Triangle West is Coal Harbour Slopes – the blocks above farthest West Hastings Street, from Thurlow to the pointy end, where Pender and Georgia meet. As an emerging neighbourhood, just starting to fill up, it’s at the stage where Yaletown and Concord Pacific Place were about 1998.
Among all the downtown neighbourhoods, its towers are the tallest, the thinnest, the sleekest:
It treats its lanes with respect:
Some of the street frontages, on the other hand, are mediocre:
But thanks to some remaining heritage apartment houses and mature trees, some parts seem like an extension of the West End:
Triangle West still feels rather like a stage set, and rather sterile. As the new buildings are occupied, the neighbourhood will take on a character, though still largely indistinguishable from Coal Harbour. But since each block makes a big difference in a dense city, the locals will appreciate the nuances.
I personally find that neighbourhood, at least at this point, rather bland. There are a few good nooks and crannies that make for a good game of manhunt, but there’s nothing particularly special about the architecture, nothing unique aside from those heritage remnants.
On the other hand, have you seen this? http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=9b374716-2584-414c-9f85-137c7260d7f5
I think we need to start demanding this type of effort from the private sector and not just from government.
Don’t think it’s fair to judge the area quite yet, as there are at least 7 towers I can name of the top of my head that are still in the construction phase. Once they complete around 2011 I’d give the area a couple of years to find it’s stride and we should be able to determine around 2013ish if the area is in fact a failure. I think it’ll come around nicely.
In case anyone is wondering what the 7 towers in the immediate area are.
1) Sapphire
2) Ritz (not the Ritz-Carleton)
3) Flatrion
4) West Pender (2 towers)
5) New Coast Hotel
5) Harbour Green 2
6) Harbour Green 3 (probably the last tower in that area)
On top of that the Bute Street retail strip isn’t nearly built out (and it may take years for the bases of the East Asiatic House or Uniglobe Building to be redeveloped).
Shoppers Drug Mart is leasing a big commercial retail unit at The Ritz, but there is also another huge commercial retail unit in the Ritz’s podium (unlikely to be a London Drugs now with Shoppers there). Originally, I would have expected the London Drugs / IGA Marketplace combination to lease the two spaces. Maybe the competition from Urban Fare was too risky (or the current area population won’t support it?)? If another supermarket moves in, it would probably have to cater to a different market than the Urban Fare. Nestor’s is another Pattison company, so it’s probably not a contender. Choices/Whole Foods would go head to head with Urban Fare. IGA would be more middle of the road.
One of the main problems with the area is that it’s on the north side of downtown – so despite the quintessential Vancouver views (of the North Shore mountains), the area is in almost continual shadows (versus the Concord lands).