Project Tag: Public

Arbutus Centre Redevelopment

The redevelopment of the Arbutus Centre Shopping Plaza resulted in a highly mixed-use urban village. The new buildings incorporate major retail uses including a supermarket, liquor store, and banking at ground level, a neighbourhood house facility, dance studios, and more, paired with a significant number of new rental and social housing units above – all sharing an underground parkade. Shepherding both the first two phases from rezoning to development permit, we reconciled complex programmatic demands into a form that celebrates the street-level experience with active street edges and a new plaza space.

Each residential portion is focused around a highly-landscaped courtyard space and both buildings provide shared rooftop patios for residents. Projects like the Arbutus Centre Redevelopment showcase the interplay with the public realm and careful attention to the public/private transition.

For Arbutus Centre Phase 1 and 2, Adrian Politano was co-designer, working on design development and entitlement documentation.

Related Work

See All

False Creek Towers

Located in beautiful False Creek, beside Vancouver’s seawall, these twin towers fit delicately into a view cone that triangulates the site. The design intent was for the buildings to frame a public park between them, while animating these spaces with active home fronts.

Roofs were shaped to bring rooftop water down the sides of the building, a rarity in tower design. Curving ends were intended to ‘deflect’ traffic on the nearby bridge ramp. Subsequent design changes by others resulted in material, massing, and colour changes.

Alan Boniface was design partner and lead designer for Development Permit.

Related Work

See All

CBC Building

The renovation of the CBC building in Vancouver focused on connecting various CBC functional components, such as the newsroom and the summer concerts, to Hamilton and Georgia streets. Significant underground renovations were made, as well as planning of the private residential and retail lands on Robson Street. The newsroom was designed to engage with this significant public intersection and a public area was created to watch CBC programming at the entry.

The concrete structure was augmented with structural additions and new public and retail spaces.

Alan Boniface was principal in charge and design partner. He led the early design process and the Development Permit process for the residential
and retail lands.

Related Work

See All

Charge Barge

A future that involves electric ferries docking just steps away from BOP’s Coal Harbour office is real, thanks to Greenline and their proposed ferry service connecting Gibsons, Bowen Island, and Vancouver, which is on track to launch in 2027. Passionate about sustainability and connecting people seamlessly from shore to shore, BOP gladly jumped on board to help create the “charge barge” design. The charge barge is a self-contained floating terminal that expands docking capacity and transfers power to vessels during docking periods.

The first charge barge location will be just outside Gibsons Landing with an eye to reusing the design for other harbours. BOP is proud to support this bold step towards sustainable maritime mobility in our region and bring us closer to our coastal neighbours. Projects like this remind us that our work isn’t just about designing buildings – it’s about contributing to a larger network of living, working, moving, and recreating, supported by structures and systems of all kinds.

Langara

Situated in the unceded traditional territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), this project represents a unique partnership between local and First Nation stakeholders. The development will feature a variety of housing types, a community YMCA, an inclusive public realm, and pedestrian links to Langara College, the golf course, and the transit station. Guided by the wisdom and traditions of the Musqueam people, the project aims to create a unique intersection of community and inclusive living.

The design incorporates cascading gardens and gathering places, engaging residents and visitors in high-quality public spaces. Views to the south and the Fraser River visually connect the site to its elevated position. The design integrates Musqueam culture and history, culminating in a south-facing gathering place that enhances the pedestrian experience and links to Langara College.

Related Work

See All

River District Parcel 30

Located in Vancouver’s River District near the Fraser River, Parcel 30 is composed of two residential towers with a podium extension, joined by a single shared parkade. In response to its geographical context, this project is imagined as a tree sitting along the bank of the Fraser River, with a simple core ‘trunk’ and the slabs as ‘bows’ extending out to a lightened point. Like a misty morning on the riverbank, the building is shrouded in lightweight and lightly coloured screens and corrugated materials that obscure the structure behind with different levels of transparency depending on the perspective.

At grade, both buildings provide residential amenity space fronting the courtyard, while commercial retail spaces in the east building and ground-oriented flats in the west building further activate the streetscape. Masonry in warm, natural colours is used at lower down on the building to offer a more tactile and human-scaled experience, while the towers primarily employ cool-toned metal and glass to reinforce the mist-like effect.

Related Work

See All

Fraser Mills

Designed as an 82-acre mixed-use development, Fraser Mills is comprised of major employment nodes and light industry, as well as up to 5 million square feet of mixed residential uses, highlighted by a three-block Main Street leading to a waterfront pier at the Fraser River Edge.

Flood mitigation and river edge rehabilitation is a major part of this design. The project was focused on two kilometres of continuous publicly-accessible waterfront and a two-acre park.

Alan Boniface was principal in charge and lead designer/planner.

Related Work

See All

Planning Projects

(1) Cowichan First Nation
(2) Diamond Ave
(3) Bowen Island Seymour Landing
(4) Leq’á:mel First Nation Deroche
(5) Westbank First Nation Kelowna

Urban design and planning are essential to the creation of healthy vibrant cities. Because of this, we believe in focusing our practice on the large and small city-making undertakings that truly make a difference. We combine this with our core architectural practice to continue our goal of creating locally focused vibrant communities. In our work we have also found that smaller oftentimes forgotten, communities, especially some First Nations communities, benefit greatly from this wholistic approach.

We believe that the best urban environments are vibrant, sustainable, walkable, and designed to grow with the community itself. We work closely with our clients and partners to bring their vision to life, creating joyful, livable neighbourhoods and connected communities.

Related Work

See All

JJ Bean

Featured locations: Bidwell, Cambie, Dunsmuir, False Creek, Fraser, Lonsdale (North Van), Marine Building, St. Clair (Toronto)
Not pictured: Railway, Adelaide (Toronto)

JJ Bean built its brand on providing great service, great coffee and food, and great spaces. To deliver great spaces, each location is unique and responds to the neighbourhood or the building it finds itself in. Our work on ten locations in Vancouver and Toronto makes the history, character, and found condition the inspiration for the design.

Each location seeks to provide a memorable and highly particular experience. From a contemporary interpretation of Art-Deco ornament at the iconic Marine Building to an abstracted walk along a forest hiking trail at the Lonsdale store, each design finds a way to link the interior to local character.

Adrian Politano was involved with design, documentation, and construction admin.

Related Work

See All