'Rule-breaking' office tower

Vancouver’s Telecommunication Company, Telus, formerly British Columbia Telecommunications (BC Tel) has always been an innovator in its buildings. The Burnaby BC headquarters of BC Tel were located in a building affectionately known as “The Boot.” This endearment was merited because the building is shaped like a boot.

Now Telus is in the news for a $750-million project. It is described as “greener and swankier,” than most buildings in the Downtown Vancouver neighbourhood where it is located. Telus Garden has been described as one of the most technologically innovative and environment-friendly developments in the world.

The development builds on the company’s history of investing in Vancouver. Telus has been located in the same neighbourhood since the early 1900s. The new development transforms the area with the goal of creating a human ecosystem that gives back to the arts and architecture and more importantly, is kinder on the environment. This has earned the tower a LEED platinum certification. This is the highest level on the green building certification scale. The Tower boasts of the highest LEED score of any tower in
Vancouver’s history.

So, what has earned the building this rating? It has nearly 300 solar panels, collects rainwater to use for flushing toilets, uses motion sensor lightning to keep dark when no one’s around and captures heat from its nearby data centre.

On the artistic side, it has a Grand Piano in the lobby, 40 koi fish and innumerable local artworks. This includes a wood and glass outdoor canopy. The developer Ian Gillespie praised the City of Vancouver for allowing the project to deviate from the mold and cantilever parts of the building over the street.