower that was called "a revolution not an evolution" got enthusiastic and unanimous approval from Vancouver's urban-design panel Wednesday.

Panel members called the Arthur Erickson-designed tower for West Georgia Street -- a slim, triangular building that rotates 45 degrees between its base and its roof -- stunning, evocative, and a beautiful "feminine" match to the more masculine, slightly taller Shangri-La tower that will be built across the street.

The two structures, both destined for the 1100 block of West Georgia, are currently the city's two tallest planned buildings.

The scene in Vancouver city hall's committee room 1 Wednesday was radically different from what happened three months earlier, when developer Simon Lim, along with architects Mark Whitehead and Mark Thompson, presented their first plan for the 167-metre tower.

Then, it was savaged by a special design panel that included both local and out-of-town members, which left Lim and the architects feeling seriously beaten up by the end.

However, within a few weeks, the city's most powerful realtor and unpaid urban designer, Bob Rennie, wooed Arthur Erickson into joining the team, and he and developer Ian Gillespie, who is building the Shangri-La across the street, encouraged Lim to try again.

This time, the reviews were consistently glowing for the new design and several members commented on how spectacularly the team had responded to criticism, not by trying to patch up an inherently weak design, but by going back to the drawing board and starting over.

"It's not an evolution, it's a revolution," said panel member Shahla Bozorgadeh, a comment that was echoed by chair Alan Endall when he summed up the remarks.

Architect Peter Wreglesworth, among others, commended the team on picking themselves up after a "rough go."

"The solution is bold and decisive and evocative, he said.

Everyone agreed that the tower's design earned the developer the right to the extra density he is seeking on the site.

fbula@png.canwest.com

© The Vancouver Sun 2005

http://www.canada.com/vancouv....806d8f6

[vancouver games 2010]

They are looking at 3585 graveley in Vancouver, it borders Vcr and BBY off Hwy 1. They have toured it twice, the last visit was two bus loads.

[mr.x]

They are looking at 3585 graveley in Vancouver, it borders Vcr and BBY off Hwy 1. They have toured it twice, the last visit was two bus loads.

That's a horrible location.

[vancouver games 2010]

Not sure it matters too much where the office is, there is only one tenant there and it allows them to shape the space a little and put a logo with a ton of traffic, but I agree it is not the prime downtown location discussed earlier. Still who cares where the office is?