The Dominion Building (originally Dominion Trust Building) is a commercial building in

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada. Located on the edge of Gastown (207 West Hastings St), it was Vancouver's first steel-framed high-rise. Its architect was John S. Helyer, who is said to have died after falling off the staircase in the front of the building, though this is an urban legend. The financier of the structure was the Count Alvo von Alvensleben from Germany, who was active in Vancouver's financial scene at the time. It was known generally that von Alvensleben was one of the Kaiser's godsons. It was held at the time that he was a front for the Kaiser's money, which carried the suggestion that the Empire's tallest building had been built by its greatest rival, a rumour which disregards the fact that the tallest building in the Empire was in fact the Trader’s Bank Building in Toronto, completed in 1906 at 55.39m in height. Today it is a provincially designated Class "A" heritage structure. Owned by ''Newton Investments Limited'', it was restored by restoration expert Read Jones Christofferson. The building's current tenants include a film production company (Haddock), a law firm, clothing designers, record labels, antiquarian booksellers, Kokoro Dance, professional web developers, marketing agency, Bowery Creative, the office of the Green Party of Vancouver, a dentist, non-profit organizations such as Living Oceans Society and Fair Trade Vancouver and a Lebanese restaurant, Nuba. The Dominion Building sits across the street from Victory Square, site of the former provincial courthouse, which was relocated to Georgia Street in 1913. The Dominion Building was at the hub of the city's financial and legal district until that move. The backside of the building (containing the emergency staircases) and Cambie Street was filmed during the street scenes of ''

The Neverending Story ''The Neverending Story'' () is a fantasy novel by German writer Michael Ende, published in 1979. The first English translation, by Ralph Manheim, was published in 1983. It was later adapted into a film series and a television series. Plot T ...

''. It can be seen from Water Street. The Dominion Building can also be seen at the end of

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

's 2023 film,'' The Mother'', as she looks down into Victory Square from the 14th floor, nearing the end of the film. The Dominion Building, as well as other elements of Victory Square, were filmed for scenes in an abandoned city in ''

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.'' The initial rooftop chase scene from Blade: Trinity was shot at the Dominion building. The 2012 TV show

Alcatraz Alcatraz Island () is a small island about 1.25 miles offshore from San Francisco in San Francisco Bay, California, near the Golden Gate Strait. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fo ...

also used this as a location in the opening episode, although the program was set in San Francisco, much of the location work was done in Vancouver. The Dominion building can also be seen in the background later in the series when a landmine is found in Victory Square. '' Can Lit.'' author '' Timothy Taylor.'' maintains a writing office in this building. File:Dominion Building Entrance 2018.jpg, Entrance File:Dominion Building lobby 2018.jpg, Lobby File:Dominion Building Vancouver 06.JPG, View north from Victory Square File:Dominion Building 1915.png, The Dominion Building in 1915

References

In television and film

In The NeverEnding Story (film), Building is seen in closing scene, when Bastian is flying with Falkor, to get some revenge over the kids.

External links

Oakes Weekly

Dominion Building restoration

{{Vancouver landmarks Buildings and structures in Vancouver Skyscraper office buildings in Vancouver Historic bank buildings in Canada Buildings and structures completed in 1910 Second Empire architecture in Canada

See also

References

In television and film

External links