[mr.x]

ABERDEEN CENTRE MALL EXPANSION: NEW HOTEL ADJOINED TO CANADA LINE ABERDEEN STATION

Fairchild Developments Ltd. has applied to the City of Richmond for the rezoning and construction of 4000 No.3 Road for:

- 8-storey addition
- approximate 150-room hotel
- 212-additional parking spaces (total after expansion, 1590 spaces)
- integration of the new development with the Canada Line's Aberdeen Station (concourse level entry and platform level entry)

City report: http://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/050807_pcitem417179.pdf



From the Bing Thom website - Aberdeen Station Lands.

Located at the intersection of No 3 and Cambie Roads in Richmond, the Aberdeen Station Lands is the third phase of the Aberdeen Centre project. This new construction is an extension of the original Aberdeen Centre and will also connect to the Aberdeen Residences, which are currently under construction.

Following the original Aberdeen Centre concept of creating a retail/entertainment centre to engage street activity, the program for the new development consists of three retail and five hotel levels. This project also introduces a new public art component entitled "Nexus". A transparent glazed wall, Nexus is both the receptor and transmitter of information weaving through the inside and outside spaces. Ephemeral in nature, Nexus mediates between the box-like interior and the fluid urban exterior, bringing life and activity into the city streets.

The design for the Aberdeen Station Lands emphasizes the connections to the Canada Line transit station plaza and the existing Aberdeen Centre. An organically shaped multi-level atrium opens up to the plaza and diagonally connects the plaza with the Aberdeen Centre parkade. The station plaza responds to the organic shape of the west facade and is animated by the atrium which extends vertically to connect with the Hotel Lobby.

At the NW corner, the building cantilevers partially cover the Canada Line guideway to acknowledge the curve of the guideway and the connection with the Station.This tiered series of cantilevers provide a landmark entry to the No 3 Road commercial district and is also a gesture towards the nearby Fraser River.

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179434693.9524.jpg

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179433221.7958.jpg

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179433400.4126.jpg

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179433468.2317.jpg

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179433522.0472.jpg

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179433543.6809.jpg

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179433563.7772.jpg

http://web.bcnewsgroup.com/portals/uploads/richmond/.DIR288/3_Road___Aberdeen_Project3_070510.jpg




http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/6498/39ev3.jpg

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/7599/40iu0.jpg

http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/6915/41lq0.jpg

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/9619/42yu2.jpg

http://img527.imageshack.us/img527/6879/43to1.jpg

[giallo]

I forgot about this project.
Great interaction between the building and the skytrain.

[deasine]

^Could have been better if the station integrated with the overall design of the mall.

[danby]

^^^

Love the colours!

[bils]

site prep/loading has begun

[giallo]

Great news. I was starting to worry about projects like this after that plane crashed in to a Richmond mid-rise.

[mr.x]

i'm quite surprised how fast it took Richmond city council to approve this project. Vancouver city council on the other hand....with nearly everything it's asked to do, it's like watching a bucket of water turn into a block of ice.

[officedweller]

Just noticed:

1) There's underground parking!

2) Fairchild is negotiating with Canada Line Co to have the mall's facade treatment extended to the station house:
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/1376/77236719ex1.jpg

[bils]

[QUOTE=officedweller;3139148]
1) There's underground parking!

where did you get that info from?

btw, site loading looks to be nearly complete....

[officedweller]

One of the elevations posted above shows it - there's one level just below grade.

[deasine]

Hey yeah there is! I think the exisitng Aberdeen Centre (well closed off now) has a very small section that is below grade.

I wish Aberdeen Centre expansion can just build the station house... does anyone know which architect company is building the Aberdeen/Lansdowne Stations?

[mr.x]

Hey yeah there is! I think the exisitng Aberdeen Centre (well closed off now) has a very small section that is below grade.

I wish Aberdeen Centre expansion can just build the station house... does anyone know which architect company is building the Aberdeen/Lansdowne Stations?

Busby Perkins + Will is building Aberdeen, Lansdowne, and Brighouse (sounds like a jail house doesn't it?). They designed the Brentwood and Gilmore Stations on the M-Line.

[mr.x]

posted by jlousa:

the Aberdeen expansion is in the works, for some reason I pictured it as taller the 8 stories, anyways here are the details.

Richmond, Greater Vancouver RD BC WORKING DRAWINGS
Aberdeen Station Lands, 4000 No 3 Rd, V6X 2C1
$30,000,000 est
Start: April, 2008 Complete: April, 2009
Note: Currently in Working Drawings. Site preload is underway. The Owner is negotiating with several General Contractors. The General Contractor award will be announced March/08. Construction start is scheduled for Spring/08. Further update March/08.
Project: cast-in-place concrete structural frame, steam/hot water heating system, proposed addn to an existing hotel/retail centre. Scope of the work includes an eight storey addn to the existing Aberdeen Centre. Three storeys will be retail, five storeys will be hotel space containing 150 rooms.
Scope: 22,374 m²; 8 storeys; 150 units

---
only $30 million? considering the magnitude of this project, which includes a 150-room hotel, i would have thought it'd be much more.

[bils]

i have a hard time believing construction will only take one year.... considering the ages it's taken to build the aberdeen residences.... and it's still not complete

[mr.x]

i have a hard time believing construction will only take one year.... considering the ages it's taken to build the aberdeen residences.... and it's still not complete

Chinese efficiency.:D

[squintstopher]

Wow, looks like something straight out of Tokyo.

[mr.x]

Never before seen rendering:
http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/canadaline/01_l.jpg

[officedweller]

Thanks. That rendering doesn't show a bridge from the northbound platform to the mall - but it could be overhead of the viewpoint.

[bils]

site prep/loading is being removed

[deasine]

Construction is starting =D

http://img90.imageshack.us/img90/6809/cl041uf8.png

[giallo]

Awesome! :tup:

[mr.x]

Either that or they've struck oil.


Thanks for the update!

[deasine]

Slightly different rendering - something more realistic/I like more. But where's the hotel?
http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/canadaline/02_l.jpg

[mr.x]

^ that's odd, the hotel is nowhere to be seen....i hope it's not canceled.

[officedweller]

Interesting...

[mr.x]

According to a credible member at Skyscrapercity, the hotel is rumoured to be canceled and only the mall expansion will go ahead. But to me, it seems that the hotel might be phased in - deasine's new rendering shows a very bulky roof for the expansion that might infer a hotel in the future.

[officedweller]

Hopefully they'll build the supports for a Phase 2 hotel expansion.

[hollywoodnorth]

cheesey news

[bils]

According to a credible member at Skyscrapercity, the hotel is rumoured to be canceled and only the mall expansion will go ahead. But to me, it seems that the hotel might be phased in - deasine's new rendering shows a very bulky roof for the expansion that might infer a hotel in the future.

the richmond newspaper reported two weeks ago that the hotels at aberdeen and at the casino have been shelved due to economic conditions. the westin hotel - part of wall centre richmond - will go ahead. the crane at the aberdeen expansion site was removed about 1-2 months ago. sorry didn't have time to post the article when it was published.

[mr.x]

^ River Rock's hotel expansion has been canceled? That's quite dissapointing. Well, I do hope that they've left an allowance for a future expansion at both River Rock and Aberdeen.

[bils]

here's the article:

http://www.bclocalnews.com/richmond_southdelta/richmondreview/news/36471589.html

Westin to make 2010 debut

By Matthew Hoekstra - Richmond Review

Published: December 19, 2008 5:00 PM

Two local hotel projects have been shelved in the wake of the global economic crunch, but one luxury development is still slated to open in time for the 2010 Olympics.

Fairchild Developments Ltd. has scrapped plans for an eight-storey 150-room hotel at Aberdeen Centre, and Great Canadian Gaming Corporation has delayed its plans for a third hotel tower at River Rock Casino Resort.

Wall Centre Richmond, however, is moving full speed ahead with its project at the corner of Corvette and Sea Island ways in north Richmond, a mix of condominiums and hotel rooms.

Bruno Wall, president of Wall Financial Corporation, said the Westin Wall Centre, Vancouver Airport hotel will open in January 2010, while the residences—which sold out in 49 days—will be ready about six months later. The firm recently asked the city for a slight expansion of its hotel plans—by nine rooms—to build 231 apartments and 185 hotel rooms in three high-rise towers.

Wall said he’s confident the project will be a success.

“We’re long-term investors, and we’ve been active in both the hotel and rental apartment markets for the past 30 years, so we take a long view, and we think we’ve got a fantastic location, and we’re building a terrific product.”

Although 2009 is expected to be a weak year in hotel bookings, the Winter Olympics is set to change that beyond two weeks of medal competition.

“With the kind of advertising campaign the 2010 Olympics gives Greater Vancouver, Whistler and British Columbia, I think the prospects for hospitality are fantastic,” said Wall.

Plans for a hotel at Aberdeen Centre were dropped earlier this year due to the “supply of hotels” and high construction costs, said Danny Leung of Fairchild Developments.

It would have been built atop a 200,000-square-foot expansion of the Asian-themed No. 3 Road mall, an expansion that’s still going ahead and will be complete after 2010.

Meanwhile, River Rock’s hotel expansion has been put on hold. Plans call for a five-storey 191-room hotel tower above a new parking garage to be shared by Canada Line riders and casino patrons.

The $90-million parkade will be built with hotel footings to accommodate a building in the future, along with 21,000 square feet of commercial space.

Great Canadian had anticipated the hotel to open as soon as late 2009, but now its future is unclear.

Spokesman Howard Blank said the hotel has been delayed by a year due to the ailing global financial market.

“We’re taking proactive steps instead of reactive, we’re not putting all of our development plans on the go as we previously had. We’re just staggering them,” he said.

Great Canadian will instead concentrate on River Rock’s $51-million expansion now underway that includes upgraded VIP facilities, new food and beverage offerings and an atrium renovation. The work is scheduled to be complete by 2010.

Ross McLeod, Great Canadian’s chairman and chief executive officer, made the announcement in November despite the four-diamond River Rock leading the company in growth.

“Given the uncertain Canadian and global economic climates, it is critical that Great Canadian be as prudent as possible in its capital investments,” he said in a statement.

University of B.C. professor Tsur Somerville said the economic crisis is certainly having an impact on developers, particularly due to the banks’ reluctance to loan money.

“The biggest piece of it is the freezing up of credit markets. So their ability to get financing is really compromised right now.”

Developers of hotels are especially vulnerable, he said, since there are no pre-sales and hotels are a cyclical industry.

“Business travel and vacation travel are prime things to cut during downturns. It’s a market where the demand is much less certain.”

Real estate markets that drive development won’t improve until the economy is doing better, or until people believe it’s doing better, Somerville noted.

•••

Richmond’s next hotel

•The Westin Wall Centre, Vancouver Airport

•Opens Jan. 1, 2010 at 3099 Corvette Way

•185 rooms, 11-storeys

•7,000 square feet of meeting space; restaurant; lounge

•Will be linked to two 16-storey residential towers

[mr.x]

Quite dissapointing....least they could have done was to accommodate a future hotel expansion on top of the mall.

[CLC]

I even thought the whole Aberdeen Centre Expansion is indefinitely cancelled. Good to hear the mall expansion still intended to complete in 2010.

I think chance is that the hotel won't be built ever. The article mentions that hotel is in good supply already. The olympics only brings extra tourists in for maximum 3 weeks, economy factor is what really weighted. Beijing hotel is now 60% empty (especially among those new, luxury hotels)!

[officedweller]

If the proposed Richmond convention centre is moved to a location closer to No. 3 Rd. (i.e. near Alderbridge), it would make a hotel along that section of No. 3 Rd. more viable.

[metroXpress]

No updates on this project? It seems like nothing is going on right now on the site!

[osirisboy]

^^really I thought I recently saw some pics of construction of activity on there.

[metroXpress]

^ No!

Here's a pic from the Canada Line Blog Spot, you can see that there's nothing
going on right now.

http://www.seataf.com/blogs/canadaline/2009-02-19/images/KICX9844.jpg

http://canadalinephotos.blogspot.com/search/label/Aberdeen

[bils]

i pass by this site on a regular basis and i haven't noticed a single worker on site for at least the past month. probably longer. not lookin' good boys.

[metroXpress]

^ I have to agree with you. If they are planning to start...they would have, at least, the fences up.

[mr.x]

As most of you already know, the hotel has been canceled and the project was postponed....here's the new design by Bing Thom, posted at SSC by amac88:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2677/4104436261_795a9f0bc6_o.jpg

[vansky]

seems nice, but too short.

[Metro-One]

Are they still keeping the cool lighting/wrapping effect they had before beside the train guideway?

Can't tell very much from the black and white photo.

But it does not look like it. To bad, the original design integrated itself with the guideway in a very interesting, fun manor. all we are getting now looks like a carbon copy boring design. I would rather they not build anything at all instead of a cheep lame version.

I wish they were going with this design:

http://www.bingthomarchitects.com/admin/uploadedImages/1179434693.9524.jpg


Or at least with this design:

http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/canadaline/02_l.jpg


This new design looks like something you would find in any office park in the world:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2677/4104436261_795a9f0bc6_o.jpg

So boring! A high school student could have drawn that up in half an hour.

[vansky]

very minimalist, very much like what other things look like in richmond.

bing thom probably took a week rather than a day as it would take for a high school student. it looks and feels like a multi-level parking lot.

[deasine]

Keep in mind, this is an application rendering to the City and not a rendering to attract the masses. You can't just base everything on a photocopied black and white photo.

And it's better than nothing there, as it is now.

[officedweller]

As most of you already know, the hotel has been canceled and the project was postponed....here's the new design by Bing Thom, posted at SSC by amac88:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2677/4104436261_795a9f0bc6_o.jpg

Oh well.
The part that virtually cantilevered over the guideway is gone - this design seems to be more consistent with the rest of the mall complex.

Is this taller than the previous retail mall/podium? i.e. 3 levels of retail mall and three levels of (office, hotel(?)) above?
Looks like it's the same height as the condo next door.
Seems unlikely to me that the 3 levels above would be more mall space.

[metroXpress]

^ It does look like the same height as the current condo. I don't like the new one as much. Remember that this is close to No. 3 Rd and we want to leave some more public space~

http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/canadaline/02_l.jpg

This is much better, with the fancy lights. A true plaza that connects the mall and the transit.

[officedweller]

Found the report (incl. floorplans):
http://www.richmond.ca/__shared/assets/Fairchild_DPP_11250924397.pdf

First floor will have streetfront retail, retail half a flight of stairs up and parking below (or so it seems)
2nd and 3rd floors are retail (with an atrium at the main entrance)
The atrium will have clear glazing so you can see in. Other parts of the facade glass will be reflective to mirror the trains.
The 4th floor will have some office (NW corner) and rooftop parking.
5th and 6th floors will be office space (5th and 6th floors are like a pod on top of the 4 floors below)
There will still be a skybridge from the northbound platform to the mall.

http://img685.imageshack.us/img685/7003/67456493.png (http://img685.imageshack.us/i/67456493.png/)

[squeezied]

There will still be a skybridge from the northbound platform to the mall.

that would be nice. too bad the same can't be done for the southbound platform. i guess this might mean another line of faregates when they do get installed?

[officedweller]

i guess this might mean another line of faregates when they do get installed?

Yeah, or converted to exit only like some in Toronto.

[Vancity]

Wow. That rendering looks lame compared to the original. Why such a stripped down version of the original design? Looks like a really boring building. Is this design confirmed? I guess it's better than the empty lot that's sitting there right now. Does anyone know why the original design was approved by the city, or was it, and the developer didn't want to go through with it because of economical reasons?

[mr.x]

I'm pretty sure it had to do with cutting costs...if it weren't for the recession, the first design and hotel would all have been built by now.

[Vancity]

I'm pretty sure it had to do with cutting costs...if it weren't for the recession, the first design and hotel would all have been built by now.

That's quite unfortunate. The original designs were fantastic. Would have brightened the area, for sure :]

[officedweller]

Like someone else mentioned, it's a B&W photocopy - you can probably safely assume that the curtain wall will be consistent with the rest of Aberdeen Centre. i.e. if you look at a B&W copy of the existing mall it may not look interesting either.

[Zassk]

From what I can gather from trawling the web, this expansion will make Aberdeen a larger mall than Oakridge or Lansdowne.


Aberdeen Mall: 617,000 sq ft after expansion
Richmond Centre: 700,000 sq ft, 12.2 million visitors annually
Oakridge Mall: 575,000 sq ft, 8.7 million visitors annually
Lansdowne Mall: 600,000 sq ft (visitors n/a)


Some other metro malls for context:


Willowbrook Mall: 640,000 sq ft
Lougheed Town Centre: 649,000 sq ft
Coquitlam Centre: 913,665 sq ft
Guildford Mall: 985,000 sq ft, 11.1 million visitors annually
Park Royal: 990,000 sq ft
Pacific Centre: 1,390,000 sq ft, 14.1 million visitors annually
Metropolis at Metrotown: 1,700,000 sq ft, 25 million visitors annually


Source for visitor numbers (http://www.clearchanneloutdoor.ca/pdfs/mallmedia/2009%20Flash%20Sheets/_BRITISHCOLUMBIAMALLS_SalesSheets_Jan2009.pdf) (claims to be as of 2009)

[CLC]

^ does these number includes the parking spaces?

I think while Aberdeen Centre is still quiet, no doubt its foot traffic has been improving gradually since Canada Line opened.

Reading the pdf, the expansion does not really significantly add many square feet of shopping space, seems to me that it is more for linking the station directly to the mall.

[CBeats]

I'm surprised Pacific Centre is that big. I always thought that Park Royal was the biggest mall other than Metrotown.

[deasine]

I think while Aberdeen Centre is still quiet, no doubt its foot traffic has been improving gradually since Canada Line opened.

Some people finally realize the amount of attractions exist in Metro Vancouver after the opening of a rapid transit line. I know many people who didn't know about Aberdeen Centre (or really Richmond for that matter) until recently, when the Canada Line opened.

[Zassk]

I'm surprised Pacific Centre is that big. I always thought that Park Royal was the biggest mall other than Metrotown.

I'm pretty sure that Pacific Centre's size is due to it having the two largest anchor department stores in Metro attached to it.

The numbers are "retail space".

Aberdeen (even before expansion) certainly has a boatload of potential. From what I've seen, the Canada Line has really helped it a lot. Daiso is incredibly busy now. The food court is just badly located, as new visitors can't even see that it exists, but hopefully it is getting more customers and will improve as well. The new NCIX store that just opened on the ground floor should add a lot of affluent customer traffic as well.

[LeftCoaster]

NCIX = amazing

[mr.x]

NCIX??? is that a new tv show?


randomness.

[nova9]

NCIX??? is that a new tv show?


randomness.

it's only the BEST computer store in the city!!!

The original is on west broadway after granville.

[NewfBC]

it's only the BEST computer store in the city!!!

The original is on west broadway after granville.

No, it's not. The original NCIX location is in Burnaby.

Ron.

[nova9]

No, it's not. The original NCIX location is in Burnaby.

Ron.

oh what? my bad. i mean, i should have known considering it's in a new building. duh.

[CLC]

haven't visited aberdeen centre since NCIX opened, from the floor plan they have a huge store. Do their business really that good to afford the rent (compared to Capstan way plaza)?
http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/directory_stores_details.php?id=205

[SpongeG]

i've found aberdeen to be quite busy - well if you judge it by the parking - its tought to get a good spot

[vansky]

aberdeen could've been bigger and better. After you've seen stuff like the times square in hong kong, or some bigger malls in shanghai, only the pacific center lives up to standard. size doesn't mean everything, japanese got some small and classic stuff. metrotown is like the best out of everything i've seen in canada. too bad erickson didn't design malls, and james cheng's all about condos. bin thom...

[NewfBC]

oh what? my bad. i mean, i should have known considering it's in a new building. duh.


Well yeah.. but!... the Broadway location isn't the original Broadway location either! It moved into that space a couple years ago. :)

Ron.

[Vancity]

i've found aberdeen to be quite busy - well if you judge it by the parking - its tought to get a good spot

Yeah. During Sundays, it's the worse. It's almost impossible getting a spot at Aberdeen on a Sunday afternoon. It seems like everyone is there. But it's a nice place to be when there's a lot of people there. The food court location is a bit strange, I'm not quite sure what the reasoning is for building it on the third floor, but nonetheless, the food court will attract people. Aberdeen has a lot of potential. I remember the old Aberdeen, when they had the bowling alley. I used to go there. Too bad they didn't decide to incorporate a movie theatre at Aberdeen, if they had, I think it would have done pretty well - maybe one day - for future expansion? ;)

[BCPhil]

haven't visited aberdeen centre since NCIX opened, from the floor plan they have a huge store. Do their business really that good to afford the rent (compared to Capstan way plaza)?
http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/directory_stores_details.php?id=205

NCIX is huge. It's the only store I've ever been in where you need to take a number to get service because there are usually so many customers in the place there is no other way to guarantee they all get served. And everyone in there is buying something, very few lookieloos. I buy all my computer supplies there and every time I'm in the place it's packed like it's Boxing Day at Future Shop. I've even been into the one in Langley in the early afternoon and there are there are still enough customers you need to take a number.

And they do a lot of web business too. And their website is one of the only sites that have honest and accurate customer reviews of products, and a very active web community.

Although I am surprised they moved into Aberdeen. I imagine they were making a very pretty penny at their other place, but I suppose bringing their store closer to foot traffic will bring in more people. It helped quite a bit on their Broadway location; being across from the Future Shop has only increased the number of people in there.

[Zassk]

There is a parcel of land adjacent to the southwest (currently occupied by a generic asian strip mall) which I'm sure Aberdeen has its eyes on for future expansion. It would be a good location for either an anchor tenant or a cinema.

I guess as the Canada Line's influence grows, more of the neighouring lots around Aberdeen will densify.

[Yume-sama]

We could definitely use more movie theatres. An IMAX screen would be awesome....

[officedweller]

I'm surprised Pacific Centre is that big. I always thought that Park Royal was the biggest mall other than Metrotown.

I think Sears Pacific Centre alone is 600,000 sq ft (over 7 floors).
I doubt The Bay would be included since that not owned by Cadillac Fairview
(i.e. otherwise you'd have to lump Vancouver Centre into the equation since it's also "connected").


NCIX should generate a lot of traffic for the mall - I suspect there's a common demographic at work, too.

A movie theatre would be great, but with the merger of Famous Players and Cineplex a whaile back, there may be few options. Richmond Centre has the Famous Players and then there's Riverport. Cineplex (pre-merger) was going to build a movie complex east of Lansdowne Mall (where a condo now stands) but that fell through and post-merger the Cineplex next to Chapters (@Ackroyd) was closed.
I don't think Cinemark (i.e. Tinseltown) is expanding into Canada any more (Coquitlam plans were cancelled many years ago).
That leaves Alliance Atlantis, Empire Theatres (is there one in Richmond?) and AMC (there's one in Toornto, not sure if they are expanding in Canada much)

[BCPhil]

There is a parcel of land adjacent to the southwest (currently occupied by a generic asian strip mall) which I'm sure Aberdeen has its eyes on for future expansion. It would be a good location for either an anchor tenant or a cinema.

I guess as the Canada Line's influence grows, more of the neighouring lots around Aberdeen will densify.

Haha, well the current Aberdeen mall is second generation itself... replacing a mall built on that site in 1989! They built Aberdeen in 2001, replacing a mall that was less than 12 years old!

With the addition of Canada Line, any "legacy" strip malls near the No 3 road corridor are not long for this world. Same goes for the SFHs to the east of Aberdeen.

WRT a cinema: the plans for the development at Marine Drive station include a cinema. But personally I would like to see a large complex, like a silver city but preferably by a different company, like AMC (it's time that this Cineplex monopoly end), built near Bridgeport station. I would love to see that that part of town, with the Casino become a great night life and entertainment destination outside downtown Vancouver.

[Vancity]

We could definitely use more movie theatres. An IMAX screen would be awesome....

Highly doubt that ever happens. But it would be awesome to have an IMAX screen in Richmond (besides the one in Silvercity Riverport).

[jlousa]

The reason the food court is on the 3rd floor is standard mall operating procedure, there are two rules to successful malls one is called the dumb bell concept, you have two anchors at opposite ends of the mall, people walking between the two create traffic to the remaining stores. The other is you must have a great food court so that people do not leave the mall (Casinos use the same idea). The food court needs to be placed where it's easily accessible but where you need to go thru most of the mall to get to it. Great case in point is Metrotowns new food court.

[Yume-sama]

The reason the food court is on the 3rd floor is standard mall operating procedure, there are two rules to successful malls one is called the dumb bell concept, you have two anchors at opposite ends of the mall, people walking between the two create traffic to the remaining stores. The other is you must have a great food court so that people do not leave the mall (Casinos use the same idea). The food court needs to be placed where it's easily accessible but where you need to go thru most of the mall to get to it. Great case in point is Metrotowns new food court.

:P The biggest offender of this is Yodobashi Akiba in Tokyo, who has a food court on the 8th floor. You could TRY the elevators but they are very slow and limited, so you have to go up 8 escalators with flashy ads and sales people standing at the top of each escalator demonstrating a product with big loud speakers and flashy animations on the TV's behind them!

Grocery stores use the same method. They keep all the things you NEED and should buy on the outer walls. But as you walk around the outside you get distracted by the potato chip aisle :(

[mr.x]

The reason the food court is on the 3rd floor is standard mall operating procedure, there are two rules to successful malls one is called the dumb bell concept, you have two anchors at opposite ends of the mall, people walking between the two create traffic to the remaining stores. The other is you must have a great food court so that people do not leave the mall (Casinos use the same idea). The food court needs to be placed where it's easily accessible but where you need to go thru most of the mall to get to it. Great case in point is Metrotowns new food court.

Yea, that's really true. And the new Metrotown food court has really rejuvenated the east wing. Before it was built, that part was a bit less busier than the west.

[osirisboy]

:P The biggest offender of this is Yodobashi Akiba in Tokyo, who has a food court on the 8th floor. You could TRY the elevators but they are very slow and limited, so you have to go up 8 escalators with flashy ads and sales people standing at the top of each escalator demonstrating a product with big loud speakers and flashy animations on the TV's behind them!
(

ugh that sounds horrible thank god we dont have that kind of crap here!!

[officedweller]

The reason the food court is on the 3rd floor is standard mall operating procedure, there are two rules to successful malls one is called the dumb bell concept, you have two anchors at opposite ends of the mall, people walking between the two create traffic to the remaining stores. The other is you must have a great food court so that people do not leave the mall (Casinos use the same idea). The food court needs to be placed where it's easily accessible but where you need to go thru most of the mall to get to it. Great case in point is Metrotowns new food court.

I wonder how Pacific Centre is doing with its food court in the middle?
I practically never venture down to Holt Renfrew - wonder if traffic has dropped a lot on that end of the mall?

[mr.x]

^

1) The food court is doing really well. In fact, I could argue that the food court is a little on the small side both in terms of number of selections and seating.

2) The Holt Renfrew/Sport Chek side, particularly the basement, is quite dead. I like Holt Renfrew, but at the same time I really do miss the old water fountain atrium that was there....plus all those stores. I can only hope that Sears is redeveloped and a multi-leel mall expansion (plus a smaller Sears) is built.

[officedweller]

Actually I meant whether the mall stores at the north end are doing well - That' basically what I thought wrt the stores next to Holt Renfrew.

[SpongeG]

holt renfrew is much busier than it ever was in its old location - the mens level well is usually quite busy when i have wondered about - the mall part is dead though and smells of popcorn

fyi - holt renfrew has its "gift" section and they carry the skyscraper lego sets! for $40 or so

[officedweller]

New colour renders of the Expansion -
Hmmm - wish they had stuck with the pixelated look of the other part. Looks like 80s gift wrapping paper.

http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/canadaline.php

[metroXpress]

^ oh my, it does. Why can't they just stay with the old design or at least integrate the station so people can connect to the mall at the platform level.

[officedweller]

There's still a bridge and a passage through the condo building to the existing mall.

[Vancity]

New colour renders of the Expansion -
Hmmm - wish they had stuck with the pixelated look of the other part. Looks like 80s gift wrapping paper.

http://www.aberdeencentre.com/en/canadaline.php

Huh. That rendering looks interesting. When do they start construction, or have they already started on this project? Sorry for my ignorance on this. Haven't been keeping up lately.

Quite frankly, I like the original design. More colors, and it looked more appealing than this one. But this rendering looks alright. Hope it brings more pedestrian activity along the street(s). That's always nice to see at night, so the city doesn't look like it's dead.

[Ronnie Yau]

You're right, they must start this project
soon! :)

[CLC]

The "Aberdeen Square" project has apparently been launched. Advertising has begun in a few Chinese-language press.

A new website (but not much to see)
http://www.aberdeensquare.com/welcome.html

[red-paladin]

I think Bing Thom is the best local architect and I love everything he does.

[metroXpress]

http://www.aberdeensquare.com/bg_en.jpg

So this portion of expansion is called "Aberdeen Square" in Aberdeen Centre. Will the Canada Line station add a secondary exit to connect to the new mall on the second floor?

[Metro-One]

While this design is ok, I hate it so much when compared to what was proposed before. This does nothing to interact with the skytrain guideway, which was one of the major selling points of this project to begin with. Also, other renders showed possible interesting lighting effects, wrapped images, and / or a possible LED screen......now nothing.

It looks like a suburban office park complex. :(

Not even a sign on the side or front. (You would think a commercial complex such as a large shopping centre would want to advertise to the metro cruising past it every few minutes.)

[CLC]

^ The current design is nothing to be excited for. Maybe wait until May 15 (which you can see "3D" model of the extension in the Aberdeen Centre central atrium) for another judgment.

[squeezied]

will this be connected to aberdeen mall? i understand that it's suppose to??but there is a parking lot in between

[LeftCoaster]

I give the architect credit for finally not using farraris and bentlys in the rendering!

The design is somewhat bland, but with the right materials it could turn out just fine.

[Zassk]

will this be connected to aberdeen mall? i understand that it's suppose to??but there is a parking lot in between

There is a corridor reserved to connect them. You can see it on the 2nd floor along Cambie as you walk from the SkyTrain station to the mall entrance. So they will be connected on the 2nd floor where Aberdeen Mall has that roundabout of little shops.

My hope is that they will somehow add another connection at the south end, perhaps by cannibalizing a few rows of parking spots in the parkade. Probably a pipe dream...

[SpongeG]

i don't think it will connect to the canada line platform as it would only do so to one of them and that would be a waste

[phesto]

i don't think it will connect to the canada line platform as it would only do so to one of them and that would be a waste

Two of the retail levels will connect directly to the Aberdeen Station platform (via walkways).


While this design is ok, I hate it so much when compared to what was proposed before. This does nothing to interact with the skytrain guideway, which was one of the major selling points of this project to begin with. Also, other renders showed possible interesting lighting effects, wrapped images, and / or a possible LED screen......now nothing.

It looks like a suburban office park complex. :(

Not even a sign on the side or front. (You would think a commercial complex such as a large shopping centre would want to advertise to the metro cruising past it every few minutes.)

I think you'll be happy with the project in terms of signage and interaction on the Aberdeen Station side depicted in that rendering. Not only will there be lighting effects, but the retail facing No.3 will be visible through the glass with signage. Assuming it is actually busy in there, you'll be able to see people shopping along that side...should look really cool at night.

[SpongeG]

but there is track in the middle of the two platforms so it can only connect to the north bound which would be a big waste

[squeezied]

There is a corridor reserved to connect them. You can see it on the 2nd floor along Cambie as you walk from the SkyTrain station to the mall entrance. So they will be connected on the 2nd floor where Aberdeen Mall has that roundabout of little shops.

My hope is that they will somehow add another connection at the south end, perhaps by cannibalizing a few rows of parking spots in the parkade. Probably a pipe dream...

I haven't been to Aberdeen for a while, but I believe there is a multi-storied parking garage between the current Aberdeen mall and the proposed site. If they were to connect it would have to go through the parking garage, no?

[bils]

:previous: i think there may be a connection along the northern edge (spanning east-west) of the complex below the condo