VANCOUVER | 2010 Winter Olympics - Athlete's Village Development News

[Vancouverite]

In Vancouver we are building the 2010 Winter Olympics Athlete's Village to exceptional levels of sustainability. After the games three quarters of the the 1,000+ residential dwellings will be sold at market rates while approximately 250 will become non-market housing for seniors and low income singles and families. This is intended to be a demonstration of the best urban planning, architectural, and engineering practices in the world today and act as the model for future local high-density development. The larger Southeast False Creek neighbourhood, of which the Olympic Village is the first phase, will include an elementary school, a streetcar line, parks, day cares, commercial, retail, office space, at least one grocery store, a community centre, a marina for non-motorized boats and kayaks, and a mixture of subsidized and market housing for 10,000 to 15,000 people, all built to very high levels of environmental sustainability (minimum LEED Silver equivalence).

The 16 building, 1.4 million square foot, single phase Olympic Village is being built to the LEED Gold standard while the Community Centre is being built to LEED Platinum. The building that will become seniors' housing is going to attempt to reach the Net-Zero standard, which represents annual energy, water, and carbon neutrality. All of the buildings will feature green roofs, passive solar design, beyond-code insulation and glazing, and low/no VOC paint and carpets. Rain water will be retained in cisterns to be used for irrigation of the green roofs and landscaping. The buildings will be heated and cooled using an in-slab hydronic system connected to a hybrid district heating/cooling system powered by high-efficiency natural gas boilers and heat exchange system that will use both ground-source heat pipes and an innovative heat exchange system tied into the sewer pipes to recover their latent heat. Electricity comes from local hydroelectric dams. A streetcar will run through the neighbourhood and connect it to two nearby rapid transit stations. All parking is underground and well below average in its parking to dwelling ratio.

As an interesting final note, after the Olympics the buyers of the Village’s apartments and rowhouses will be given the names and nationalities of the athletes who stayed in their homes while competing. I think that’s a nice touch.

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/8725/sefcmillenniumwaterilluve2.jpg
Source: www.millenniumwater.com

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/5071/imammge2oz3.jpg
Source: www.millenniumwater.com

http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/8365/imammge1nm5.jpg
Source: www.millenniumwater.com

http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/photogallery/images/SEFCmodel087web.jpg
Source: City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/)

http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/photogallery/images/SEFCmodel120web.jpg
Source: City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/)

http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/photogallery/images/SEFCmodel172web.jpg
Source: City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/)

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/8373/olympicvillageairphotonac9.jpg
Aerial photo source: http://www.globalairphotos.com/images/bc/vancouver/2007/vch2007_396.jpg

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/9209/olympicvillageairphotonnu7.jpg
Aerial photo source: http://www.globalairphotos.com/images/bc/vancouver/2007/vch2007_457.jpg

Buildings (Detailed models/renders)

Community Centre
http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/324/sefcolympicvillagecommuwh8.jpg
Source: City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/)


http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/6665/sefcolympicvillagecommuri9.jpg
Source: City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/)


123 West 1st Avenue
http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/8382/sefcolympicvillage123w1eb3.jpg
Source: www.millenniumwater.com

Parks

"Crane" Pocket Park - Public Memory of the Industrial Past
http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/1613/sefcolympicvillageindustj6.jpg
Source: City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/)


My Photos

http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/6717/sefcpano5000x400mediumwht2.jpg (http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/4341/sefcpano5000x400mediumwnt5.jpg)
A link to a very large, hand-stitched panorama I took in the summer of 2007 showing the construction and context of the Olympic Village. There are 13 or 14 cranes visible in this photo.

The Olympic Village precinct at sunset, October 22nd, 2007.
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/9553/p1040650qf6he9.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

The Olympic Village precinct at dusk, November 10th, 2007.
http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/2254/olympicvillagenov102007wz8.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

Lots more information can be found at:
City of Vancouver (http://vancouver.ca/olympicvillage/) Olympic Village site.
www.MillenniumWater.com is the developer's sales website.


Thank you ImageShack (http://imageshack.us) for free photo hosting.

[Rojo]

Nice place to build it!!!

[sagaex3]

I love vancouver, I love canada and the people . Good luck in this games. I agree rojo nice place.

[xXFallenXx]

How is it possible to be water neutral?

[Vanman]

^ Probably cause it collects as much rain water as it uses.

[xXFallenXx]

^^ oh duh!!!
im an idiot!
they get like tons of rain so that would be no prob.

[johnz88]

This is a real good move by Vancouver, making the whole thing as environmentally friendly as could be. Vancouver has been known for being green, now they can show the world a little more on how to build eco-friendly.

[mr.x]

^ well, this isn't the only thing Vancouver is going green for. Its newly expanded convention centre on the downtown central waterfront uses green practices, including Canada's largest green grass roof.

More information: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=485030


The convention centre will be completed in early 2009, and will be used for the Main Press Centre and International Broadcast Centre during the 2010 Olympics.

[isaidso]

Looks like I need to get a boyfriend from Vancouver.

[Mo Rush]

WOW...are those renders the final design...so it will all be built before 2010? or will parts be built after 2010? it really is fantastic!

[mr.x]

WOW...are those renders the final design...so it will all be built before 2010? or will parts be built after 2010? it really is fantastic!

What you see in those renders and diagrams will be built by early 2009 and will house 2,500 athletes and many more officials during the Games. After the Games, the Olympic Village will become housing for 5,000 people. It is phase one of the Southeast False Creek Redevelopment Project.....there should be 20,000 people living in this red/yellow highlighted area by 2020:
http://img219.imageshack.us/img219/9209/olympicvillageairphotonnu7.jpg


There's a second Olympic Village up the mountain at Whistler. The ice sport athletes stay in Vancouver while the snow sport athletes stay in Whistler....approx. 2500 here and 2500 there.

[Coral Builder]

Any Picks of the Whistler development plans??

[mr.x]

Whistler Olympic Village
http://www.whistler.ca/images/stories/PDF/Admin/Athlete_Village/AV%20Site%201-1000.pdf

[Vancouverite]

The ice sport athletes stay in Vancouver while the snow sport athletes stay in Whistler....approx. 2500 here and 2500 there.

It's funny, I haven't thought about it that way before but you're right, that's the distinction between the Vancouver and Whistler portions of the Games. (With the small exception of the Freestyle Ski events that will be held on Cypress Mountain, adjacent to Vancouver)

There are now seven fixed construction cranes above the Vancouver Olympic Village site. Several of the buildings under construction are about to cross over to being above ground.

WOW...are those renders the final design...so it will all be built before 2010? or will parts be built after 2010? it really is fantastic!

Yes, that is the final design. However the render we're talking about (second image in my initial post) doesn't really show the different materials that are going to be used. There will certainly be some floor to ceiling glass walls, but there will also be brick, painted concrete, probably some stucco (I hope not but there is way too much precedent in this city to rule it out), and some rather unusual fritted glass walls. I attended most of the urban design panel meetings for the Olympic Village/Southeast False Creek in the year leading up to the finalization of the design and it was fascinating watching the model table transform from amorphous blank massing blocks into the architectural scale models that are also in my original post.

I can't wait to see this all come together.

[Vancouverite]

I've updated one of the aerial context photos to indicate the location of BC Place stadium and GM Place stadium. The former will be used for the opening and closing ceremonies and nightly medal presentation ceremonies. The latter will be used for ice hockey. (Thanks mr.x2 for the correction)

http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/3016/olympicvillageairphotonvn2.jpg
Aerial photo source: http://www.globalairphotos.com/images/bc/vancouver/2007/vch2007_396.jpg

[mr.x]

^ GM Place won't be hosting any figure skating, just hockey. The Pacific Coliseum will host both figure skating and short-track speed skating.


7-cranes are up

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y101/oct2gon/ovc.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2390/1589129164_faba4c7414_b.jpg
photos from www.flickr.com, posted by delirium

[Vancouverite]

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/5264/p1040650qf6.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/7135/p1040648py3.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/4084/p1040652vr3.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/5972/p1040651ry8.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

I took these in the midst of a breathtaking, sudden fall sunset today and the light faded moments after I snapped the last photo. In order to start taking photos before I lost the light I ran from the bus stop, past the sales centre for the Olympic Village where I saw people camping out in line in order to buy the condos and townhouses and they don’t even go on sale for five more days.

[mr.x]

^ holy crap, those are amazing...thanks! good enough for my wallpaper!


I took these in the midst of a breathtaking, sudden fall sunset today. The light faded moments after I snapped the last photo. In order to capture the light I ran past the sales centre for the Olympic Village and there were people camped out in line in order to buy the condos and townhouses and they don’t even go on sale for five more days.

you ran all the way there to take these pics? you should go into the paparazzi business.

[Second City]

I love cranes!!!!

[mr.x]

from SSP:

some pics i found on www.flickr.com

you can see that they've started planting trees on habitat island and along the new seawall
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y101/oct2gon/1769287053_ecd5a87020_o.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y101/oct2gon/1779705892_3021304e42_o.jpg

[Rumors]

I was wondering what that neat^^ glass ball is we have something like that in Montreal. :)

[mr.x]

I was wondering what that neat^^ glass ball is we have something like that in Montreal. :)

that's Science World British Columbia, a science museum that is mostly geared for children. the ball holds the world's largest spherical IMAX theatre.

it was built for Expo '86 as the main pavillon of the World's Fair.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/155/359130910_b826fe54ab.jpg?v=0

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/166/420298852_49fc73fdaa.jpg?v=0

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1303/531049701_d91e0a0476.jpg?v=0

[Coral Builder]

I love sherical IMAX, there's one in Ottawa too. It takes the movies to the whole next level. It would be cool to watch olympic replays on a screen that size..

[mr.x]

I love sherical IMAX, there's one in Ottawa too. It takes the movies to the whole next level. It would be cool to watch olympic replays on a screen that size..

lol, well we actually have two IMAX theatres. One at the existing convention centre which will be the main media centre for 2010 and of course, at Science World.

not sure if it's possible, don't IMAX projectors run on huge film rolls?

[Coral Builder]

Yes they do Mr. X but IMAX has recently developed a much faster and easier conversion technology. Still, that dome is a pretty nice focal point on the skyline.

[mr.x]

Yes they do Mr. X but IMAX has recently developed a much faster and easier conversion technology. Still, that dome is a pretty nice focal point on the skyline.

lol, well we're still using IMAX technology that was available for our World's Fair....in 1986.

[Vancouverite]

There are 8 tower construction cranes on the site now.

The opening day of sales for first phase of the Olympic Village grossed $200 million Canadian ($213 million USD) on the sale of two hundred units. The cheapest was $450,000 and the highest was well into the millions.

The new island has had three tall wooden poles added to it as part of the landscaping. These are perches for bald eagles.

The pace of construction on the site is amazing. At any given time there are four or five roaming concrete pumping rigs and excavators, dump trucks, and concrete mixers are everywhere. There is at least one on-site concrete plant in operation but, clearly, it is utterly insufficient for the demands of this 16-building, single phase project. Ocean Concrete (Heildelberg Group) is the concrete supplier for the project.

Everything is on schedule as far as I am aware. On a related note, the bored tunneling of the SkyTrain Canada Line (automated light metro rapid transit) under downtown is two weeks ahead of schedule. The first trains arrive for testing on the almost-complete Vancouver International Airport portion of the line in December.

The Olympic Village station on this line is about a five minute walk from the heart of the construction precinct. The existing Main Street-Science World SkyTrain station is a five minute walk in the other direction from the heart of the construction precinct. A modern streetcar will connect the two and continue on to Granville Island (mixed-use arts and culture precinct). Eventually this streetcar line will continue through Chinatown and Gastown (design-centric heritage precinct), to Waterfront station (multi-modal regional transit hub in a grand turn of the century train station that was once the western terminus of the Canadian Trans-Continential railway). The streetcar will then head west through Coal Harbour (new, luxury high density waterfront neighbourhood) to Stanley Park (1000 acre downtown urban forest and park).

Delerium posted a photo of a detailed sales model for one of the Olympic Village buildings. While not visible, this building also has an intensive green roof, underground parking and a tie-in to the district energy system that used recovered heat from the sewers, a first on this scale for North America.
here's one of the buildings that went on sale this week -
this one is at 123 West First Ave. i like it.

http://a123.g.akamai.net/f/123/12465/1d/media.canada.com/157ccc88-d038-4a4c-b40b-818d8519d682/olympicvillagecondos.jpg

[Mo Rush]

The Olympic village location is genius. I hope there is ferry access to the stadium, and I hope that the flame is visible from the stadium...uhm keep the flame far from the roof of BC place stadium

[DrT]

Great update Vancouverite. And great news.
Vancouver is kicking butt.

"The streetcar will then head west through Coal Harbour (new, luxury high density waterfront neighbourhood) to Stanley Park (1000 acre downtown urban forest and park)."
^^ Is this approved?

Also, any ideas on prices. The developers stated way back before construction, that they would have to charge almost $1,500/ ft. to break even.

[Vancouverite]

Re: Streetcar

The infrastructure for Phase "0", which runs from Granville Island to Science World, will be built. At first it will run two restored heritage interurban streetcars from the early 1900s. These have previously been in use as a demonstration project. The construction of the Olympic Village required a portion of the tracks to be torn up and the wires taken down. When 1st Avenue is restored as part of the Olympic Village construction it will feature a modern dual track streetcar line down north side of the street in a grass boulevard between the street and the sidewalk (if I am not mistaken). The remaining phases of the streetcar line are unfunding at this time but there is a intertia to get them built and the Vancouver Sun, the city's main opinion making newspaper, has already editorially gotten behind the streetcar as something that is long overdue and invaluable for the city.


Re: Ferries across False Creek.

Small passenger and bicycle ferries already run throughout False Creek and their network will be expanded to the Olympic Village. Their current terminus at Science World will continue to be used until the non-motorized marina at the Olympic Village is ready for use in a few years' time.


Re: Prices for condos, penthouses and townhouses.

The starting price for the smallest unit is $450,000 and the sky's the limit for the high end stuff. $4 or $5 million for the penthouses and waterfront condos would be completely within reason. A penthouse in one of the new as-yet-unbuilt luxury towers downtown was sold for $18 million a few days ago. The average detatched single family home in Vancouver costs about $800,000. The average cost of any dwelling is about $500,000. (Naturally, this is the average and not the mean. The $18 million penthouses lift up the modest $300,000 studios to an unnatural middle ground).

The rental apartments will let for the market rate. It's tough to know what that will be because very little has been built over the last fifteeen to twenty years as purpose-built rental housing. My best guess would be that the roughly 130 rental apartments would let for a similar price to the new rental building in Coal Harbour, somewhere around $900 a month for a one bedroom all the way up to $2500+ for a two bedroom with den. Almost without exception all new rental housing stock has come from people who have purchased condos as investment properties and they rent them at what their monthly mortage cost is, plus utilities and condo fees.

It's an obscenely expensive city right now and young people like me (25) are hard pressed to imagine ever owning a home or nice townhouse with in the City of Vancouver proper unless there is a recession or the fundamental economics of retiring baby boomers selling their homes all at once to downsize to condos collapses the market. We're clearly in a bubble situation to some degree but unlike the US we haven't been doing the sub-prime mortgages in Canada to any great degree. The breakneck construction in Vancouver is of sold property. This isn't a speculative boom by any means.

On the other hand there are a lot of small time investors who are over-extended having purchased three or four condos largely on credit. If interest rates go up, which they are likely to do to keep our galloping currency from sparking off a run of inflation, then these small investors will find that they cannot raise rents on their rental properties fast enough to cover their increased interest carrying costs. Most people didn't drink the floating rate Cool-Aid and have locked-in fixed rate mortgages. But when it comes time to refinance, as was their plan, they may find they cannot get the same rate again. We have modest but well-enforced rent control in Vancouver (max 6.5% increase per year) and every rental agreement is a legal document.

[DrT]

Re: Prices for condos, penthouses and townhouses.

The starting price for the smallest unit is $450,000 and the sky's the limit for the high end stuff. $4 or $5 million for the penthouses and waterfront condos would be completely within reason. A penthouse in one of the new as-yet-unbuilt luxury towers downtown was sold for $18 million a few days ago. The average detatched single family home in Vancouver costs about $800,000. The average cost of any dwelling is about $500,000. (Naturally, this is the average and not the mean. The $18 million penthouses lift up the modest $300,000 studios to an unnatural middle ground).

The rental apartments will let for the market rate. It's tough to know what that will be because very little has been built over the last fifteeen to twenty years as purpose-built rental housing. My best guess would be that the roughly 130 rental apartments would let for a similar price to the new rental building in Coal Harbour, somewhere around $900 a month for a one bedroom all the way up to $2500+ for a two bedroom with den. Almost without exception all new rental housing stock has come from people who have purchased condos as investment properties and they rent them at what their monthly mortage cost is, plus utilities and condo fees.

It's an obscenely expensive city right now and young people like me (25) are hard pressed to imagine ever owning a home or nice townhouse with in the City of Vancouver proper unless there is a recession or the fundamental economics of retiring baby boomers selling their homes all at once to downsize to condos collapses the market. We're clearly in a bubble situation to some degree but unlike the US we haven't been doing the sub-prime mortgages in Canada to any great degree. The breakneck construction in Vancouver is of sold property. This isn't a speculative boom by any means.

On the other hand there are a lot of small time investors who are over-extended having purchased three or four condos largely on credit. If interest rates go up, which they are likely to do to keep our galloping currency from sparking off a run of inflation, then these small investors will find that they cannot raise rents on their rental properties fast enough to cover their increased interest carrying costs. Most people didn't drink the floating rate Cool-Aid and have locked-in fixed rate mortgages. But when it comes time to refinance, as was their plan, they may find they cannot get the same rate again. We have modest but well-enforced rent control in Vancouver (max 6.5% increase per year) and every rental agreement is a legal document.

Very astute analysis. Prices ultimately have to be related to incomes and cannot keep escalating like they have in the past few years. I think alot of buying has been done by foreign investors because of Canada's tolelance of immigrants, the upcoming Olympic frenzy, and Vancouver's always topping the list of "quality of life surveys". Also alot of older boomer Canadians wanting to retire in a "balmier clime" are fueling the market.
Don't anguish over it. Save your cash regularly and remain mobile by renting while you are young. With the cash, you will get the chance to choose the place where you really want to live when the dust settles, as it always does.

[Vancouverite]

I've heard from a pretty reliable source that the Olympic Village portion of the SeaWall will be open for next summer, if not sooner. That section will be closed during the Olympics for security reasons since the cordon around the Olympic Village will extend right out into False Creek. I imagine the Dragon Boaters will have to clear out of the area too, lest the Navy take issue with their war canoes and open fire.

[mr.x]

I've heard from a pretty reliable source that the Olympic Village portion of the SeaWall will be open for next summer, if not sooner. That section will be closed during the Olympics for security reasons since the cordon around the Olympic Village will extend right out into False Creek. I imagine the Dragon Boaters will have to clear out of the area too, lest the Navy take issue with their war canoes and open fire.

Everything will be cordoned off...including the main hotel district around Canada Place and the new VCEC.

[LeX GdL]

Vancouver and CANADA it´s AMAIZING. I hope this games!

[Vancouverite]

http://img127.imageshack.us/img127/2254/olympicvillagenov102007wz8.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

http://img218.imageshack.us/img218/33/olympicvillagehabitatisvx1.jpg
Source: My Photo ( Vancouverite in SSC | SFUVancouver in SSP )

"Habitat Island" is now fully landscaped. This island will only be accessible at low tide. The three tall dead tress are perches for our local bald eagle population.

[mr.x]

some updates were posted on the milleniumwater website (although already outdated) but still cool to see

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/ov.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/ov5.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/ov2.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/ov4.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/ov3.jpg

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y102/Toronto416/ov1.jpg

[SuburbanWalker]

In Vancouver we are building the 2010 Winter Olympics Athlete's Village to exceptional levels of sustainability. After the games three quarters of the the 1,000+ residential dwellings will be sold at market rates while approximately 250 will become non-market housing for seniors and low income singles and families. This is intended to be a demonstration of the best urban planning, architectural, and engineering practices in the world today and act as the model for future local high-density development. The larger Southeast False Creek neighbourhood, of which the Olympic Village is the first phase, will include an elementary school, a streetcar line, parks, day cares, commercial, retail, office space, at least one grocery store, a community centre, a marina for non-motorized boats and kayaks, and a mixture of subsidized and market housing for 10,000 to 15,000 people, all built to very high levels of environmental sustainability (minimum LEED Silver equivalence).

Excellent way to recoup some of the costs for organizing the Winter Olympics. It looks like a great urban project on its own.

[Olympiaki-Agones]

Nothing to critize, Vancouver is doing very well.

[mr.x]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2132/2056857516_4c66caa76e_o.jpg
from www.flickr.com

[mr.x]

Some pictures I took today from Science World:
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/713/dscf1117sr1.jpg

http://img211.imageshack.us/img211/3856/dscf1118hd0.jpg

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/8292/dscf1119gl7.jpg

http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/5440/dscf1120zo5.jpg

[Dino Domingo]

Wow! It's like Dubai relived!

[CrazyCanuck]

Crane City!

[raggedy13]

Apparently parts of the seawall are opening today already. Hopefully if we get a decent day of weather this week I'll manage to check it out.

[Vancouverite]

I went for a walk this afternoon on the new seawall section that was just opened a couple of days ago. It is nice! While it is not complete yet one can already tell how it will end up looking and I would say that it will rival the nicest parts of Yaletown and surpass it in many ways. The foreshore area will be landscaped with the seawall being set back some distance (relatively) from the water's edge. There are half a dozen or so small cantilevered jetties that project out over the water and it looks like the wooden decks are all made from recovered wood. They scream industrial in a very good way. Lots of granite cobbles and some enormous stone blocks that look like they could be used to repair the pyramids in Egypt.

The actual Olympic Village construction site has a frantic energy all its own. It looks like Athletes' Way has been built up but certainly not finished. Walter Hardwick way doesn't exist at all yet. It is a fully excavated pit. The scale of the place is decieving from 1st or the bridge. There really isn't much depth of the site at all.

In front of the Salt Building, which doesn't seem to be having any work done on it right now, a good quarter of the total depth is the seawall and Athletes' Way. Somehow they will fit two good sized buildings in there plus another street. I would say that Walter Hardwick way will be about the width of a Downtown South alley and the lots will be no deeper than a Downtown South block as well.

The scale of this place is going to be great! I was grinning as I walked away. The public is getting an exceptionally high quality public realm this time.

[raggedy13]

^I was down there this evening. I was really pleased with how it is coming together. I was thinking to myself at the time that it would be the nicest part of the seawall yet. It still has lots of work to go but you can tell it is one high quality project. And if it reflects the quality of the overall neighbourhood then the whole area is going to be amazing. Now I'm looking forward even more to exploring the area when its done. Was a beautiful evening. While I was walking around there I was trying to look at the city as if I were an athlete/journalist/tourist during the Olympics. Anyways, I arrived at the conclusion that I would be impressed by the city. :)

Here are some pictures I got. They don't quite do it justice though. (may be a bit blurry/dark)

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0033.jpg

Habitat Island
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0055.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0051.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0052.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0054.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0057.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0068.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0069.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0070.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0071.jpg

Hard to see but this is where the west side of little pedestrian bridge over the water will connect
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0072.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0074.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0075.jpg

Central supports for the bridge
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0076.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0077.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0078.jpg

Xmas lights!
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0079.jpg

Where east side of bridge will connect
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0080.jpg

http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0081.jpg

One of the building sites
http://i59.photobucket.com/albums/g296/raggedy13/Dec%206%202007/101_0083.jpg

That's it.

[mr.x]

Pictures of the view of the skyline from the village as well as construction progress, by zivan56:



Some new pics from today:
http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/DSCF2993.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/DSCF3017.jpg

Cranes @ SEFC
http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/DSCF3034.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/DSCF3087.jpg

Pano of SEFC site:
http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/pano1.jpg

New seawall tour:
http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3048.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3065.jpg
island panorama (http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/island_pano.jpg)

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3066.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3068.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3076.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3077.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3078.jpg

http://www.iwdstudio.com/slike/2007/SEFC/2/DSCF3080.jpg

[Vancouverite]

[double post]

[Vancouverite]

Looking east at Second Avenue and Cambie towards the Olympic Village construction precinct in Southeast False Creek (SEFC). Most of the Olympic Village surrounding SEFC neighbourhood will be built to about the same approximate height as the building on the right in this photo, which is about 90 feet in height. There will be a number of buildings that reach slightly taller and others, obviously, will be shorter.
http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/7075/p1040840do4.jpg

Another shot of the Southeast False Creek neighourbood, this time looking east from the Cambie Street Bridge deck. The brick building on the right is being restored and converted to lofts. A streetcar line, Vancouver's first in more than 50 years, will run down First, below, and connect to SkyTrain to the east and Granville Island to the west. Additional phases are planned.
http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/8452/p1040841oy0.jpg

A couple of shots of the Olympic Village showing the mass of cranes.
http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/8947/p1040845vu4.jpg

http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/4994/p1040849hg9.jpg

These folks (below) across False Creek in Yaletown are getting some new neighbours to the east of the Cambie Street Bridge.
http://img102.imageshack.us/img102/9831/p1040853lh5.jpg

These new towers are being built by Concord Pacific in the Cooper’s Quay precinct. Behind them is BC Place, home of the BC Lions football franchise and the site of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
http://img107.imageshack.us/img107/2973/p1040850ot3.jpg

Things are moving along for the Olympic Village itself. Construction continued through the worst of winter without disruption. The weather is fine again, the snow has melted, and the first flowers are starting to bud. It has become a pretty busy place. 12 tower construction cranes are building the 16 buildings, the first of which is about three storeys above ground. The remainder is all below- or at- grade.

The following several shots of the new man-made marine habitat island. The very small bay to the left is where the daylighted stream will empty into False Creek. There are dozens of streams running under Vancouver, all of which were filled in or buried in sewers more than a hundred years ago. One is being daylighted and deeply integrated into the landscaping of the Olympic Village. The elementary school will be right beside it and children can be expected to play on its banks and run across its pedestrian bridges.

http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/6084/p1040858mx2.jpg

http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/6166/p1040865ji4.jpg


The new Seawall features separated pedestrian and bicycle/wheeled vehicle paths, a number of boardwalks that feature recovered wood from the old industrial piers on the site, and an inlet with pedestrian bridge adjacent a piazza and the community centre. A marina for non-motorized boats (Dragon Boat war canoes, kayaks, etc.) will be adjacent.

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/1744/p1040867nu5.jpg

http://img169.imageshack.us/img169/9053/p1040874sy4.jpg

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/429/p1040871ig6.jpg

http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/7209/p1040876xa4.jpg

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/7118/p1040873gp9.jpg

http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/1919/p1040862rw5.jpg

http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/6365/p1040868jj8.jpg

All photos were taken by me on January 15th, 2008.

[mr.x]

really coming along, thanks for the update!

[zerokarma]

Good updates

[phaedrus]

lots of positive changes, thats for sure!

[Vancouverite]

Two buildings are now above grade. The first, a 12-storey mid-rise tower, marks the western edge of the Olympic Village precinct. Beside it is a second, five- or six-storey non-market rental housing apartment building.

The taller building is in the foreground while the low-rise is behind it.
http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/3643/p1050334dv0.jpg
(My photo, taken January 29th, 2008)

Rounded balconies and/or bay windows on the mid-rise.
http://img201.imageshack.us/img201/1928/p1050338vn4.jpg
(My photo, taken January 29th, 2008)


There is some news about what is going to happen to the Salt Building, which for lack of a better description is the big red wooden barn in the middle of the Olympic Village. Jlousa posted the following.

Some info on what will probably take place with the Salt Building, it also looks like they are favoring raising the whole building between 37-45 inches.

Highlights of the SBRC Proposal include:
• meets all requirements of the Request For Proposal (with the exception of Project financing)
• a sustainability strategy to restore the building in line with Parks Canada guidelines to conserve where possible and to achieve LEED Gold equivalent;
• the heritage restoration will focus on preservation and rehabilitation while respecting the character-defining elements of the building as identified in the “Statement of Significance”;
• a comprehensive business proposal that includes:
o a Brew Pub and Restaurant” to be operated by the Mark James Group comprising approximately 7,000 square feet inside the building and approximately 1,400 square feet over the basement at the north end of the building as a covered,
outdoor patio area; and
o an “Artesian Bakery” (1,000 sq ft) and “Coffee House” (2,000 sq ft),
with additional uses such as a newsstand and wine shop also being considered given the size of the space;
• a mezzanine and north extension considered for the future at SBRC’s sole cost and expense, depending on demand for additional space;
• dedication of approximately 30% of the building area to public access and uses throughout the building, including a proposal to provide educational and interpretive activities related to the building and the SEFC area.
• design work will contemplate: (1) opportunities to reveal the original piles; (2) maximizing the viewing opportunities of the roof truss system; and (3) limiting the door and window penetrations on the east and west building facades; and


Salt Building
http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/6666/p1050344co5.jpg
(My photo, taken January 29th, 2008)

[mr.x]

Olympic Village construction site and surrounding areas, taken today by zivan56:


http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3430.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3444.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3460.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3462.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3466.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3467.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3472.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3473.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3480.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3485.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3489.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3490.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3492.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3502.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3505.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3515.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3516.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3520.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3521.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3522.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3526.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3528.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3531.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3532.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3540.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3544.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3552.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3557.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3561.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3564.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3566.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3569.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3574.jpg
http://www.iwdstudio.com/pictures/SEFCandMISC/DSCF3581.jpg

[Vancouverite]

A Valentine's Day photo from Flickr of downtown Vancouver with the Olympic Village under construction at the lower left side.

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/4638/2264246117f3ed6794a1bkq7.jpg
Source (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bsoleil/2264246117/in/set-72157603907234294/)
The photographer: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bsoleil/


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2299/2213565206_a5f454349e_b.jpg
source (http://www.flickr.com/photos/borderfilms/2213565206/in/set-72157603780919127/)
The photographer: http://www.flickr.com/photos/borderfilms/

[Skyscrapercitizen]

One word about this city: Insane.

[Vancouverite]

The first building (condos, 12 or 13 storeys) of the Olympic Village is about to reach the half-way point.
http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/462/p1050519mg2.jpg
(My photo, taken February 23rd, 2008)

The first of many mid-block pedestrian mews takes form.
http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/5919/p1050517aq8.jpg
(My photo, taken February 23rd, 2008)

The second building (market rentals and non-market family housing, 5 or 6 storeys)
http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/1705/p1050516pu4.jpg
(My photo, taken February 23rd, 2008)

At the other end of the site a third building is above grade. This one is a 12 storey condo tower and it and the first one from the set act as tall "bookends" of the Olympic Village precinct. On either side of these towers will be a "hinge park", a roughly triangular park to ease the transition in street grid orientations.
http://img172.imageshack.us/img172/5021/p1050510mw2.jpg
(My photo, taken February 23rd, 2008)

[jerseyboi]

looks amazing Canada! from here in blighty ( thats the UK !)
lets hope London can do as good!

--------------------------------------
www.2012olympichost.com

http://2012olympic.proboards42.com/index.cgi

[canucker16]

i absolutely love this development. smart planning. what a perfect opportunity for the gentrification of this area.

[nazrey]

Cepco in talks on Winter Olympic indoor stadium
by Yantoultra Ngui Yichen, 28 Feb 2008 4:30 PM
THEEDGEDAILY (http://www.theedgedaily.com/cms/content.jsp?id=com.tms.cms.article.Article_5f29b516-cb73c03a-1d7b2220-e3fdfed5)

KUALA LUMPUR: Concrete Engineering Products Bhd (Cepco) is in talks with Canada on the development of the indoor stadium for the Winter Olympic 2010 in Vancouver, said its managing director Nelson Leong.

“It is still in the enquiring stage though, like how much it is to produce the piles, and how much it is to ship to Vancouver,” he told reporters after Cepco’s AGM here yesterday.

On the value of the contract, he said it would only be confirmed by the end of this month, adding that it would make the necessary announcement when the deal was finalised.

The pre-stressed spun concrete piles and poles manufacturer was currently focusing on the export market such as the Middle East especially Iran, said Leong.

Currently, its revenue contribution from exports was 15% and it expected export sales to increase in tandem with its overseas expansion plan, he added.

Leong said Cepco had an outstanding order book of RM80 million, which would keep the company busy until the end of this fiscal year ending Aug 31, 2008 (FY08).

On the local front, Leong said Cepco was confident of securing a RM150 million contract from UEM Builders Bhd to supply marine piles for the second Penang bridge project.

“Our marine piles were successfully tested for the second Penang bridge in July last year,” he said.

He added that three points along the site of the bridge were tested with its 1,000mm diameter marine piles and they all passed the respective tests.

Apart from the bridge project, Leong said Cepco was also bidding for contracts in the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP) projects such as the electric double-tracking rail project.

There are only two players in the spun concrete pile industry locally, with its only competitor being Industrial Concrete Product Bhd (ICP).

Cepco has four plants located in Sungai Petani, Pasir Gudang, Rawang and Nilai, with an annual production capacity of 830,000 tonnes in total.

For its first quarter ended Nov 30, 2007, Cepco’s net profit surged 227.5% to RM1.41 million from RM433,000 a year earlier on the back of improved demand and delivery of its products.

[isaidso]

Cepco in talks on Winter Olympic indoor stadium
by Yantoultra Ngui Yichen, 28 Feb 2008 4:30 PM
THEEDGEDAILY (http://www.theedgedaily.com/cms/content.jsp?id=com.tms.cms.article.Article_5f29b516-cb73c03a-1d7b2220-e3fdfed5)

KUALA LUMPUR: Concrete Engineering Products Bhd (Cepco) is in talks with Canada on the development of the indoor stadium for the Winter Olympic 2010 in Vancouver, said its managing director Nelson Leong.


Development of the indoor stadium? In talks? Almost everything has been built already so I'm not sure what contracts you are referring to. The opening and closing ceremonies will be staged at 60,000 seat BC Place, but that is 27 years old. Cepco is rather late in getting a piece of that construction project. What exactly are they bidding on? BC Place may be doing a roof replacement, but that would likely be a fabric roof.

As you can see, it's built already:

From LeftCoaster:
http://www.bcplacestadium.com/images/big_bcplace.jpg

http://www.bcplacestadium.com/images/big_expo86openingceremonies.jpg
Please elaborate, because at this point, your post seems more like a crude attempt at bolstering foreign perceptions of Malaysian industry and providing corporate financial statements. This isn't even the Athlete's Village. That's what this thread is pertaining to.

[mr.x]

^ there are rumours that this article is related to renovations for BC Place. It is possible that this news is about ongoing negotiations for Olympic renovations to BC Place....possibly cauldron or roof related.

[Vancouverite]

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/4237/p1050820pq9.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 12th, 2008

http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/5561/p1050843sc0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 12th, 2008

[Vancouverite]

The Olympic Village construction precinct from the Cambie Street Bridge.

http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/6360/olympicvillagefromcambiqm6.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


The Dragon Boat people are out on the water, one more sure sign that spring is upon us.

http://img174.imageshack.us/img174/9053/dragonboatsinfalsecreekgw9.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


A very low tide today. Habitat Island appears to have doubled in size. The daylighted stream will empty into the creek through this micro bay so there should always be some water present here in the future. For now the stream is damed and the water is being pumped into the creek on the other side of the island.

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/1379/habitatislandatlowtimeszd6.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


The first mide-rise tower has reached about the three-quarters mark.

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/5336/olympicvillageconstructxa0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


More outdoor furniture. I don't like these ones. They seem like unsuccessful knockoffs of the chair sculptures at Sunset Beach by the concession stand, which were actually part of the sculpture biannale. More than anything these items clutter up the boardwalk.

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/7817/olympicvillagestreetfurin2.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


Some dark metal obelisks have been added to the south side of the mini-bay. I like the enclosure they offer. They also appear to have lighting of some sort at the top.

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/347/olympicvillagemainbaycomy0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


A closer view of the sentinels. They appear to be quite shiny and almost a dark, burnished maroon brass colour. I like them. They are my favourite element of the industrial motif of the site, public memory and all.

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/4839/olympicvillagesteelsentoq9.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


A single steel sentinel. The glass tube in the centre sure looks like a light to me.

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/5610/olympicvillagesteelsentjr1.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


The north shore mountains were spectacular this evening. Minutes before I took this shot the thick snow clouds were pushed up and over the mountains to reveal this scene. I love this city.

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/6791/northshoremountainsfromml3.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


Construction happenings on the eastern half of the Olympic Village as seen from 1st Avenue, looking east. There was a fairly big pour going on when I was by. A pair of those giant semi-trailer-type concrete ready mix trucks were feeding the pumper and two more were waiting in the wings with their engines roaring.

http://img406.imageshack.us/img406/3139/olympicvillagesecornerndi4.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


The Salt Building and the western half of the Olympic Village from 1st Avenue, looking west.

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/3020/saltbldgandwesternolympoi0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


A block or two west one comes across some of the first projects going up in the larger Southeast False Creek precinct. On the left is Foundry, a mid-rise tower and townhouse podium. On the right the red brick building is part of The Exchange, a new heritage conversion project that will incorporate a new mid-rise building and convert the old building into lofts. That building was once housed one of Vancouver's original telephone exchanges, hence the name.

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/9413/foundryandtheexchangeseqz0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken March 27th, 2008.


Also, the City of Vancouver has approved the demonstration streetcar project that will link Granville Island and its public market, theatres, galleries, etc., with the new SkyTrain rapid transit line via the Olympic Village station. Once the Olympics are over, and the funding for the larger streetcar project is acquired, the route will continue as indicated below. It will travel along 1st Avenue through the Olympic Village precinct in a central grass median.

http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/2327/streetcarpdf1op1.jpg
http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/7249/streetcarpdf2yf5.jpg
Source (http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/transport/streetcar/pdfs/streetcarfactsheet-mar12.pdf)

I cut off the link in the second pdf: www.vancouver.ca/streetcar

[Vancouverite]

Olympic Village, False Creek, and Downtown Vancouver panorama (my photos, composed in photoshop with the help of autostitch (http://www.cs.ubc.ca/~mbrown/autostitch/autostitch.html))
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/2484/olympicvillageanddowntoez3.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

A panorama I made of the Olympic Village as seen from the north side of False Creek. (hand stitched in photoshop)
http://img255.imageshack.us/img255/6311/olympicvillagepanoramacmp1.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

The City of Vancouver's Olympic Village Community Centre is coming along. This is the single level of underground parking for the centre.
http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/142/olympicvillagecommunitysl1.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

One of two adjacent public piazzas awaits the attention of the stone masons.
http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/9785/olympicvillagepiazzaaprxa0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

Arthur Erickson's pair of torquing low-rise ultra-luxury condos.
http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/9234/ericksonsolympicvillagema3.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

The mini harbour (we seriously need to start naming these places) and the corner of the Olympic Village that is furthest along.
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/4418/olympicvilalgesteelsentpi0.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

Frenzied construction.
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/2471/olympicvillageconstructfi1.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

More frenzied construction, this time looking between Arthur Erickson's two buildings towards the southwest corner of the Olympic Village and the mid-rise tower that is furthest along in its construction.
http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/5781/olympicvilalgeericksonbro9.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.

This is a corner of one of Arthur Erickson's twisting condos. It is a little hard to discern but the column is angled and each floor plate is slightly askew of the one below it. It will become a lot more clear in a couple months.
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/9196/olympicvillageericksonbxm7.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 12th, 2008.


A couple from the Cambie Street Bridge taken a couple days earlier on the 10th of April.

The Olympic Village as seen from the deck of the Cambie Street Bridge
http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/6428/olympicvillageapril1020nj7.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 10th, 2008.

Foundry, one block over from the Olympic Village and part of the larger Southeast False Creek precinct.
http://img81.imageshack.us/img81/8598/foundrysefcapril102008svu7.jpg
http://creativecommons.org/images/public/somerights20.png (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.5/ca/) My photo, taken April 10th, 2008.

[schema cycle]

Anyone know who the landscape architects and firms are for this project? I can't seem to find the info anywhere.

Also, does anyone have any updated pics??

[hkskyline]

Vancouver takes over financial control of $254.2 million 2010 Winter Olympics athletes village
19 February 2009

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - Vancouver taxpayers are on the hook for $254.2 million to complete construction of the 2010 Winter Olympics athletes village.

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said the city has bought out the remainder of village financing from New York-based hedge fund Fortress Investment Inc.

The purchase means the city becomes the lender to Millennium Development, which is building the 1,110-unit village to house the athletes.

Fortress stopped payment on its $633-million construction loan in the fall.

The city said Fortress backed out due to cost overruns, and a crashing real estate market meant Millennium Development might not be able to pay them back.

The city stepped in with $84.3 million interim financing to keep construction going, but that funding runs out next month.

Robertson said Fortress was bought out on terms that will save the city $71.7 million compared to the Fortress deal.

The city had to pay Fortress a $3.2 million early payment penalty, city councilor Geoff Meggs said.

Robertson said Vancouver's reputation was at risk over the issue.

"This change allows us to put our focus for this project where it belongs -- getting the site ready to turn over to (Olympic organizers) and become the athlete's village for the 2010 Games," Robertson said.

Vancouver Games' organizing committee executive vice president of construction Dan Doyle said in a statement that organizers are confident the city will deliver on its commitment to deliver the village on schedule.

The city had to go to the provincial legislature last month for an amendment to its charter to allow it to get a loan for the buyout.

Much of the athletes village was planned to be sold as housing after the Games to recoup costs. But Vancouver's housing market has slumped, and construction costs have risen.

Chris Shaw of the watchdog group 2010 Watch fears the city won't be able to recoup its costs and could face bankruptcy over the village.

"They can cut services, raise taxes, and they can pray. Those are the options," Shaw said.

Fortress told Millennium it would not advance further funds as the loan was "out of balance."

Games security costs also remain an ongoing concern.

The cost originally was estimated at $140 million to be split between the provincial and federal governments.

The Canadian government has since acknowledged that cost could be as high as $797 million.

However, when the latest Canadian budget was released Jan. 27, there were no Olympic security numbers.

[hkskyline]

Vancouver seeks funding for Olympic village
22 January 2009

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - Vancouver city councillors approved a new budget report on Thursday to enable the city to take over the remaining cost of getting an athlete's village built in time for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The budget report, devised after the original financing fell through, said interest would be lower if the city assumed control of the development.

The British Columbia provincial government was forced to step in to approve new emergency funding measures after the project's original lender, New-York-based hedge fund Fortress Investment Inc., stopped payment on its $633-million construction loan in the autumn.

The city said Fortress reneged on its loan due to cost overruns and a crashing real estate market meant the project's developer, Millennium Development, might not be able to pay them back.

The city stepped in with $84.3 million in interim financing to keep construction going, but that funding runs out next month.

Vancouver had the choice of trying to renegotiate with Fortress or take over the development at a current operating budget of about $1.28 billion.

This week, British Columbia allowed Vancouver to borrow at least $350 million to complete the village.

The new budget report said if the city assumes control of the development, it will also enable Vancouver to meet its commitment to the organizing committee to complete the village on time.

The city's approval of the report wasn't without criticism from some residents who are convinced that taxpayers will be left footing the bill for the billion dollar development if the residential units can't be sold at the right price.

[hkskyline]

Vancouver wins right to borrow money to finish Olympic village
18 January 2009
Agence France Presse

Canadian lawmakers gave Vancouver, host of the 2010 winter Olympics, the power Sunday to borrow nearly half a billion dollars to finish its Olympic Athlete’s Village.

With just 13 months left before the games, the global financial crisis has threatened construction of the 875-million dollar (Canadian) facility with 1,100 housing units. The project’s New York lenders, Fortress Investment Group, cut off funding last fall to the private developer of the village, leaving Vancouver on the hook to guarantee the project.

The city is in negotiations with Millenium and Fortress.

But because Vancouver’s legal structure prevented it from borrowing the money without a public referendum, the city’s mayor asked the province of British Columbia to amend the city’s charter.

Provincial politicians unanimously agreed after a bitter 20-hour emergency weekend sitting of the legislature. Changing the city’s charter will "protect taxpayers and keep workers working at the Olympic village," said British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell.

The vote is the latest political crisis in Canada’s westernmost province involving the 2010 Olympics.

New Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson, whose left-wing party won the city election in a landslide last fall on promises to deal with homelessness, has accused the previous city administration of mismanagement of the Olympic village.

During debate Saturday, provincial opposition leader Carole James said the Olympics will cost billions of dollars in direct and indirect costs, and charged the governing B.C. Liberal with a "culture of secrecy and government arrogance (that) shut taxpayers out, and treated citizens as if they have an unlimited amount of money."

James’s New Democratic Party and Campbell’s B.C. Liberal Party are running neck to neck in opinion polls prior to the province’s general election next May.

[hkskyline]

Olympic Village problems ask some never-again questions
17 January 2009
Vancouver Sun

If you are a Vancouver property owner you should know by now that you and your fellow ratepayers are pretty deep into the real estate development business. Oh, and by the way, business isn't that great today.

Like many developers today, you are suddenly being confronted with the realities of the Olympic village development -- a risky business made even riskier during a world-wide economic tsunami. The ride can be a frightening experience when the markets are moving downward. Hold on tight.

It's normal business for city governments to collect property taxes, pay people to maintain roads and sewers and plan land use. Usually cities don't actually develop land.

With the veil of secrecy that until recent days almost shrouded all the details of the Olympic Village development you can be forgiven for not realizing your city councillors actually got into the development business, spending your tax dollars and pledging your collective assets to a multi-billion-dollar real estate development project that from the outset seemed risky at best.

But with real financing problems and a new council having to face the realities of meeting the commitment to deliver the housing for Olympic athletes only months from now, general details of the project are surfacing.

They paint a not so pretty picture.

How much trouble are taxpayers in? Has the Millennium development company provided enough collateral security to the city to protect taxpayers from ever having to actually spend tax dollars to cover project losses?

Will the city ever recoup the actual costs of assembling and developing the Southeast False Creek lands?

These are all valid questions and ones that need to be answered if taxpayers are going to ever know how pretty, or not, the deal ends up being. But they are not easy to answer today.

So far, only a few people at city hall have all of the details. Only the general details have been made public, so speculating on the eventual outcome of what has become a very complex business deal is as risky as the venture itself.

Meanwhile, eventual market conditions will largely influence the final outcome. None of us have a crystal ball that reveals the future of the real estate market.

However, with these details still to come, perhaps it is time to start to formulate a couple of key questions that should be part of the public dialogue now. These questions can help everyone learn from this whole experience.

You might ask at the outset: how did the city get into the Olympic Village development and the larger real-estate play that encompasses the other 68 acres of taxpayer-owned land in Southeast False Creek?

It's ironic the city has risked taxpayer dollars by getting into the one game that seems to have almost obsessed Vancouverites over the last five or six years -- the condominium "game.''

There's probably a big lesson in that reality.

Perhaps we've turned the business of building, selling and buying homes in which people might live into something that it isn't and shouldn't be. Buying a home -- a roof over your head -- shouldn't be some kind of exercise in mass consumerism and a speculative sport. Enough said on that one.

When the city committed to VANOC, the organizer of the 2010 Games, to deliver the athlete's village for the Olympics, few probably realized city hall was writing a blank cheque. That whole issue can be debated when we are doing the post-mortem on the Games.

The second question that needs to be asked is: should local government, or any government for that matter, be in the real estate development business?

Vancouver's city council determined quite a number of years ago that Southeast False Creek would become a showcase project for sustainable urban development. Councillors decided the city would be the land developer, selling land to residential and mixed-use building developers to generate a return to the city's Property Endowment Fund.

The Southeast False Creek development is larger than anything the city had ventured into in the past as a land developer using the PEF.

What business expertise resides in city hall to negotiate a complex business deal of this magnitude with sophisticated private sector developers?

Are the governance systems at city hall, with councillors doing little due diligence of their own and relying solely on staff assurances robust enough to protect taxpayers?

When councillors voted to approve the sale of the Olympic Village lands to Millennium in April of 2006, they relied on a staff report that stated that Millennium's purchase price was "guaranteed to the city with no risk-sharing" and Millennium presented a financing plan for the project that was ''independent of market conditions . . . and does not ask the city to assume any of the marketing or financing risk in the development."

What knowledge and business experience resides in city hall sufficient for a senior member of staff to make such a declaration?

If these questions can be debated and answered as this project continues to unfold, perhaps the city might be better able to manage the final outcome of this project to minimize negative impacts on taxpayers.

Let's hope.

[Mo Rush]

Olympic Village problems ask some never-again questions
17 January 2009
Vancouver Sun

If you are a Vancouver property owner you should know by now that you and your fellow ratepayers are pretty deep into the real estate development business. Oh, and by the way, business isn't that great today.

Like many developers today, you are suddenly being confronted with the realities of the Olympic village development -- a risky business made even riskier during a world-wide economic tsunami. The ride can be a frightening experience when the markets are moving downward. Hold on tight.

It's normal business for city governments to collect property taxes, pay people to maintain roads and sewers and plan land use. Usually cities don't actually develop land.

With the veil of secrecy that until recent days almost shrouded all the details of the Olympic Village development you can be forgiven for not realizing your city councillors actually got into the development business, spending your tax dollars and pledging your collective assets to a multi-billion-dollar real estate development project that from the outset seemed risky at best.

But with real financing problems and a new council having to face the realities of meeting the commitment to deliver the housing for Olympic athletes only months from now, general details of the project are surfacing.

They paint a not so pretty picture.

How much trouble are taxpayers in? Has the Millennium development company provided enough collateral security to the city to protect taxpayers from ever having to actually spend tax dollars to cover project losses?

Will the city ever recoup the actual costs of assembling and developing the Southeast False Creek lands?

These are all valid questions and ones that need to be answered if taxpayers are going to ever know how pretty, or not, the deal ends up being. But they are not easy to answer today.

So far, only a few people at city hall have all of the details. Only the general details have been made public, so speculating on the eventual outcome of what has become a very complex business deal is as risky as the venture itself.

Meanwhile, eventual market conditions will largely influence the final outcome. None of us have a crystal ball that reveals the future of the real estate market.

However, with these details still to come, perhaps it is time to start to formulate a couple of key questions that should be part of the public dialogue now. These questions can help everyone learn from this whole experience.

You might ask at the outset: how did the city get into the Olympic Village development and the larger real-estate play that encompasses the other 68 acres of taxpayer-owned land in Southeast False Creek?

It's ironic the city has risked taxpayer dollars by getting into the one game that seems to have almost obsessed Vancouverites over the last five or six years -- the condominium "game.''

There's probably a big lesson in that reality.

Perhaps we've turned the business of building, selling and buying homes in which people might live into something that it isn't and shouldn't be. Buying a home -- a roof over your head -- shouldn't be some kind of exercise in mass consumerism and a speculative sport. Enough said on that one.

When the city committed to VANOC, the organizer of the 2010 Games, to deliver the athlete's village for the Olympics, few probably realized city hall was writing a blank cheque. That whole issue can be debated when we are doing the post-mortem on the Games.

The second question that needs to be asked is: should local government, or any government for that matter, be in the real estate development business?

Vancouver's city council determined quite a number of years ago that Southeast False Creek would become a showcase project for sustainable urban development. Councillors decided the city would be the land developer, selling land to residential and mixed-use building developers to generate a return to the city's Property Endowment Fund.

The Southeast False Creek development is larger than anything the city had ventured into in the past as a land developer using the PEF.

What business expertise resides in city hall to negotiate a complex business deal of this magnitude with sophisticated private sector developers?

Are the governance systems at city hall, with councillors doing little due diligence of their own and relying solely on staff assurances robust enough to protect taxpayers?

When councillors voted to approve the sale of the Olympic Village lands to Millennium in April of 2006, they relied on a staff report that stated that Millennium's purchase price was "guaranteed to the city with no risk-sharing" and Millennium presented a financing plan for the project that was ''independent of market conditions . . . and does not ask the city to assume any of the marketing or financing risk in the development."

What knowledge and business experience resides in city hall sufficient for a senior member of staff to make such a declaration?

If these questions can be debated and answered as this project continues to unfold, perhaps the city might be better able to manage the final outcome of this project to minimize negative impacts on taxpayers.

Let's hope.

what exactly is your point posting old news articles several times and posting the same article in the same thread each and every time?

please explain

[hkskyline]

Notice the dates are different. There is a story of progression even though the themes are similar. Wish someone would update this thread more regularly before the Games actually arrive. I'd like to see some pictures.

[Mo Rush]

yes and both dates are about 6 months ago.
news updates are great but keep them recent and if you've posted one article relating to a topic, no need to post three others about the same thing.