The High Life: New High-rises elevate Metro Vancouver’s skyline

In large cosmopolitan cities all over the world, a home in a skyscraper is normal, and the higher, the better! The charms of a home in the sky are many: obviously, great views, and being above the noise of the city are among the main draws. When you are 100 metres off the ground, you can see over 35 kilometres away, and the bustle and sound of the city are far beneath you. Tall towers also often have wonderful amenities for the many residents, including swimming pools, rooftop decks, a concierge, large gyms, and many other recreational possibilities.

Another important benefit of high-density living, such as in a downtown apartment building, is it’s much more environmentally friendly than living in a single-family home in the suburbs. This is why New York City has the lowest per capita energy use in North America by far. Vancouver aspires to be one of the most energy-efficient cities in the world, but it’s also one of the most expensive to live in due mainly to a very strict urban boundary policy, meaning the land mass is limited and there are strict guidelines of what can be built, and where.

Though downtown Vancouver is densely populated, the city is a bit stubby when compared to other metropolises. Vancouver’s current tallest skyscraper, Living Shangri-La, with a height of 201.2 metres (660 feet), would be the 62nd tallest building in Hong Kong and the 74th tallest in New York City. Living Shangri-La would also be 24th tallest in Toronto and the sixth tallest in both Calgary and Seattle.

In fact, most of downtown Vancouver’s buildings come nowhere near the “skyscraper” standard defined by Emporis (an organization dedicated to compiling international skyscraper and high-rise building data). To qualify as a skyscraper, a building must have a height of at least 100 metres (328) ft; buildings with heights of between 35 metres (115 ft) and 100 metres are highrises, and anything below 35 metres is a low-rise. Preserving the mountain view been a priority for City Hall when creating zoning laws, but there are a few new towers being built if you want to live in a new downtown Vancouver skyscraper.

New condos in high-rises include The Butterfly by Westbank, a Bing Thom-designed 57-storey tower that is currently under construction. Onni’s 1335 Howe is 40 Storeys, and Pinnacle International’s 601 Beach Crescent recently removed two floors from its plan, but it will still be taller than its neighbour, Vancouver House, though the tower height has been reduced to 159 metres, from 163 metres and 53 storeys. Bosa’s Barclay x Thurlow is a pair of beautifully modern 48- and 49-storey towers that will soon overlook downtown, and include a significant social housing component. Block, by Amacon, is a collection of one-, two- three-bedroom condos located in the heart of Downtown Vancouver. The 30-storey tower features a collection of community-rich amenities, including a fitness centre, amenity lounge with kitchen, patio & balcony, and a picturesque lobby with concierge and mailroom.

But, if you want to live in the tallest buildings in our region, you are going to have to look a bit farther outside the city. Outside downtown, the world of skyscrapers is very dynamic, with new exciting announcements being made every month. Burnaby is soon to catch up with Calgary in terms of the tallest buildings in Western Canada, including Onni’s upcoming skyscraper over 213 metres (700 feet), adjacent to SkyTrain’s Gilmore Station in Burnaby, that will topple Living Shangri-La’s title as the tallest building in the entire region. Gilmore Place is a 12-acre master-planned community around the SkyTrain station, with the first phase entailing a 64-storey landmark tower with 643 homes, a 51-storey tower with 510 homes, and a 43-storey tower with 410 homes.

Gilmore Place will have a short-lived title though, over in Metrotown, Concord Pacific’s upcoming Concord Metrotown development will take over the title of B.C.’s tallest tower when it’s built a year later.Tower one will measure 723 ft. Towers two and three at Concord Metrotown will be 530 ft. and 385 ft., respectively. The project will be on the site of the former Sears department store in Metropolis at Metrotown.

In Coquitlam, Pine & Glen will be home to Coquitlam City Centre’s tallest towers at 45 and 50 storeys high, and residents will have access to half an acre of private park, a rooftop lounge, indoor and outdoor pools, cabanas, a bowling alley, and more. Burquitlam is soon to be home to quite a few new high-rises, including Boffo’s Smith & Farrow, Anthem’s SOCO and Jinju, and Ledingham McAllister’s Sydney, all providing great amenities, and beautiful views of the River, mountains and valley.

As Surrey remains on track to become the largest city in BC, its city centre continues to rise, with new towers championing state-of-the-art architecture, amenities, and design. Ascent, in Surrey City Centre, is anticipated to be a landmark example of this. Developed by Maple Leaf Homes, the concrete, 31-storey high-rise puts prospective residents at the top of a rising downtown — just one block off King George Boulevard and steps from Surrey Central SkyTrain Station, SFU, and City Central Shopping Centre.
Following the success of Tien Sher's low-rise community, Q5, which sold out in two days, the next chapter of the revitalization of Surrey’s historic Whalley district is Flamingo Towers, three 36-, 37- and 46-storey buildings. Flamingo Towers is destined to become a thriving hub with diverse retail, handy services, great restaurants and acres of public space – and ultimately home to over 3,500 people. King George Hub, by PCI Developments, is also building two towers in Surrey City Centre, Plaza One, selling now, and Plaza Two, which will be on sale soon, which will be 29 and 40 storeys high.

There’s an even taller building on the horizon, that will actually put Metro Vancouver in the running for tallest building, at least in Western Canada. Back in Burnaby, though details are still scarce, Pinnacle International is in the early stages of a rezoning application for their six-acre property at Austin Road and Gatineau Place, next to the Lougheed Town Centre SkyTrain station. The upcoming project will consist of three towers, interconnected with sky bridges between the towers and to the Lougheed Mall precinct. The east tower will be 82 storeys tall (approximately 900 feet) and include retail, hotel and residential. The west tower will be 67 storeys, with retail, office and residential, and the south tower will be 62 storeys tall with retail and residential. It would not only be the region’s tallest, eclipsing downtown Vancouver’s towers and other suburban tall tower proposals, but also one of the tallest buildings in Western Canada.