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Originally Posted by officedweller
The last shot is the money shot - and how most people will see the tower.
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Given its lack of height, it is the
only way most people will see the tower.
Quote:
Originally Posted by officedweller
Most people won't see the peak as it'll be hidden by other buildings when viewed from the south.
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Precisely.
Quote:
Originally Posted by officedweller
the northeast corner of the façade won't be visible either until the lands to the north are developed.
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At which time, the new developments to the north will block the view of the tower from that angle too.
Ultimately, the tower is another beautiful but neutered idea that hasn't been allowed the vertical freedom and dignity it deserves. In this location, at twice the height, it would have achieved iconic status for both Vancouverites and visitors alike and been a stunning feather in Vancouver's cap for maybe a century to come. As it stands, it is another potentially great tower destined to be lost among an already stunted herd forever.
I realize that developers can only build what is economically justifiable, although if city hall threw off the yoke and embraced a culture of economic and architectural freedom, such towers would most definitely come along. And such towers could have
already come along; it's not some amazing coincidence that our major office and residential towers happen to all stop precisely at the viewcone height. Moreover, from the minutes of the Gastown Historic Area Planning Committee, we already know that the developers of this project were prepared to go even taller than the already-taller original version, in spite of Vancouver's current economic climate and viewcone-obssessed political culture.