Living Shangri-La is a mixed-use skyscraper in

downtown Vancouver Downtown Vancouver is the central business district and the city centre list of neighbourhoods in Vancouver, neighbourhood of Vancouver, Canada, on the northwestern shore of the Burrard Peninsula in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. ...

, British Columbia, Canada. It is the tallest building in the city proper, though not in the metro area, as Two Gilmore Place in

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard In ...

is taller as of its completion in 2024. The 62-storey

Shangri-La Shangri-La is a fictional place in Tibet's Kunlun Mountains, Uses the spelling 'Kuen-Lun'. described in the 1933 novel '' Lost Horizon'' by the British author James Hilton. Hilton portrays Shangri-La as a mystical, harmonious valley, gently ...

tower contains a 5-star hotel and its offices on the first 15 floors, with

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership regime in which a building (or group of buildings) is divided into multiple units that are either each separately owned, or owned in common with exclusive rights of occupation by individual own ...

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 five locations, three 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 Fr ...

public display, and a curated public sculpture garden. The high-rise stands tall and there is a private roof garden on floor 61. 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 America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

n 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 homes on floors 16 to 43 and 63 private access residential units on floors 44–60 with two duplex penthouses on floors 61/62. 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 machine used to move materials both vertically and horizontally, utilizing a system of a boom, hoist, wire ropes or chains, and sheaves for lifting and relocating heavy objects within the swing of its boom. The device uses on ...

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 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 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 TowerShangri-La - Things you should know about 1111 Alberni street
{{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 Vancouver Residential buildings in British Columbia 2009 establishments in British Columbia