The City of Vancouver is fast-tracking approvals for renovations to expand Science World and create a new outdoor park.
The city owns the iconic structure that was built for Expo ’86 and which hosts 525,000 visitors annually. The city leases the site to the province, which in turn leases it to Science World at the Telus World of Science.
Rick Young, associate vice-president at Cannon Design Architecture Inc. said: “The renovations are going to happen. It’s not approved though."
Indeed, the exterior cladding on the structure is already being removed.
“Because the city owns the building, the city is tasked with assisting in trying to speed up the process,” Young told Business in Vancouver June 22. “We’re a week away from getting comments from the city on how they’re responding to the application.”
Renovations will expand the structure on its west side and create a new larger east side entrance. Pedestrians will continue to be able to walk around the structure. Young said renovations would also include creating what he called “an outdoor science experience.”
That 35,000-square-foot sustainable science park will be east of the current facility and take up part of the nearby lawn and some of the roadway. “There will be a permeable wall. So, people will be able to participate in the science experience even if they’re not in the park itself."
Young said the renovations are funded through Infrastructure Canada’s infrastructure stimulus fund, which stipulates that all funded projects be complete by March 31, 2011.