Granville Island Redevelopment

Location: Vancouver, BC
Client: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation
Completion: 1982
Size: 15 hectares

38 acres
DIALOG Services: Architecture

Planning & Urban Design

Granville Island is one of Canada's most visited public places. Reborn from a longstanding industrial site, the 38-acre redevelopment was the brainchild of Norm Hotson and Joost Bakker, two young local architects with a vision for waterfront development. Its design engagement includes streetworks and open spaces, including: the Granville Island Hotel, Granville Island Brew Pub, the public market, restaurants and shops, artist studios, workshops and theatres, traffic and parking design, shoreline edges, children’s play features, and a water park. The strategic introduction of landscaping and intervention with the waterfront created a cultural heart for Vancouver. It is a place for respite and community celebration - it's a people place.

01/09

granville island public market before vancouver hcarousell 01 — Designing a cultural heart In the 1970s, Vancouver’s neglected industrial island was transformed into an urban magnet.

granville island public market ariel vancouver carousel 02 — Heralded by planners, politicians, and in publications worldwide as one of the most important urban precedents of our time, Granville Island is a pioneering project in mixed-use developments.

granville island public market sea wall vancouver carousel 03 — Resisting popular opinion to turn the site into yet another city park, Norm Hotson and Joost Bakker believed that if programmed correctly, the existing factory spaces would energize the city.

granville island public market dock vancouver carousel 04 — Connecting the city’s Kitsliano neighbourhood with the West End neighbourhood and downtown core.

granville island public market water park vancouver carousel 05 — Granville Island’s impact on the city is difficult to summarize, but to say that it has transformed the waterfront would be an understatement.

granville island public market entrance vancouver carousel 06 — Multiple cultural venues, annual festivals, art galleries, and artist studios contribute to the Island’s larger cultural presence in the city.

granville island public market studio vancouver carousel 07 — Its dramatic juxtaposition of very different uses contributes to the Island’s unique animation and has inspired regeneration projects the world over...

granville island public market market vancouver carousel 08 — ...the culmination of which collides people and their ideas to create a dynamic community.

granville island public market theatre vancouver carousel 08 — The revival of Vancouver’s iconic Granville Island inspired the theory of urban magnets: “unique urban places that attract and hold activity groups."

Meet The Team

Joost Bakker

Partner, Architect

We were interested in the buildings and the stories they had to tell. We fought to give them new purpose and show people how special they could be - if used meaningfully.

Joost Bakker

granville island public market road vancouver sketch 01 — It All Started With A Sketch
Four key elements Non-traditional retail space, the production of goods / education on site, authentic landscaping, and festival space.

It All Started With A Sketch

Four key elements Non-traditional retail space, the production of goods / education on site, authentic landscaping, and festival space.

granville island public market road vancouver sketch 02 — It All Started With A Sketch 01
Shifting the Island's energy ... is the fact that there are no loading docks or curbs.

granville island public market road vancouver sketch 03 — It All Started With A Sketch 02
The free flow of vehicles, bicycles, and foot traffic bring a natural energy to the site.

granville island public market road vancouver poi 01

Points Of Interest 01

Maintaining the historical character of the Island was a key success factor.

granville island public market park vancouver sketch 02

Points Of Interest 02

Rigorous design guidelines contribute to maintaining the original look and feel of the Island while encouraging authentic enhancement.

granville island public market dock vancouver sketch 03

Points Of Interest 03

Restoration and regeneration as a guideline have helped elevate the natural and historic feel, as well as the economy of the Island.

granville island public market parkade vancouver poi 04

Points Of Interest 04

In 2008, an updated Urban Design Plan for the next 20 years of development on Granville Island found areas where revenues could be augmented to offset rising operating costs. Cue artful parking lots...