May 2, 2007

Redevelopment

HENRIQUEZ • PARTNERS ARCHITECTS

One tower of the Woodward’s redevelopment will house a supermarket along with federal offices, civic office, seven levels of non-market housing, an outdoor play area and market condos. A second building retains the façade of the original 1903 store. The smaller buildings include retail space, community facilities, daycare facilities a new Simon Fraser University Centre for the Contemporary Arts along with non-market housing. The Vancouver skyline will include the historic "W” sign that used to stand atop the development store.

Vancouver's Changing face

BRIAN MARTIN

correspondent

A publicly-owned project that is not only on budget but is running four weeks ahead of schedule? How odd is that? Odd or not it is the case when it comes to the mammoth redevelopment of the old Woodward’s property on Vancouver’s downtown eastside.

Lead architect for the development is Gregory Henriquez of Henriquez Partners, a long-time Vancouver firm. On April 25 he spoke to a meeting of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association (VRCA) and brought members up to date.

It is generally agreed by developers and planners alike that the Woodward’s project goes far beyond the range of just another city development. Keith Sashaw, president of the VRCA summed it up by saying “the project is changing the face of Vancouver”. Henriquez says, “Woodward’s was always somehow different from a normal department store. It was part of Vancouver.”

Built in 1903 over the years the Woodward’s department store expanded to fill a city block. For decades it dominated what was then Vancouver’s major shopping district along with other names that are long gone such as Eaton’s and Simpson’s. Over time the city’s retail growth moved west and north and eventually Woodward’s found itself nearly alone in what had become known as “Canada’s poorest postal zone”. In 1993 the Woodward’s chain of department stores hit the financial wall and closed. It was an event that left its venerable downtown building standing dark and empty and slammed the last nail in the coffin for what is called the Downtown Eastside. The area’s decline into a zoo of drunkenness, street prostitution, drug addiction and HIV infection accelerated.

In 1993 after years of wrangling the City of Vancouver wound up buying the building from the provincial government. It then set about a process of community consultation to determine the best use of the property. At the end of that a team of Henriquez Partners and Westbank Projects/Peterson Investment Group was formed to handle the $300 redevelopment.

There will be 536 market housing units and 200 non-market housing units, including apartments designed for families. General contractor is ITC (formerly Intertech Construction). Approximately 80 per cent of contracts have been awarded and completion is set for September, 2009.

It is no exaggeration to call the one block development huge or to claim, as Sashaw did that it is changing the face of the city. For one thing one of the four buildings going up on the site is 400 feet tall. It is seven feet taller than the city would normally allow in that area and will make a noticeable change to the Vancouver skyline. And, yes, that skyline will include the historic “W” sign that used to stand atop the department store.

More than one million square feet of buildable area are involved in the total project. Virtually the entire Woodward’s store has been demolished to make way for the new construction. There will be a 42-storey residential tower and a 32-storey residential tower. At ground level will be retail space such as a TD Bank and a London Drugs.

One of the towers is described by Henriquez as the “most mixed use tower in North America”. In it will be the development’s supermarket along with federal offices, civic office, seven levels of non-market housing, an outdoor play area and market condos.

The two remaining buildings are smaller. One retains the facade of the original 1903 store. The smaller buildings include retail space, community facilities, daycare facilities a new Simon Fraser University Centre for the Contemporary Arts along with non-market housing.

In addition to the buildings the project embraces a wide array of open spaces including a giant atrium which Henriquez describes as a “living room” for the neighbourhood. The Downtown Eastside, he points out, does not have the same type of community centre facilities other parts of the city enjoy. This, he says, should help make up for that shortage.

What about the market condos? Will people be willing to take a chance on the neighbourhood and hand over hundreds of thousands of dollars to live there? Apparently so. When the units went on sale last spring all were sold within five hours for prices ranging from $250,000 to $600,000 long before a single nail had even been driven.

Gregory Henriquez is uniquely suited to the Woodward’s project. He has long had an interest in the neighbourhood and has designed several buildings on the Eastside including the Lore Krill Housing Co-operative. He is now working on a redesign for an old B.C. Electric Building in the same area. It, too, will be a mixed use housing development.

In 2004 Gregory Henriquez was awarded the Governor General’s Medal for Architecture.

Last year Blue Imprint publishers of Vancouver produced an impressive four-colour book covering his work. It is called “Toward an Ethical Architecture” and is available through Amazon.com.

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