A New View is Emerging

It was bound to happen and it's happening now. It was only a matter of time before the new Vancouver Waterfront joined the the ranks of our local view properties. That time is now. The first two towers are about to open with the finishing touches going in now. The Rediviva is very close to opening and in fact they are taking leases now for some 63 luxury apartments in a 6 story building wedged between the topped out, Riverwest Apartment building opening first quarter 2019 and the new Murdock office tower opening next month. Some of these first apartments will feature some good views. Those that face the river should have a "forever" view as no buildings will go up in front of them. Those facing downtown will have temporary views until the buildings on the north side of the street are erected.

These are new views emerging. Soon residents will be living on the new waterfront. When I say soon I'm thinking as soon as next month! The Waterfront Project is planned to bring some 3300 units online over the next several years and many of these will have spectacular views of the river or downtown.

Most of the buildings that front the waterfront park will have permanent views of the river, park, and waterfront. Other views as mentioned above are subject to future development. Anyone planing to purchase a unit in one of these new projects should be careful about location if the view is a big part of the appeal or the price for that matter.

The waterfront area is more than just views, it is an urban neighborhood that is intended to be vibrant and busy with much to do all the time. The views are just an added bonus. They will come at a premium however, be sure to stay on top of the plans to make sure the view you buy today is a view you'll still have tomorrow.

I wrote a blog post on my real estate news blog about the Kirkland Tower here. That structure is under way and will feature 12 floors with luxury condos attached to an 8 story boutique hotel also under construction. Kirkland has a website here, and they are showing the views by floor. Apparently there will be windows facing every direction except east. They have floors two through eleven with photos of the "view." Kirkland tower is being erected right next door to the Murdock, so I'd imagine that the view west from floors 2-8 will be obstructed on day one. The south view should be a forever view as this tower will front the river. The north view is a wild card. Right now it seems like it will have a pretty spectacular downtown vista particularly up on the top six floors. But there are plans for taller structures on the north side of the street in the future. Timberhouse is already proposed for block 3 immediately north of Kirkland tower, that structure is to be 12 floors as well. A tallish building is planned for block 5 that is north of the two Block 6 towers opening in October.

The new view to the north is likely to be a bit temporary. If the developer has a lower price for north view due to the uncertainty of its longevity, these could end up being a bargain if plans change and a shorter building is erected instead. The FAA has already chopped the heights of a few planned towers in this development citing aircraft safety from the pair of airports nearby,  PDX and Pearson.

Here are the "views" from the future 11th floor condos in Kirkland tower taken last year before the towers rose to the west. These are from Kirkland's website.

Forever View from floors above the 4th floor

The Murdock is 7 stories, view partially protected above the 8th floor

Big wildcard here, almost certainly partial obstructions coming

The south view should be forever here, but trees in the park may eventually get tall enough to partially obstruct river views below the fifth floor. The west view is already obstructed by the nearly completed 7 story Murdock. Above the 8th floor should be fine, but partial future obstructions are likely as taller buildings are eventually erected on blocks 5 and 7. The north view is the big wild card and I believe that the Timberhouse will be erected and that is not only a tallish building with 12 floors, but it is proposed as a large building covering the whole block.

New views are truly rising up at the waterfront and all over downtown Vancouver existing views are changing as the skyline of this city is undergoing a remarkable growth spurt not seen since the early 2000's It's all very exciting, isn't it?

Whatever you do, be sure to enjoy the view.