Quantcast
Channel: The Province » New Kids on the Block
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 2

Rihanna and development in Vancouver – huh?

0
0

I love a good pop culture reference. So imagine my delight when I came across a rezoning application to the city that name checks Rihanna, Supertramp, Bruno Mars and New Kids on the Block! It’s not often you get a golden gem like that in my line of work…

I Propose…

The application was put forth by the Aquilini family, most well-known for owning the Vancouver Canucks, and proposes to build three residential and commercial towers at Rogers Arena. The triangle towers would fit on the west, east and south sections of the arena site on Griffiths Way and provide 614 units of market-based rental housing.

(NOTE: Council was supposed to hear speakers on the application Tuesday evening but it’s since been pushed to a later date. If you’re interested in following that, you’ll have to check back to council’s website and see when it gets rescheduled.)

rogers arena Rihanna and development in Vancouver   huh?

Rogers Arena is the focus of a development proposal that would see three residential and commercial towers subjected to the noise of live hockey and concert events. (PHOTO COURTESY OF ROGERS)

On One Condition.. Maybe More

While city hall staff have recommended the application be approved, it’s subject to a number of conditions including, of course, regulations around noise mitigation. Remember what it was like being downtown during the playoffs? No matter where you were, you knew when the Canucks scored because the sound was just that loud.

vancouver3 Rihanna and development in Vancouver   huh?

Vancouver’s waterfront could soon be dotted with three more residential/commercial towers if the Aquilini’s proposal goes through. (PHOTO COURTESY OF CONDO CENTRAL.)

Now imagine living right next to Rogers Arena. Because of that, the developers have included in their application an acoustic report, residential unit designs and explanations of what design principles will be built in to keep the noise out.

Keeping The Peace

According to development plan by-laws for False Creek North where Rogers Arena is situated, noise levels inside residences should only reach between 40 to 50 dBC during events. For the ‘event zone’ right around Rogers Arena, noise is restricted to 70 dBC up until 11 p.m. A special exemption, however, is being given for the rezoning site to allow for up to 82 dBC.

(To give you an idea of what that measurement is like, a humming refrigerator registers at about 40 dBC. A vacuum cleaner or a hair dryer is about 70 dBC. Enjoying a rock concert is about 110 to 140 dBC.)

If these towers go through, the residential units most susceptible to event noise coming from the arena would be the ones at roofline and higher, facing the arena. For those units, the developer plans to incorporate enclosed balconies with reduced glass surfaces, double-glazed windows, and “stacking double-glazed sliding shutters”… whatever that means.

The idea is that with those features, noise inside the apartments during major events would only register at about 46 to 50 dBC, which is within the city’s requirements. (Somebody correct if I’m wrong about these city by-laws…)

brunomars1 Rihanna and development in Vancouver   huh?

Bruno Mars is one of several artists whose concert provided data for a development application to the City of Vancouver. (KRISTIE PEARCE PHOTO)

Gettin’ Hip With The Kids

All the jargon aside, here’s the fun part. The developers, obviously, needed data to work with when figuring out all this business about noise and sound and yadda yadda. So they measured the noise levels during concerts put on by Rihanna, Bruno Mars, Supertramp and New Kids on the Block.

So if you’ve ever wondered who’s louder, wonder no more! I’m about to tell you.

These measurements weren’t taken from the inside of the arena but from the roof  since the towers would be subjected to sound extending outside the arena.

According to the report filed to council, Supertramp played at Rogers Arena on June 2, 2011 and registered at 69.7 dBC at its loudest and 52.1 dBC. The next day, Bruno Mars performed and – drawing what I’m sure was a younger and more high-pitched crowd – registered a bit higher at 82.1 dBC at its loudest and 55.6 dBC at its quietest.

Rihanna‘s concert on June 24, 2011 for her Loud tour – how appropriate! – registered 74.5 dBC at its loudest and 54.5 dBC at its quietest.

And the kicker? New Kids on the Block visited Rogers on July 9, 2011 and at its loudest was 86.9 dBC and at its quietest was 53.8 dBC.

So there you have it. The original 80s boy band is louder than Ri-ri, Bruno Mars and even Supertramp. Who knew?

New Kids On The Block – “Step By Step”

Rihanna – “What’s My Name? (ft. Drake)”



Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 2

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images