of photos, has eaten here 10 times. Sadly, Steven Segal only dropped by once.
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Cross here to the other side of Burrard St. and you can wash down your dog with a quick beer at the Winking Judge pub on the corner. This is a Brit-style, welcoming little watering hole: there are few traditional-style taverns like this in Vancouver any more, so this one was an instant novelty when it opened in 2008. The regulars here are after-work office slaves and barrel-bellied solicitors from the city’s legal profession: the Provincial Law Court is just a couple of blocks away. Sip on a cold one, then try to resist the lure of the sherry trifle on the pub classics menu.
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Cross over Smithe here and continue south on the left side of Burrard St. The Scotiabank Cinema on your left is the city’s largest multiplex. Unless it’s raining and you fancy sitting down for a couple of hours, keep walking. On your right, across Burrard, is the former YMCA building. A sandy-colored 1940s structure with some Art Moderne architectural flourishes, its façade was preserved in the new condo tower now occupying the site.
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Continue south on the left side of Burrard and you’ll soon come to one of Vancouver’s best, yet most neglected, Modernist buildings. The Dal Grauer Substation, designed by Ned Pratt, was a symphony of public art and utility when it opened in 1954. Part of the BC Electric downtown grid, the machinery and staircases of the interior were revealed by a spectacular floor-to-ceiling exterior of colored glass panels, created by contemporary artist B.C. Binning. The impression was of a living Mondrian painting. When a 1980s fire damaged the building, the panels were replaced with gray Plexiglas, giving the structure a faceless, monolithic look. Plans to restore its original esthetic have stalled several times over the years.
The substation was such a success that an adjoining building was commissioned from the same architects. Next door’s BC Electric tower, now known as “Electra,” mirrors the feel of the substation. Check out the building’s lower level mosaic of blue, black, and green tiles (also designed by Binning). BC Electric, now called BC Hydro, moved out in 1995 and the heritage-designated structure—the city’s best Modernist skyscraper—now houses condos and offices.
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Turn your back on Electra and cross to the right side of Burrard. This Nelson St. intersection probably has more heritage buildings than any other downtown crossroads. Ahead of you on the northwest corner is the handsome gray stone visage of the First Baptist Church. The cornerstone of the Gothic Revival building, dominated by its large tower and steeply gabled roof, was laid in 1910 and it’s housed a busy downtown congregation ever since. The church, which replaced a wooden original, was gutted by fire in the 1930s. It was restored by Charles Bentall, a wealthy church-goer and prominent local developer.
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Cross over to the other Nelson St. corner and you’ll be face-to-face with an even bigger house of worship. St. Andrew’s Wesley United Church opened its heavy wooden doors in 1933. Climb the steps and slip inside and you’ll find a Medieval-Gothic-style interior with a high-ceilinged nave, deep transepts, and soaring leaded and stained glass windows. Alongside its active pastoral role (you’ll likely see the homeless camped outside on most mornings), St. Andrew’s has also become an atmospheric music venue in recent years. Several choirs are based here, there’s a “jazz vespers” service every Sunday afternoon, and visiting performers from Bryan Adams to Billy Bragg have graced the pulpit with concerts.
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Re-cross to the left side of Burrard. Hogging the block from Nelson to Helmcken St. is the Wall Centre complex, complete with frenetic fountains, a landscaped garden, and the giant One Wall Centre tower. Completed in 2001, this elliptical glass spike was Vancouver’s tallest building until the Shangri-La surpassed it in 2009. Housing a 733-room Sheraton Hotel and splashy condos (including one rumored to be owned by action movie star Jean-Claude Van Damme), the 48-story tower is 491 feet/150 metres tall but it’s more infamous locally for its two-tone glass exterior. Due to an argument with the city over the look of the finished structure, the builders were made to change the glass they were using partway through the project. The tower now has darkened mirror glass on its lower floors and clear glass on its upper floors.
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Continue south on Burrard and turn right over the crosswalk at the Helmcken St. intersection. St. Paul’s Hospital will be rising ahead of you. This old red-brick site has a long history. Built by the Montreal-based Sisters of Providence Catholic order in 1894, it quickly grew from its original 25-bed facility to more than 500 beds by WWII. The Sisters remained involved in the running of the hospital until the late 1960s, when the first lay administrator was hired. St. Paul’s is famous for its annual festive display of Christmas lights on its Burrard St. exterior. Duck inside to treat your blisters here or weave back along Burrard for a coffee pit stop.
POINTS OF INTEREST
Shangri-La 1128 W. Georgia St., 604-689-1120
Joe Fortes Seafood & Chophouse 777 Thurlow St., 604-669-1940
Le Crocodile 909 Burrard St., 604-669-4298
Japa Dog northwest corner of Smithe St. and Burrard St.
Winking Judge 888 Burrard St. St., 604-684-9465
Scotiabank Theatre 900 Burrard St., 604-630-1407
Dal Grauer Substation 950 Burrard St.
Electra 970 Burrard St.
First Baptist Church 969 Burrard St., 604-683-8441
St. Andrew’s Wesley United Church 1022 Nelson St., 604-683-4574
Wall Centre 1088 Burrard St., 604-331-1000
St. Paul’s Hospital 1081 Burrard St., 604-682-2344
ROUTE SUMMARY
1.
Start at the southwest corner of W. Georgia and Thurlow Sts.
2.
Head south on the right-hand side of Thurlow, crossing Alberni and Robson Sts.
3.
Turn left along Smithe St. to the intersection with Burrard St.
4.
Cross over to the other side of Burrard.
5.
Head south on the left side of Burrard.
6.
Cross to the other side of Burrard at Nelson St.
7.
Cross over Nelson and re-cross to the left side of Burrard.
