Robson Square

File:Robson Street shared space 201807.jpg

The British Columbia Centre was a development proposal slated to be completed by 1975. At 208 metres (682 feet), it would have been the tallest skyscraper in the city (and taller by just 7 meters) than the Living Shangri-La, (which currently holds the record). With the defeat of W.A.C. Bennett's Social Credit government in 1972, the plan was scrapped just as the construction phase was about to begin. Government officials saw this potential Skyscraper as a potential disruption to the current Vancouver Skyline. The New Democratic Party government of Dave Barrett responded to fears of the dark shadow that the building would cast on downtown, and commissioned a redesign from another architectural firm, Arthur Erickson Architects. The reconceptualization Erickson came up with was of a skyscraper laid on its back, the "B.C. Centre on its back."{{cite web|title=British Columbia Centre|publisher=Emporis Buildings|url=http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=britishcolumbiacentre-vancouver-canada|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302000441/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=britishcolumbiacentre-vancouver-canada|url-status=usurped|archive-date=March 2, 2007|access-date=2007-04-13}}{{cite web|title=5 Things You Didn't Know About Robson Square|publisher=CBC|url=https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/events-and-entertainment/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-robson-square-1934003|access-date=2020-04-28}}

Erickson biographer Nicholas Olsberg describes the design as follows:

Arthur came in and said 'This won't be a corporate monument. Let's turn it on its side and let people walk all over it.' And he anchored it in such a way with the courts — the law — at one end and the museum — the arts — at the other. The foundations of society. And underneath it all, the government offices quietly supporting their people. It's almost a spiritual progression.[http://www.xtra.ca/public/National/Arthur_Erickson_19242009-6819.aspx Schelling, Steven. "Arthur Erickson, 1924-2009." Xtra, Friday, May 22, 2009.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320113103/http://www.xtra.ca/public/National/Arthur_Erickson_19242009-6819.aspx |date=March 20, 2012 }}

The new development was completed between 1979 and 1983, encompassing three city blocks and providing {{convert|1300000|sqft|m2|0}} of space. The main component is the glass-covered Law Courts, which houses 35 courtrooms in the southern block. It is {{convert|42|m|ft}} in height, and the glass roof has a size of {{convert|420|by|115|ft|m|0}}, is supported by a steel space frame structure, covering approximately {{convert|50000|sqft|m2|0}} of public space.

The central block contains provincial government offices and, more recently, portions of the University of British Columbia's downtown satellite campus, UBC Robson Square, housed in the lower level. Above, three cascading waterfalls throughout the complex provide natural air conditioning with {{convert|850,000|USgal|m3 impgal|0}} of water.{{cite web|title=Provincial Law Courts|publisher=Emporis Buildings|url=http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=provinciallawcourts-vancouver-canada|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070302193728/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=provinciallawcourts-vancouver-canada|url-status=usurped|archive-date=March 2, 2007|access-date=2007-04-13}} An outdoor skating rink is located at the lower level that extends below Robson Street and connects to the northern block with the Vancouver Art Gallery, which was renovated as part of the project.

Typical of Erickson's designs, Robson Square is constructed primarily out of concrete, but softened by its environmental design. In addition to the water features are trees and other flora as well as gradually inclining stairs with an integrated ramp.{{cite web|title=Robson Square|publisher= The Great Buildings Collection|url=http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Robson_Square.html|access-date=2007-05-13}} The open design allows for relatively unobstructed natural light and fresh air, and the waterfalls divert from the noise of downtown traffic. Landscaping on the project was designed by Cornelia Oberlander.

This public square has been highly utilized due to its successful design. As referenced by William H. Whyte, plazas need specific elements to unlock the potential of an area for proper utilization and enjoyment. The Robson Square experience is considered successful, from a designer's point of view, because it follows Whyte's Street Life Project guidelines.{{cite web|title=William H. Whyte on what makes public spaces fail & what makes them succeed|url=https://my.vanderbilt.edu/greencities/files/2014/08/William-H.-Whyte-on-what-makes-public-spaces-fail-what-makes-them-succeed2.pdf}}

The complex was completed in three stages at a cost of $139 million. The provincial government offices were finished first in 1978, the Law Courts the following year, and the renovation of the old provincial court building into the new Vancouver Art Gallery was completed in 1983, a decade after the design was started.{{cite web|title=provincial law courts robson square & art gallery|publisher=Arthur Erickson|url=http://www.arthurerickson.com/txt_law.html|access-date=2007-04-13|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070621024132/http://arthurerickson.com/txt_law.html|archive-date=2007-06-21}}

As of November 23, 2009, Robson Square has been reopened following a multimillion-dollar reconstruction project. Its reopening can be directly attributed to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver and Whistler. Robson Square provides the only public outdoor skating rink in Vancouver.[https://vancouversun.com/sports/Robson+Square+beautiful+rink+right+middle+city/2259170/story.html Robson Square 'a beautiful rink, right in the middle of the city'] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100730044730/http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/Robson+Square+beautiful+rink+right+middle+city/2259170/story.html |date=2010-07-30 }}{{cite web|title=Plan to reopen ice rink faces meltdown|publisher=Vancouver Courier|url=http://www.vancourier.com/issues03/012103/news/012103nn5.html|access-date=2007-04-13 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061018213901/http://www.vancourier.com/issues03/012103/news/012103nn5.html |archive-date = 2006-10-18}}

The rink area is used in the milder months for various public events including Ballroom & Salsa dancing, and is also the hub for Vancouver's Street Dance community since the late 90s. The skating rink is open in the winter; as of the 2024–25 season, admission is free and skate rentals are $5.00.[https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024CITZ0024-001606 Robson Square ice rink opens for the season] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241202051702/https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2024CITZ0024-001606 |date=2024-12-02 }}

The architecture and landscape architecture have received acclaim for excellence in design.

• In 2011, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) awarded its Prix du XXe siècle Award to the complex, describing the concept of a "linear urban park, importing nature into the city", as "a bold, contemplative work of urban design."[http://www.raic.org/honours_and_awards/awards_xxe/2011/robson_e.htm Architecture Canada, RAIC Prix du XXe siècle 2011 award.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111115223951/http://www.raic.org/honours_and_awards/awards_xxe/2011/robson_e.htm |date=2011-11-15 }} Retrieved 2011-10-01
• In 1982, the RAIC's awarded the Governor General's Gold Medal to the complex.[http://www.raic.org/honours_and_awards/awards_gg_medals/gg-pastrecipients_e.htm RAIC Honours & Awards] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502055926/http://raic.org/honours_and_awards/awards_gg_medals/gg-pastrecipients_e.htm |date=2014-05-02 }}
• In 1979, The American Society of Landscape Architects awarded its President's Award for Excellence, noting the project's "extraordinary integration of landscape architecture with architecture".[http://www.goethe.de/ins/ca/mon/prj/ful/prj/pr3/enindex.htm Goethe journal.] Retrieved 2011-10-01

{{Blockquote|text=As in much of Alvar Aalto's architecture, large and complex buildings may be rendered as though they were natural extensions of the topography in which they are situated. This paradigm was surely the primary motivation behind Arthur Erickson's Robson Square development, Vancouver (1983), wherein a megastructure comprising law courts and municipal offices was integrated with a parking garage in such a way as to assume the profile of a stepped escarpment. This last, laid out to the designs of the landscape architect Cornelia Oberlander, features an ornamental sheet of water 90 metres (300 feet) long that cascades over the large plate-glass picture window enclosing the registry office. This artificial architectonic earthwork running through the centre of Vancouver has since been confirmed as a main spine within the city by the medium-rise towers that have grown up around its axis spontaneously over the last decade. In this regard Robson Square has served as an urban catalyst in much the same way as the Rockefeller Center drew the fabric of Manhattan around itself at the end of the 1930s. |author=Kenneth Frampton, Modern Architecture: A Critical History p. 349-350}}

One of the main points of accessibility that this plaza has offered its users is an entry feature called the Robson Square Steps. This design has been highly utilized and considered a great achievement of the designer, Arthur Erikson.

In 2019, accessibility consultant Arnold Cheng called into question the safety of the Robson Square Steps, pointing at the steepness of the ramp as a concern. Additionally, the visually impaired were referenced in his safety concerns about the 40-year-old ramp and stairway design combination.{{cite web| url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/robson-square-accessibility-1.5255477| title = The Robson Square steps are beautiful but are they safe? {{!}} CBC News}}

[http://url=www.raic.org/honours_and_awards/awards_xxe/2011/robson_e.htm Architecture Canada, RAIC Prix du XXe siècle 2011 award.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111115223951/http://www.raic.org/honours_and_awards/awards_xxe/2011/robson_e.htm |date=2011-11-15 }} Retrieved 2011-10-01

• [http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Robson_Square.html Great Buildings Online - images and architectural drawings]
• [https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/events-and-entertainment/5-things-you-didnt-know-about-robson-square-1934003]
• [https://my.vanderbilt.edu/greencities/files/2014/08/William-H.-Whyte-on-what-makes-public-spaces-fail-what-makes-them-succeed2.pdf]

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Category:Arthur Erickson buildings

Category:Buildings and structures in Vancouver

Category:Modernist architecture in Canada

Category:Squares in Vancouver