2121
Global
Height rank

Shangri-La Vancouver

Vancouver
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    Metrics
Height 200.9 m / 659 ft
Floors 59
Official Name
The current legal building name.

Shangri-La Vancouver

Other Names
Other names the building has commonly been known as, including former names, common informal names, local names, etc.

Living Shangri-La

Type
CTBUH collects data on two major types of tall structures: 'Buildings' and 'Telecommunications / Observation Towers.' A 'Building' is a structure where at least 50% of the height is occupied by usable floor area. A 'Telecommunications / Observation Tower' is a structure where less than 50% of the structure's height is occupied by usable floor area. Only 'Buildings' are eligible for the CTBUH 'Tallest Buildings' lists.

Building

Status
Completed
Architecturally Topped Out
Structurally Topped Out
Under Construction
Proposed
On Hold
Never Completed
Vision
Competition Entry
Canceled
Proposed Renovation
Under Renovation
Renovated
Under Demolition
Demolished

Completed

Completion

2009

Country
The CTBUH follows the United Nations's definition of Country, and thus uses the lists and codes established by that organization.

Canada

City
The CTBUH follows the United Nations's definition of City, and thus uses the lists and codes established by that organization.

Vancouver

Function
A single-function tall building is defined as one where 85% or more of its usable floor area is dedicated to a single usage. Thus a building with 90% office floor area would be said to be an "office" building, irrespective of other minor functions it may also contain.

A mixed-use tall building contains two or more functions (or uses), where each of the functions occupy a significant proportion of the tower's total space. Support areas such as car parks and mechanical plant space do not constitute mixed-use functions. Functions are denoted on CTBUH "Tallest Building" lists in descending order, e.g., "hotel/office" indicates hotel function above office function.

Residential / Hotel / Office

Structural Material
All-Steel
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from steel. Note that a building of steel construction with a floor system of concrete planks or concrete slab on top of steel beams is still considered an “all-steel” structure as the concrete elements are not acting as the primary structure.

All-Concrete
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from concrete which has been cast in place and utilizes steel reinforcement bars and/or steel reinforced concrete which has been precast as individual components and assembled together on-site.

All-Timber
Both the main vertical/lateral structural elements and the floor spanning systems are constructed from timber. An all-timber structure may include the use of localized non-timber connections between timber elements. Note that a building of timber construction with a floor system of concrete planks or concrete slab on top of timber beams is still considered an “all-timber” structure as the concrete elements are not acting as the primary structure.

Mixed-Structure
Utilizes distinct systems (e.g. all-steel, all-concrete, all-timber), one on top of the other. For example, a Steel Over Concrete indicates an all-steel structural system located on top of an all-concrete structural system, with the opposite true of Concrete Over Steel.

Composite
A combination of materials (e.g. steel, concrete, timber) are used together in the main structural elements. Examples include buildings which utilize: steel columns with a floor system of reinforced concrete beams; a steel frame system with a concrete core; concrete-encased steel columns; concrete-filled steel tubes; etc. Where known, the CTBUH database breaks out the materials used within a composite building’s primary structural elements.

All-Concrete

Height
Architectural
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the architectural top of the building, including spires, but not including antennae, signage, flag poles or other functional-technical equipment. This measurement is the most widely utilized and is employed to define the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) rankings of the "World's Tallest Buildings."

200.9 m / 659 ft

To Tip
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest point of the building, irrespective of material or function of the highest element (i.e., including antennae, flagpoles, signage and other functional-technical equipment).
200.9 m / 659 ft
Occupied
Height is measured from the level of the lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance to the highest occupied floor within the building.
188.5 m / 619 ft
Floors Above Ground
The number of floors above ground should include the ground floor level and be the number of main floors above ground, including any significant mezzanine floors and major mechanical plant floors. Mechanical mezzanines should not be included if they have a significantly smaller floor area than the major floors below. Similarly, mechanical penthouses or plant rooms protruding above the general roof area should not be counted. Note: CTBUH floor counts may differ from published accounts, as it is common in some regions of the world for certain floor levels not to be included (e.g., the level 4, 14, 24, etc. in Hong Kong).

59

Floors Below Ground
The number of floors below ground should include all major floors located below the ground floor level.

7

# of Apartments
Number of Apartments refers to the total number of residential units (including both rental units and condominiums) contained within a particular building.

300

# of Hotel Rooms
Number of Hotel Rooms refers to the total number of hotel rooms contained within a particular building.

119

# of Elevators
Number of Elevators refers to the total number of elevator cars (not shafts) contained within a particular building (including public, private and freight elevators).

13

Tower GFA
Tower GFA refers to the total gross floor area within the tower footprint, not including adjoining podiums, connected buildings or other towers within the development.

61,300 m² / 659,828 ft²

Rankings

#
2121
Tallest in the World
#
288
Tallest in North America
#
37
Tallest in Canada
#
1
Tallest in Vancouver

Construction Schedule

2002

Proposed

2005

Construction Start

2009

Completed

Structural Engineer
Design

The Design Engineer is usually involved in the front end design, typically taking the leadership role in the Schematic Design and Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

Other Consultant

Other Consultant refers to other organizations which provided significant consultation services for a building project (e.g. wind consultants, environmental consultants, fire and life safety consultants, etc).

Wind
Owner/Developer
KBK #1 Ventures Ltd.
Architect
Design

Usually involved in the front end design, with a "typical" condition being that of a leadership role through either Schematic Design or Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

James KM Cheng Architects
Architect of Record

Usually takes on the balance of the architectural effort not executed by the "Design Architect," typically responsible for the construction documents, conforming to local codes, etc. May often be referred to as "Executive," "Associate," or "Local" Architect, however, for consistency CTBUH uses the term "Architect of Record" exclusively.

Dawn Guspie
Structural Engineer
Design

The Design Engineer is usually involved in the front end design, typically taking the leadership role in the Schematic Design and Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

DIALOG; Jones Kwong Kishi Consulting
MEP Engineer
Design

The Design Engineer is usually involved in the front end design, typically taking the leadership role in the Schematic Design and Design Development, and then a monitoring role through the CD and CA phases.

Sterling, Cooper & Associates
Contractor
Main Contractor

The main contractor is the supervisory contractor of all construction work on a project, management of sub-contractors and vendors, etc. May be referred to as "Construction Manager," however, for consistency CTBUH uses the term "Main Contractor" exclusively.

Ledcor Construction Limited
Other Consultant

Other Consultant refers to other organizations which provided significant consultation services for a building project (e.g. wind consultants, environmental consultants, fire and life safety consultants, etc).

Vertical Transportation
Fujitec America, Inc.
Wind
Material Supplier

Material Supplier refers to organizations which supplied significant systems/materials for a building project (e.g. elevator suppliers, facade suppliers, etc).

Plumbing
VICTAULIC

About Shangri-La Vancouver

The site of Shangri-La Vancouver is located in a transitional area between the central business district and a predominantly residential area to the west. Although a mixed-use building reflects this transition, the tower design de-emphasizes the different uses to present a unified, restrained language.

The site is significant, being one of only two downtown properties where a tower development could be located outside all restrictive city view cones, and thus qualify for the maximum discretionary height increase. These view cones preserve views of the local North Shore Mountains from various strategic vantage points around Vancouver. The view cone boundary cuts diagonally across the eastern side of the lot, restricting the tower to the eastern corner. Respecting that diagonal view cone line was the main influence on the tower’s wedge-shaped form.

Of the 121m (396ft) long site, only the eastern most 30m (100ft) could be developed to full height. This allowed for an extensive podium and plaza complex to be constructed. To animate the street front around the tower, substantial amenity space has been built facing outward toward the street to engage the pedestrian. The space includes a spa, retail tenancies, and a public art site. A “bamboo grove” was planted along an outdoor stair which leads to additional upper level restaurant space. Green roofs are planted on the podium roofs as well as two private roof gardens for use by the residents of the tower.

The corner façades present a formal appearance of floating glass planes, animated by a pattern of square luminescent panels off-set from the glass skin. They are a composite comprised of a luminescent coating, chromatic film and textured glass that absorb energy from daylight and surrounding light sources and then glow from that energy in the evening. They change color when viewed from different vantage points and under different weather conditions. These luminescent grids are intended as veils, held off the glass surface on the corner façades and in practical terms, they conceal the building exhaust vents in the curtain wall skin behind. They required no wiring and consume no energy.