CALGARY | Manulife | 124 M / 408 FT | 27 Floors - Page 2

fusili · #21 Posted **Nov 20, 2013, 7:34 PM**

I really like it, but I am always a bit hesitant about a ground floor that has no active uses. Sure it is a beautiful lobby, stunning even, but it is just a lobby. It doesn't create any activity other than people going to elevator banks. A render can show a bunch of people loitering around and make it look vibrant, but unless there is an actual reason for people to be there, they won't.

CorporateWhore · #22 Posted **Nov 20, 2013, 7:38 PM**

Agreed...with the LRT/Courthouse and park across the street....they could've at least put in a coffee shop or restaurant on the corner, and gotten pretty good use out of it.

Bokimon · #23 Posted **Nov 20, 2013, 7:40 PM**

Beauuty! It almost looks like a fish haha..9/10! 1 point deducted cuz its not tall enough.
I think there might be shadowing restrictions due to that courthouse square at the kitty corner which played factor in its final height. Similar deal to why EAP was chopped into a 2 tower project.

I am so glad we have global staples like SOM who can mix in a beautiful midrise tower in the downtown. Compare that to the Eau Claire Tower by Oxford, this is heads and shoulders above, and it tapers out too.

For too long the Calgary climate has had a fear of tampering with anything that is tried and tested from the 1970-1980s and seems to drill that down into the local architecture offices. It is now a habit to restrain imagination and comply with outdated realities thus frustrating countless young designers with M.Arch degrees who cannot use their education to the fullest and end up 'calling it a day' on the projects because they were told to make it simple and send it out for IFC as quickly as possible so these landlords can jump on the boom bandwagon and collect their dividends quicker.

Curved building cores, rounded corners, staggered atrium glazing placement along the main arc, and eyeball vestibules: THANK YOU SOM!! A product design fit for a London, New York, Shanghai, & Dubai market.
Sure this design has its risks too and its leasing efficiency is not in the high 90 percentile range that developers here are so obsessed with hence the boring boxes all over the place.
Those risks are counterbalanced by quality of product and much higher value in tenant experience. I guess having an anchor tenant might of had something to do with the bolder design.
Examples include Encana, and Telus.

Overall, an impressive high quality project in a narrow site condition. Yes agreed, Ground Retail would of been great too animating that large plaza a little bit. There may be some on the +15 level I suppose.

Design-mind · #24 Posted **Nov 20, 2013, 7:45 PM**

^^^ Sad that the height was restricted. This would have been a nice place marker on the West side. Still a very nice tower. Agree a 9/10!

Govertical · #25 Posted **Nov 20, 2013, 9:22 PM**

I love this tower. That rendering really shows how boxy the area is around it. I still think the site coulde be better utilized, but I really hope this one goes ahead!!

Chadillaccc · #26 Posted **Nov 20, 2013, 9:40 PM**

It would have been perfect at 153 meters (500 feet)... dang! Still a major win for architecture in Calgary though.

O-tacular · #27 Posted **Nov 21, 2013, 4:23 AM**

Looking at the floor plan of the main level I wonder if the building's shape may have hindered retail bays from going in? Reason being is it's already a pretty skinny building and it looks as though for continuity's sake they couldn't spare much extra room beyond the lobby and elevator banks. The alternative I guess would have been to get rid of the winter garden. I don't know about you guys but I think I would rather an at grade winter garden than some crappy Starbucks or newsstand. All in all this tower intrigues me quite a bit. Funny enough I'm having a harder time wrapping my head around how it will look in real life than even projects like Telus Sky. Those rounded edges could be really awesome! Nice counterbalance to projects like Herald Square.

O-tacular · #28 Posted **Nov 21, 2013, 4:26 AM**

Looking at the floor plan again I just noticed there is a retail bay at grade. It's in the same corner as the winter garden marked in red. Boo yah!

RyLucky · #29 Posted **Nov 21, 2013, 5:18 AM**

Nice. Good to see they're upgrading that bus stop and sidewalk. That +15 will be well-used. Great lobby and terraced sitting area too.

Surrealplaces · #30 Posted **Nov 21, 2013, 7:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

It would have been perfect at 153 meters (500 feet)... dang! Still a major win for architecture in Calgary though.

Agreed. Even an extra 100 feet would make it stand out so much more.

TallBob · #31 Posted **Nov 21, 2013, 8:13 PM**

The new renders of this one now makes me think this should be at least a 550 footer! A couple months ago, I wouldn't give you 10 cents for the proposal!

Surrealplaces · #32 Posted **Nov 22, 2013, 7:17 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by CorporateWhore

Agreed...with the LRT/Courthouse and park across the street....they could've at least put in a coffee shop or restaurant on the corner, and gotten pretty good use out of it.

A coffee shop would do very well in that location, it's a very busy spot.

Allan83 · #33 Posted **Nov 24, 2013, 6:44 AM**

I like this a lot, and I don’t really mind that there isn’t any/much retail. This is a short block from 8th, and very close to the Core as well. That looks like a good space for a small art gallery, however, perhaps one that features up and coming Alberta artists? I think you’d get a lot of people coming in from the LRT platform to check it out. It would be a good way to bring art to the people and the people to the art.

Surrealplaces · #34 Posted **Nov 24, 2013, 10:04 PM**

I don't think there needs to retail on every side or corner of of an office building, but that one corner would have been great for at least one coffee shop. It's one of the busiest intersections of downtown, and the only corner of that intersection that has retail right now....and that retail will be gone.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Allan83

I like this a lot, and I don’t really mind that there isn’t any/much retail. This is a short block from 8th, and very close to the Core as well. That looks like a good space for a small art gallery, however, perhaps one that features up and coming Alberta artists? I think you’d get a lot of people coming in from the LRT platform to check it out. It would be a good way to bring art to the people and the people to the art.

Habanero · #35 Posted **Nov 25, 2013, 7:34 PM**

I love this tower

JBinCalgary · #36 Posted **Dec 2, 2013, 2:12 AM**

Looking forward to this project the most!

Design-mind · #37 Posted **Dec 2, 2013, 4:01 AM**

I never realized that the Mawer building was coming down, but it makes sense since the rendering has it coming to a road which I guess would be 5th Street.

TallBob · #38 Posted **Dec 2, 2013, 7:09 AM**

Common' SOM find another 10-15 stories for this one!

Chadillaccc · #39 Posted **Dec 2, 2013, 9:33 PM**

I wish we had a really active diagram-maker for Calgary. We have such awesome projects. I suck at it, can basically only do boxes.

Deepstar · #40 Posted **Dec 10, 2013, 6:13 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by TallBob

Common' SOM find another 10-15 stories for this one!

Common in height, yes, but as a whole, anything but common.