Vancouver as a selling point in Mainland China

[Kwik-E-Mart]

It's been a while since I've inputed on the so-called "Vancouver" developments on both sides of Taiwan Strait. Lately there have been a few more related developments on the Mainland, so here they are!

[NOTE: All websites are in Chinese unless otherwise noted, but I am sure readers who know the language are able to verify the articles' truthfullness. Nonetheless you can still click on the the pics so see them in detail. Pictures courtesy of the links provided below]

[EDIT: Damn, looks like I can't edit the title of the thread to avoid political reprucussions after adding Taiwan developments.]

Hongxiang Huayuan (紅橡華園 - roughly "The Red Oak Grand") - Changsha, Hunan (The city that is trying to one-up the Burj Khalifa with the Sky City tower)

Vancouver arrives in Changsha - says the billboard below:



Vancouver Wood - Harbin, Heilongjiang (The word is out: Vancouver is giving wood [strictly in Catan terms] to the chilly Manchurian city. Plus, when you write it in Chinese according to the pic below, 温哥华森林 = Vancouver Forest, which sounds quite familiar to the CMHC-involved project in Beijing mentioned earlier... )

The small Chinese writing below the Vancouver Wood sign suggests it to be "Harbin's Premiere North-American Lifestyle Up-Scale Resort Community"

(Courtesy of SouFun.com)

Banshan Shijia (半山世家 - roughly translated to "Majestic Residences on the Hill") - Beijing

In this story two months ago, the developers talked about how Vancouver's "healthy lifestyles, livability and accessibility to natural beauty within short distances from downtown" influenced the design and aesthetics of the project. (I am not sure how that would fit with a place you can see beyond a few metres in extreme smog and sandstorms from the Ordos Desert).

But with Vancouver Forest being immensely popular, it is not surprising to see other developers following suit with similar developments throughout Mainland China.
(img courtesy once again of SouFun.com)

Vancouver Water City (a rough translation of 溫哥華水城) - Chengdu, Sichuan (Szechuan) - This one's completed circa 2004, but google always comes up with wonders.



Huaxin Shanshui Wenyuan - (華信山水文園 - or literally in babel-fish-style "Huaxin Mountain Water Literary Gardens" [with Huaxin being the developer's name]) - Handan, Hebei - AKA "Vancouver Forest (Handan)" before the name change

According to the website's description:

北美温哥华居世界十大最适合居住的城市首位。北美的住宅景观是集当今世界景观精华之大成后，又融合了美国自由、活泼、善于创新等思想而形成的独特景观特点。古城邯郸具有比较鲜明的四季景观特色，与温哥华各逞风姿的四季能够较好地对接，将北美温哥华的四季美景移植并融入到社区。

"Vancouver in North America ranks numero uno in the world's top livable cities. The residential environment of North America combines the world's finest in landscaping, with America's freedom/liberty (WTF? - my quote), liveliness, and willingness to innovate - creating a unique surrounding. Ancient Handan's environment (in terms of distinctiveness of the four seasons) matches to that of Vancouver's, hence is able to transition and incorporate the beauty of Vancouver into the community."

[red-paladin]

Vancouver arrives in Changsha

I expect that's about as true as the 'Yaletown arrives in Surrey' tagline for Quattro that is so infuriatingly untrue but seems to be in ads in every 24 and Metro paper that I read!

[Kwik-E-Mart]

Originally Posted by red-paladin

I expect that's about as true as the 'Yaletown arrives in Surrey' tagline for Quattro that is so infuriatingly untrue but seems to be in ads in every 24 and Metro paper that I read!

At least Quattro is on the more affordable end of things unlike the usually higher-priced offerings on the other side of the Pacific!

More updates:

[NOTE: All websites are in Chinese unless otherwise noted, but I am sure readers who know the language are able to verify what the articles say. Nonetheless you can still click on the the pics so see them in detail. Pictures courtesy of the links provided below]

Beautiful Residences - Vancouver - Jianyang District, Nanping, Fujian

Mixed use coupled with mixed traffic (pedestrians walking aimlessly in the middle of the road with moving vehicles - plus they are driving on the wrong side of the road...), I like!


Pengzhou Vancouver Peony International Hotel - Pengzhou, Sichuan (Szechuan) - Currently under construction, but it has no relation to the similar-named hotel in Zhoukou, Henan.

[Vancity]

i don't know where to put this. visited NY with my wife, and while we were there, we were absolutely floored at not only how beautiful the city is, but the amount of THINGS to do in the city! and how convenient it was to get around (Vancouver needs to learn from some of the world's great cities with respect to public transportation - i.e. HK, NY, etc). it was so easy to get around, such a joy.

there's also a ton of culture in the city - from museums (MET, MOMA, etc), to jazz, etc. it was an exciting place to be in. a wonderful global city.

not exactly excited to go back to vancouver, but it is home. i feel like vancouver needs to look outside of itself. like, it seems to always rely on it's "natural" beauty, which it does have, but we have a lot of young people, families leaving this beautiful city, for other cities. we can learn from NY - in it's archetiture, from it's cultural aspects, financial aspects, sporting athletics, business etc. NY is one of the world's great cities.

will vancouver ever get there?

[Spork]

Originally Posted by Vancity

will vancouver ever get there?

Nope. Our culture is too laid back. People would rather go home after work, open a bottle of wine, and watch a movie on their couch than volunteer at a museum, start a jazz band, or build a business. After traveling a bit more internationally, I've quickly realized how Vancouver truly is a retirement community where things move at a snail's pace - when they ever do move at all.

[officedweller]

Plus we don't have the population base to support such a wide variety of activities.

[vanman]

Its completely irrational to compare Vancouver to New York.

[vansky]

....it is hard to imagine this place to be new york with 2.4 million, even with 4.2 million,it would feel like singapore....vancouver is a joke when u compare it with serious big global cities...i've been emphasizing that against the risk of being attacked by cricism from our fellow vancouver lovers....u cant even compare it with toronto, and toronto is no nyc for sure.

[Darren Tate]

Vancouver is what it is. It has its own flavour and its own pace. People need to stop moaning that it's not NYC or HK or whatever—especially those of you who CHOSE to live here. Sorry you believed the hype... now shut the hell up.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by Darren Tate

Vancouver is what it is. It has its own flavour and its own pace. People need to stop moaning that it's not NYC or HK or whatever—especially those of you who CHOSE to live here. Sorry you believed the hype... now shut the hell up.

doesn't mean it can't learn from the world's great cities.

there's a lot that vancouver needs, and can learn from NY, or HK, etc.

and this IS a message board. so no, i will not shut up. thanks.

[Vancity]

Originally Posted by Spork

Nope. Our culture is too laid back. People would rather go home after work, open a bottle of wine, and watch a movie on their couch than volunteer at a museum, start a jazz band, or build a business. After traveling a bit more internationally, I've quickly realized how Vancouver truly is a retirement community where things move at a snail's pace - when they ever do move at all.

the city cannot be ok with this. what happens to our bright young men and women? they leave for greener pastures, such as toronto, or calgary, or anywhere in the states - LA, Seattle, NY, Chicago, or Asia - HK, Taiwan, Tokyo, etc.

vancouver can change for better. culturally, financially, etc, etc. the vancouver now does not have to always be. it can improve, and get better in all aspects that makes the greatest cities in the world great. and yes, it takes time, but sometimes i feel like that's used more as an excuse. things take time to change, okay, i agree - but what happens to proactive, and innovative planning, as opposed to reactionary planning (which seems to be the case a lot of the times here in van).

[red-paladin]

Can we please keep to the topic?

[Hourglass]

Originally Posted by red-paladin

I expect that's about as true as the 'Yaletown arrives in Surrey' tagline for Quattro that is so infuriatingly untrue but seems to be in ads in every 24 and Metro paper that I read!

Yes, hopeful marketing at its best (or worst). Funnily enough, I was in Changsha two weeks ago. Lots of money floating around (I noted a new Lamborghini dealership) and tons of construction, but Vancouver it is not. For one thing, in Changsha, the pollution is so bad I could see the air I was breathing. Oh, and did I mention the giant ferris wheel?

[jlousa]

It's not hard, stick to the topic, or create a new one in the right forum.