Policing Gold

On January 26, 2011 I wrote on the Horne Block. I mentioned that a unique feature to the building was the recessed lower floor and the staircases connecting the lower shops to the ground floor. I didn't have any photos of it then but I got some today.

I also discovered that it is still run as Danny's Inn (a rooming house now) with some rooms above the shops. A new roof has just been installed and this summer, restoration of the front is planned. Can't wait to see how that goes.

In approximately 1889 the Commercial Hotel was built on Cambie Street. A four storey brick and stone Edwardian style commercial structure shows the transition from American Richardsonian Romanesque style to Edwardian Commercial.

This building also shows the shift from the highly decorative facades of the Victorian era to the more refined ornamentation of the Edwardian period.

The Commercial Hotel has had many names. In 1976 the name was changed to the El Cid Hotel and in 1987 to the Stadium Inn and now it is known as 340 Cambie. But it has always served as a hotel with ancillary services such as baths, a tobacco outlet, a barber shop and a cafe.

As you can see by the first photo it also serves as an anchor for the Flack Block (okay you wouldn't have known that by the photo but that is the other building you see there.) and both buildings are a result of the weatlh from the Klondike Gold Rush.

The building is for sale and I hope that the new owner will recognize its heritage value and restore this tarnished treasure.

I have shown you this building before, as the Vancouver City Police Building but is also known as the Vancouver Public Safety Building and now I have information on it.

This sober restrained Modernist structure was designed and built in 1953 by the architectural firm Townley Matheson and Partners, who are also known for being responsible for such projects as City Hall in the 1930s.

The building is at the corner of Cordova and Main Streets with a six storey extension to the south. The imposing image is aided by the horizontal strip banks of windows, flat roof and  stone faced facade. Yet it is also slightly softened by such features as the polished red granite facing at the base and the brass railings by the entrance.

While going to take photos of the lower level of the Horne Block I noticed these murals on the alley side and decided they would look great on my blog. Don't you think?

I hope you find the beauty around you.

TAGS:Vancouver, Karen Magill, City Hall, Townley Matheson and Partners,Horne,Vancouver Police,history,