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Originally Posted by Vin
Looks like you haven't taken the skytrain to realize how many underutilized sites there are around the skytrain stations in Vancouver.
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Answer my original question: "How many large underutilized sites, similar in scale to Gilmore, around transit stations does Vancouver have?"
Secondly, what's your definition of underutilized. Anything that's under 60+ stories and without multiple levels of retail? There are other forms of building massing other than towering highrises that are appropriate for redevelopment at transit stations. Midrises along the Cambie Corridor are a fine example of adding density while being considerate and complimentary to the existing urban fabric. You have an unrealistic and narrow view that every transit station needs to look like a miniature downtown or town centre. Make no mistake, just because you see tall buildings doesn't make the neighbourhood dense. Burnaby has many "towers in the park" concepts; the overall density isn't as high as you'd think.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vin
....Blank canvas for Burnaby you say? It's never 'blank' as you naively put it, it's just planned that way, just like how low density single family neighbourhoods were planned all over Vancouver, and people living in them still rejecting higher densities today.
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You would be the naive one to think whatever's being built in Burnaby can be realistically and sensibly done anywhere in Vancouver without considering the differences in the urban fabric of both cities.
Burnaby has considerably more large sites that are suitable for redevelopment in a grand scale than Vancouver. Many of these sites include car dealerships, warehouses in formerly industrial zones, existing malls or just plain vacant sites. The urban fabric in which these sites are located is vastly different to Vancouver's finer-grained grid layout. These sites are far from single family neighbourhoods (which is always the reason developments scale down near single family houses). When there is single family next to a large development site, i.e. NE corner of Brentwood Mall, development scales down to midrises. Large sites disjointed from single family neighbourhoods is essentially a blank canvas for large scale developments. And as I've said, Burnaby has luxury of building large-scale developments without having to worry about how it implements into the existing community.
Compare that to the Cambie Corridor. Your typical assembled site is 150'x180' located in a tightly compact (at least compared to Burnaby) single family neighbourhood. Your desire for a downtown-style condo is neither realistic nor sensible. And as I've mentioned before (which you conveniently ignored), where Vancouver does have large sites like Oakridge and Marine Gateway (also from single family houses) taller buildings have been built or are in the planning stages. So what are you complaining about? That it doesn't have a 65 story building like Gilmore?
I think the issue is you can't seem to appreciate the realities of sensible urban planning. You seem to think tall towers can go anywhere and everywhere.
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Originally Posted by Vin
Anyway I should stop discussing about urban densities here.
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Agreed.