Neighbours surprised by intensity of LED lighting feature
It appears the Telus Garden residential tower at Richards and Robson streets turned on their LED lighting feature for the first time last night.
The lights appear to be extremely bright, a sort of 50 storey spotlight, reflecting off nearby hotels and condo buildings, including the Westin Hotel and L’Hermitage residential tower.
Architectural lighting in Vancouver is controversial. In 2011, neighbours of West Pender Place in Coal Harbour forced the developer to turn the building’s LED light display off after 10 p.m., even though it was supposed to run 24 hours a day.
Residents of nearby building complained the lights were illuminating their bedrooms, even with the blinds closed.
It’s not clear if the lighting at Telus Garden will be illuminated every night, or just for special events, but judging by the photos, there are likely to be some complaints.
You know, I get that it might be bright… I haven’t seen it in person, so I’ll take residents word for it. Why, oh why, though do people buy downtown and then act surprised when it’s bright and noisy? What did you expect? It’s one of the densest areas on the continent. We don’t want people to think of us as “No Fun City”, and we get all offended, but its what we must collectively want, subconsciously, at least! Listen, you can’t move to Langley and not expect to smell manure!
Vancouver Nimbyism is alive and well. More projects are canceled here than just about anywhere on those criteria. One of the worst places in the world for that. Are we a global city (in waiting), or are we Regina?
Since this article was written, they have dimmed the lighting and it’s not as intrusive. I agree on the NIMBYism among some downtown residents… what did they expect?