Seismic upgrade and renovations proposed for Beach Avenue rental tower in the West End

Jun 27 2019, 4:51 am

An ageing rental tower on the English Bay waterfront in downtown Vancouver’s West End neighbourhood could see a complete redesign that brings the building up to modern codes and improves living spaces.

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Stuart Howard Architects has submitted a development application to conduct an overhaul of 2001 Beach Avenue — a 120-ft-tall, 11-storey building with 38 homes completed in 1960.

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Existing condition of 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

Existing condition:

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Existing condition of 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

Proposed condition:

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Artistic rendering 0f 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Stuart Howard Architects)

An exterior structural exoskeleton will be added to the building’s southeast and northeast corners to improve the building’s overall seismic resiliency.

The blank concrete facade will also be improved by new glass cladding and vertical living wall planting screens that improve the building’s aesthetic, allowing more natural light to pour into the residential interiors.

The facade will also receive new punctuation with the installation of new steel balconies for the units.

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Artistic rendering 0f 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Stuart Howard Architects)

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Artistic rendering 0f 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Stuart Howard Architects)

“The design of the exoskeleton was treated as an opportunity to referentially enhance the neighbourhood both in regards to proximities and history. The building’s juxtaposition to English Bay is expressed through the form of the structural reinforcement,” reads the application.

“Our approach to this project has been to respect the neighbourhood character while modernizing the exterior. Modern cladding materials and practices are paired with the extant building massing and building setbacks to achieve a harmonious union.”

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Artistic rendering 0f 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Stuart Howard Architects)

2001 Beach Avenue Vancouver

Artistic rendering 0f 2001 Beach Avenue, Vancouver. (Stuart Howard Architects)

Interior overhauls include alterations to floor layouts to allow for a modernization of the elevator system, the consolidation of four penthouse level units to create a single large two-level penthouse unit, and new ground-level interior and exterior amenity spaces.

Three additional levels of underground parking will be created to provide a total of 55 vehicle parkings stalls controlled by an automated parking system.

According to the latest assessed value by BC Assessment, as of July 2018, the property has a total value of $23.797 million, with $14.525 million from land value and $9.272 million from building value.

The assessed building value dropped by nearly $2 million, compared to the assessment conducted in July 2017.

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Kenneth ChanKenneth Chan

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