https://vancouver.citynews.ca/2026/06/10/construction-underway-on-second-burnaby-tt-after-permit-hell "Honestly, Vancouver is a very difficult place to build in."
Of course he means the Greater_Vancouver Region.
Showing posts sorted by date for query Burnaby. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query Burnaby. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Wednesday, June 10, 2026
Tuesday, June 9, 2026
Tuesday, June 2, 2026
Burnaby 2050 sets the city’s long game
https://www.straight.com/burnaby/burnaby-2050-sets-citys-long-game
While Burnaby is smaller in area and population compared to Vancouver, its a lot bigger than tiny NW.
Unlike Vancouver, Burnaby can build taller than Vancouver, because it isn't bound by Vancouver's imposed height restrictions.
https://www.straight.com/burnaby/what-burnaby-builds-next-depends-on-urban-design-getting-it-right
Unlike Vancouver, Burnaby has more than just a few kilometers of freeway going through it. The highway right of way was acquired when Burnaby was still mostly undeveloped. That's the same case for Richmond, Delta, Surrey, Langley & Abbotsford.
https://www.straight.com/burnaby/in-defense-of-burnaby-middle-child-of-metro-vancouver
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Columbia_Highway_1#Lower_Mainland_section There should eventually be an elevated, high-capacity interregional commuter train along BC_Highway_1. However, BC takes a very slow approach towards dealing with congestion and mobility.
Sunday, May 31, 2026
Vancouver 450 ft and Fahrenheit 451
Was a 450 foot height restriction just a chance, or was it intentionally made to be very close to 451 Fahrenheit? Honolulu is still stuck around that maximum, while San Diego is at 500 feet.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_451 (1953) By the 1950s, so many things were already banned, watered down or scaled back in provincial Vancouver. Generations later, there was the No Fun Vancouver mind virus that further tried to cancel out things in such a small city with so much red tape and other ridiculous obstacles.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_451_(1966_film) By the mid and late1960s, the city made sure that its first office tower to have more than 29 floors wouldn't be until the 1970s. Its highly doubtful that Vancouver will have an office tower over 40 stories by 2030. However, Burnaby and Surrey could, because they aren't under the extreme restrictions of Vancouver.
It wasn't until 1973 when Vancouver allowed its first building to be taller than the Los_Angeles_City_Hall. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_City_Hall
The Scotia_Tower (stump) is a good reference point to visualize the small scale of backwater Vancouver, as its about the same height as the Los_Angeles_City_Hall at 453'.
https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/scotia-tower/4396 453'
https://skyscraperpage.com/b65/vancouver/the-scotia-tower 452'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fahrenheit_451_(2018_film) By 2018 it was quite apparent that Vancouver was in the process of allowing for more buildings over 450 feet. However, nothing has been permitted to reach 700 feet, so far. A tower over 1000 feet would help to water down its provincial mindset.
_(cropped).jpg/3840px-Vancouver_panorama_(49988799796)_(cropped).jpg)
SF, Sydney & Auckland are just as scenic as Vancouver & warmer throughout the year. They all have taller building than what Vancouver currently permits. Seattle is just as scenic as Vancouver, but its allowed to function like a proper big city, because it doesn't have the imposed restrictions like Vancouver has. While its cold, damp & depressing like Vancouver during the fall & winter, Seattle usually gets noticeably hotter summers than Vancouver, BC. The tallest building in Seattle is the 76 story B of A office tower.
Everything is so small or scaled back in Vancouver. Even the Greater Vancouver mountains aren't allowed to be as tall as the ones in L.A. While the San_Francisco_Bay & Port_Phillip Bay by Melbourne are big next to their cities, English_Bay in_Vancouver is so much smaller. Its even smaller than Elliott_Bay by Seattle.
Vancouver really needs to have bus and HOV bridges built next to its mostly narrow & congested bridges. Only a 5 car Skytrain is the max on the first 2 lines and ultimately, just a 2.5 car joke of a train on the YVR-Canada Line.
Selective+Door+Operation can allow a short train to have an extra car at each end, despite a shorter platform.
.jpg/3840px-Vancouver_sunset_(J).jpg)
Australia like the USA, has some big & tall cities on the Pacific Rim. However, Vancouver symbolically kept watering down its size, because that's how you demonstrate a reluctance towards proper urban planning & growth.
Oddly enough, the small scale Vancouver mentality & agenda wasn't adopted by most cities around the world. Officially, there is no Vancouver Mind Virus (VMV), but somehow it keeps manifesting, just like the BCMV.
Despite its size, Canada has less than 1% of the worlds population.
Friday, May 22, 2026
Telus Boot Tower or just another office stump in BC?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJqr-6j3yww This would be an impressive building if it was in Victoria, Kelowna, Kamloops or Prince George. Even in Lethbridge and Spokane, but not in Calgary or Seattle. That's because they been allowed to be proper big cities.
Its not even 25 stories, just like the Post office complex, but if it had at least 50 floors it would have been quite an impressive office tower for BC.
https://www.reddit.com/r/vancouver/comments/1jav5f9/burnaby_approves_bc_tel_boot_redevelopment_5/ Acording to this rendering, the main part of the Telus boot stump will still be around. Its only a smaller part of its base that will face demolition.
https://www.jarmanrealestate.com/burnaby-telus-boot-redevelopment/
Burnaby or Surrey will likely have the first office tower in BC that's at least 45 stories in the next few years. Vancouver won't permit any office tower to have a 40th floor.
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/3696-kingsway-vancouver-telus-rental-housing-tower Across the street, not a 50, only a 25 story residential stump.
Boundary Road should have already had an express bus service and eventually a rapid bus route connecting Burnaby to North Vancouver and Richmond. Unfortunately, Vancouver still doesn't seem interested in having a B.Rd. bridge to NV and Richmond, even if it would improve on regional transportation.
Friday, May 15, 2026
Concord | Metrotown in Burnaby
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbFE98Esk9k
Burnaby isn't under the strict restrictions of Vancouver, so its able to have taller buildings and even a freeway.
Monday, May 4, 2026
Metrotown in Burnaby, BC
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zmz9hH3rI6U
Burnaby or Surrey will likely be the first places in BC where office towers will be over 45 stories. That's because stubborn Vancouver won't even permit any office tower to have a 40th floor.
Thursday, April 30, 2026
A new Vancouver tower proposal just got even taller
"A proposed development at 601 Beach Crescent in Vancouver has grown to 67 storeys and 198 metres tall." https://www.facebook.com/604Now/posts/massive-new-vancouver-tower-just-got-even-taller-%EF%B8%8Fa-proposed-development-at-601-/1648577887273721/
However, no office tower in Vancouver still has no 40th floor. Burnaby or Surrey will be the first cities in backwards BC to allow an office tower to have more than 40 stories.
Burnaby's future 863-ft-tall tower in Lougheed to feature a hotel with a sky-high restaurant and bar destination on the 86th floor
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/pinnacle-lougheed-burnaby-hotel-restaurant-revised-concept
And Vancouver can't stop it, because Vancouver's restrictions have no control over Burnaby.
Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Monday, April 27, 2026
Stumpy and small Vancouver, BC
https://www.reddit.com/r/skyscrapers/comments/1sw8tad/vancouver_bc
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Vancouver
Looking east with the taller buildings in Burnaby. While Vancouver allowed its first 30 story office tower in the early 1970s, no office tower in Vancouver has been allowed to have a 40th floor.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Vancouver#Cityscape
However, since Burnaby and Surrey aren't under any Vancouver type restrictions, that's where the first 40 story office tower in BC will be.
The Harbour_Centre was a joke right from the start. Even with the flag pole, the Harbour_Centre had to be shorter than the Space_Needle and the Calgary_Tower. It especially had to be less than a 3rd of the height of the CN_Tower.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbour_Centre#Height "the building is listed as being 28 stories tall, though the tower/observation deck/revolving restaurant extends above the 28 office floors (claimed to be on the 33rd and 35th floors)."
https://harbourcentre.com/office-leasing/ The office floors only go up to 28 stories.
https://skyscraperpage.com/b60/vancouver/harbour-centre
https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?searchID=112623234&page=3
https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=1
So far, every attempt to have real tall buildings in Vancouver kept being stumped by the cities height restrictions.
https://skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?cityID=1&status=15
Thursday, April 16, 2026
Highway 1 pedestrian bridge linking Burnaby Lake and Deer Lake trails
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/burnaby-lake-overpass-highway-1-pedestrian-cyclist-bridge Of course Burnaby would have such a fine bridge before backwards Vancouver would.
Sunday, April 5, 2026
40 years after Expo 86
https://bcanuntoldhistory.knowledge.ca/1980/expo-86
Unlike Brisbane, Vancouver doubled down on its various restrictions. Ideally, any tall building in Vancouver had to be shorter than what Brisbane allows. The bridges kepet narrow and unduplicated than what Brisbane allows. The trains are to be shorter than what Brisbane and most cities allow.
It was almost as if since Vancouver couldn't build a wall around the city to keep people out, a strong level of symbolism was imposed instead. This urban symbolism was all about keeping things small & backwards whenever possible.
Burnaby, Coquitlam and Surrey have all started the process to allow for taller buildings than what Vancouver permits. That's because they are bound by the same restrictions that Vancouver imposes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)