Tallest buildings demolished in your city

[esquire]

Originally Posted by Rico Rommheim

The annex looks alot like the Queen E in Montreal. Wonder if its by the same architect.

Good call. That wouldn't surprise me given the facts that:

a) they were both CN Hotels
b) built during the 1950s
c) they have a strong resemblance to each other



Montreal's Queen Elizabeth still stands proudly as a downtown landmark. I guess according to certain types of logic, Montrealers would be better off with a nice little park there instead

[1ajs]

childs building 1988

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/48/13...4497cda8_b.jpg

[drawarc]

In Ottawa:

88 Metcalfe Street, a 10 storey building now a parking lot.



http://urbsite.blogspot.com/search?q=commonwealth

[shreddog]

For Thunder Bay, it was 2002 when Saskatchewan Wheat Pool 6 was taken down. As an industrial bldg, it was probably about 220-230' high (based on the design of that elevator complex). I can't find any pictures of it right now (Vid - can you help out??), but here is a link to a website showing the demolition in Flash.

[MTLskyline]

Originally Posted by 1ajs

childs building 1988

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/48/13...4497cda8_b.jpg

Why on earth was that demolished?? It looked to be in pretty good condition!

[entheosfog]

Some sobering vanished tall buildings from Vancouver.
(not sure if any of these were the tallest in the city to be destroyed but they were quite prominent)
black and white photos courtesy of the Vancouver Archives and the colour photo comparisons by me.
http://vancouver.ca/ctyclerk/archives/

2nd Hotel Vancouver, which was 17 floors, located on the left in the top photo:


10 story building on west Hastings and a similar building built in its place. These are not the same buildings even though they look like they could be:


Georgia Medical/Dental Building, 17 floors, imploded 1989:


And, along with the hotel I posted first, one of Vancouver's greatest loses, The Birks Building, which was 12 floors:

[freeweed]

Originally Posted by MTLskyline

Why on earth was that demolished?? It looked to be in pretty good condition!

The 1950s-80s were not kind on heritage buildings. In this case, it was taken down to make way for a large (for Winnipeg) skyscraper on the "big corner" where all the other skyscrapers were.

Or in other words: location, location, location.

It was one of the very last buildings to go in Winnipeg. Shortly after that, virtually everything became protected - I think that building may have been the impetus behind the "save everything" movement.

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by MTLskyline

Why on earth was that demolished?? It looked to be in pretty good condition!

it was...it made way for this at the corner of portage and main.

[1ajs]

Originally Posted by freeweed

The 1950s-80s were not kind on heritage buildings. In this case, it was taken down to make way for a large (for Winnipeg) skyscraper on the "big corner" where all the other skyscrapers were.

Or in other words: location, location, location.

It was one of the very last buildings to go in Winnipeg. Shortly after that, virtually everything became protected - I think that building may have been the impetus behind the "save everything" movement.

funy thing is part of one of the smaller buildings is still standing inside it

[hollywoodnorth]

Originally Posted by entheosfog

Georgia Medical/Dental Building, 17 floors, imploded 1989:

video of it coming down >> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njSGHl3WMQI

[MolsonExport]

What a blasphemy. Beauty and the Beast (London Drughs)

[Andy6]

Originally Posted by MTLskyline

Why on earth was that demolished?? It looked to be in pretty good condition!

Part of the Childs Building is now a doorstop in my spare bedroom:



It was demolished, along with the entire block around it, in order to build a new regional head office for TD Bank. Ironically within a couple of years TD, like all the other banks' western regional offices, was out of Winnipeg anyway, so if it could have lasted a few years longer there probably wouldn't have been anyone to redevelop that corner.

There was a lot of opposition, but the City was starry-eyed over the prospect of a glass tower that would solve downtown's woes and there was the usual sermonizing about how it was all "inevitable" and so on.

[Dylan Leblanc]

This is the BC Permanent Loan Company Building. When it was built in 1914 it was the tallest building in the city, and it is the tallest building that has been demolished in Victoria.


BC Archives



http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=8245

[aastra]

It was the tallest building by floor count. The Royal BC Museum has recently announced its plans to demolish the curatorial tower so that will be the tallest post-war building to be demolished in Victoria, if and when it happens:

[trueviking]

Originally Posted by freeweed

It was one of the very last buildings to go in Winnipeg. Shortly after that, virtually everything became protected - I think that building may have been the impetus behind the "save everything" movement.

there is a save everything movement in winnipeg?.....how's that working out?

[Architype]

For St. John's N.L. - The original Newfoundland Hotel, 8 storeys, built in 1926; some of the pictures also show the new hotel during and after construction. The hotel was demolished in 1983.





Source, with more

The Grace Hospital, 8+ stories, main section, built in the 1960's, demolished in 2008? I think.



Source, with more
(all above photos by me)

Newfoundland Hotel Demolition, 1983:

Source

[Rico Rommheim]

^What a stupid loss.


I've recently come across this building, and I find it fascinating, like most 50's hotels.

Lord Simcoe hotel in TO. Built in 1956. Torn down in 1978.

[vegeta_skyline]

-

[lake of the nations]

Sherbrooke's Centre agricole Coop de l'Estrie, 9 floors, demolished at the end of the 80'.

Archives Claude Poulin

Here is the original building, which was a little bit smaller. This picture was taken during summer 1958.

La Société d’histoire de Sherbrooke

[Rico Rommheim]

And may I ask what replaced it?