Marine Building

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The Marine Building

The Marine Building is a skyscraper located at 355 Burrard Street in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada. It is renowned for its Art Deco details.

The brainchild of Lt. Commander J.W. Hobbs of Toronto, it was opened on 7 October 1930, and at 98m over 21 floors it was the tallest skyscraper in the city until 1939. According to the architects, the building was intended to evoke "some great crag rising from the sea, clinging with sea flora and fauna, tinted in sea-green, touched with gold."^[1] The building cost $2.3 million to build -- $1.1 million over budget -- but due to the Great Depression it was sold to the Guinness family of Ireland for only $900,000. The 2004 property assessment is $22 million.

There was an observation deck, but during the depression in the 1930s, no one could afford the 25 cents admission price. Currently, there are no public galleries in the building.

Inside the massive brass-doored elevators the walls are inlaid with 12 varieties of local hardwoods. All over the walls and polished brass doors are depictions of sea snails, skate, crabs, turtles, carp, scallops, seaweed and sea horses, as well as the transportation means of the era. The floor presents the zodiac signs. The exterior is studded with flora and fauna, tinted in sea-green and touched with gold.

During a renovation from 1982-1989 to update the electrical, mechanical and air-conditioning systems, the "battleship linoleum" (imported from Scotland) in the lobby was replaced with marble. The former Merchant Exchange was also gutted, and changed into a high-class Chinese restaurant (Imperial Chinese Restaurant). The floor was raised so that diners could take advantage of the room's huge windows.

1 Marine Building in film and television
2 Notes
3 Gallery
4 See also

[edit] Marine Building in film and television

Recently, the building has gained fame as the Daily Planet headquarters in the television show Smallville. It is also currently standing in as the Baxter Building in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer ^[2] (which is still filming at the Marine Building as of October 2006).

[edit] Notes

^ Cited in Harold Kalman, Exploring Vancouver: Ten Tours of the City and its Buildings. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1974, 101.
^ http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/568/568114p1.html

[edit] Gallery

Marine Building in 2006, as seen from the intersection Burrard Street and Dunsmuir Street.	Marine Building in 1929.	The building is reflected in several modern glass skyscrapers surrounding the Marine Building.	One of the tiles depicting maritime history.
Marine Building 2006, from Waterfront Road.	Marine Building detail, 2006	Marine Building detail, 2006	Marine Building detail, 2006
Marine Building detail, 2006	Marine Building detail, 2006	Marine Building, 2006	Marine building from Granville Street.