(Image credit: City of Kamloops).

By Mel Rothenburger

ARMCHAIR MAYOR

ROTHENBURGER: Sure, we need more colour on our buildings, but how much?

Feb 22, 2023 | 5:18 AM

I’VE BEEN TRYING to figure out how I feel about a new development at the corner of First Avenue and Columbia Street that’s coming up for a public hearing.

The project is called Canary Lofts, two buildings containing 171 apartments and a 178-space underground parkade. It will provide much-needed strata and rental housing and will upgrade a part of town that has seen better days.

But, darn it, it’s the colour and design of the thing that I just can’t reconcile. I don’t want to sound unkind, because for years I’ve been complaining about the greigeness of buildings throughout Kamloops.

Both in residential and commercial buildings, earth tones are the rule of thumb because that’s what City Hall has always wanted. We must be a city of sameness, apparently.

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That’s not the way it is in many cities, which revel in the vibrancy of their colours. So it was with some dismay that I first set eyes on the proposal for First and Columbia.

It’s almost as if the architect said, “OK, you want colour? Here’s colour!”

There’s a bit of grey, white and maybe some brown but there’s also bright blue, red, green and, yes, canary yellow. It’s said to be adapted from the work of a Dutch artist known for his abstract style.

That makes some sense, for the Netherlands makes wonderful use of colour in its buildings. But all that colour is integral to the often intriguing and pleasing physical composition of those structures.

This proposal for First and Columbia, if you’ll excuse me for saying so, looks as though a child had stacked a pile of toy blocks together in no particular order.

Unique? Sure. But a handsome addition to the cityscape?

There are practical concerns, too, including parking access, density and its eight-storey height. For me, though, it’s the look.

We need more colour in our buildings but I’m not sure this is what we’re looking for.

I’m Mel Rothenburger, the Armchair Mayor.

Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops, alternate TNRD director and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.