Here’s a plug for a terrific blog: And So It Goes… with some delightful before and after shots of Vancouver. Like this one:
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That’s a classic Herzog at the top, taken in 1959. The bottom one, practically yesterday.
Change the cars and the trolley, the width of the sidewalks and a few of the neon signs and fixtures – and the two are almost identical. Over a half century of change, yet hardly any. Even the wires for the trolleys are there.
The myth of Vancouver as a city that demolishes its past is largely just that. There’s a remarkable legacy left of the first buildings ever built on the raw ground, from the white-brick hotels on Granville to the ranchers of Oakridge. Yes, we lost some of the really special artifacts of our past, like the Birks Building at the corner of Granville and Georgia. But so much has stayed the same that any newcomer can, with eyes open, understand our complete architectural progress simply by walking the streets.
In the rain. Some things are eternal.
Robson was a one way street? Back then, it connected to the Connaught (Cambie) Bridge, but was there a one way couplet system in place (like todays Smithe & Nelson)?
It also looks like the one way sign is lighted.
Also, the Empire Theatres complex on the right (formerly the Cineplex-Odean Granville 7) is apparently slated to be concverted to retail space. That’s 3 storefronts that would probably be a bit more active during the day than they presently are. Maybe even a couple more vertical marquee signs(?)
That top picture is great – I love all those neon signs! It’s a shame more of them weren’t kept up.
You’re right, when you say that Vancouver doesn’t necessarily demolish its past, if you’re talking about commercial buildings, but wrong about houses. Usable houses demolished for new houses, without any change of use and often housing fewer people, is still as big an issue (environmentally and historically) as it was 25 years ago.