837 Beatty Street Rehabilitation + Addition

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

837 Beatty Street is an existing two storey heritage warehouse located near BC Place in downtown Vancouver with ground floor retail and upper floor offices. Part of the distinctive Block 68 collection of historic warehouses just outside of Yaletown, this Edwardian industrial vernacular building constructed in 1911 was previously served by a Canadian Pacific Railway spur, giving it a unique site condition with opportunities to activate the rear laneway and enhance the local pedestrian network. Constructed of heavy timber and load bearing masonry, the warehouse was originally designed to accommodate an additional four storeys, an expansion that never materialized. More than one hundred years later, a new four-storey mass timber addition will build upon the existing wood structure and provide additional commercial office space, realizing the ambitions of the original owners. The existing structure will be seismically upgraded and the envelope rehabilitated with restored brick and heritage correct fenestration. The addition, composed of masonry and precast concrete, shares a physical language with its neighbours that will complete the streetwall and enhance the legibility of this historic block.