Living Shangri-La is a mixed-use skyscraper in

downtown Vancouver Downtown Vancouver is the central business district and the city centre neighbourhood of Vancouver, Canada, on the northwestern shore of the Burrard Peninsula in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. It occupies most of the north shor ...

, British Columbia, Canada, and is the tallest building in the city and province. The 62-storey

Shangri-La Shangri-La is a fictional place in Asia's Kunlun Mountains (昆仑山), Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'. described in the 1933 novel '' Lost Horizon'' by English author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, ...

tower contains a 5-star hotel and its offices on the first 15 floors, with condominium apartment units occupying the rest of the tower. The building's podium complex also includes a spa,

Urban Fare Urban Fare is a supermarket chain located in British Columbia. It is a subsidiary of the Overwaitea Food Group, which, in turn, is owned by the Vancouver-based Jim Pattison Group. The chain has six locations, four located in downtown Vancouver ...

specialty grocery store, a

Vancouver Art Gallery The Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) is an art museum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The museum occupies a adjacent to Robson Square in downtown Vancouver, making it the largest art museum in Western Canada by building size. Designed by Franc ...

public display, and a curated public sculpture garden. The high-rise stands tall and there is a private roof garden on floor 61. It is the 44th tallest building in Canada. As part of the development deal, the Coastal Church, built in 1919 and located at the west end of the site, underwent a $4.4million restoration.

Hotel

The Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver is a full-service hotel that is part of the building. It is a member of the Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts chain, and is Shangri-La's first North American property. The hotel occupies floors Ground to 15 with 119 rooms (including a presidential suite on the 15th floor). There is no 4th or 13th floor. The hotel includes 5-star services such as restaurants, shops, and Chi The Spa at Shangri-La.

Residences

Living Shangri-La also contains 307 residential units, consisting of 234 general

live-work Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to some ...

homes on floors 16 to 43 and 63 private access residential units on floors 44–60 with three penthouses on floor 61. The condominium units are accessible from the entrance at 1128 West Georgia Street and 1111 Alberni Street.

Construction

The project required 3.1million man-hours of employment, 15,000 truckloads of earth excavated, of concrete, and of reinforcing steel. During the height of construction activity, 1,000 workers were on site constructing one floor per week. The Shangri-La set Vancouver's record for the deepest excavation of , defeating the past record of set by the One Wall Centre, and it officially became the tallest building in Vancouver on October 2, 2007. The total cost of this building was near . The

tower crane A crane is a type of machine, generally equipped with a hoist rope, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves, that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. It is mainly used for lifting heavy objects and transpor ...

on top of the building was fitted with Christmas lights on November 13, 2007, and was the tallest crane illuminated in Vancouver in 2007. A windstorm on January 15, 2008, caused loose construction materials to blow off the building and into the streets below. Parked vehicles were damaged by falling plywood, but there were no injuries. The neighbouring

Terasen Gas FortisBC is a Canadian owned, British Columbia based regulated utility focused on providing safe and reliable energy, including natural gas, Renewable Natural Gas, electricity and propane. FortisBC has approximately 2,600 employees serving more th ...

building also sustained damage in the storm. Police closed off West Georgia Street for over twelve hours. The development was marketed by Bob Rennie of Rennie Marketing Systems.

Cultural references

The building was featured in the 2010 film '' Tron: Legacy'' as the headquarters of the

fictional company Fictional companies are often used in film, television, video games, books and comics where copyright or the likely chance of being prosecuted exists from using the name of a real company. They may be used on television in countries where the use ...

ENCOM International.

Gallery

File:Living Shangri-la.jpg, The Shangri-La Vancouver in the final stages of construction in 2008 File:Living Shangri-La Nov 09.jpg, Completed skyscraper in November 2009

References

External links

Official Shangri-La Hotel, Vancouver WebsiteSkyscrapernews.com article on the Living Shangri-La Tower
{{Vancouver landmarks Skyscrapers in Vancouver Hotels in Vancouver Tourism in Vancouver Condo hotels in Canada Residential buildings completed in 2009 Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts Residential skyscrapers in Canada Skyscraper hotels in Canada James K. M. Cheng buildings Skyscraper office buildings in Canada