Vancouver Approves Pacific Centre Flagship Apple Store Development

A development application for Vancouver’s first Apple flagship store on the site of the existing CF Pacific Centre rotunda has finally been approved.

According to a new report from Business in Vancouver, the City of Vancouver’s Development Permit Board (DPB) passed a proposal to replace the CF Pacific Centre glass rotunda at 701 West Georgia Street — the northeast corner of the intersection of West Georgia Street and Howe Street — into a 14,000 square foot, two-story flagship Apple retail location.

The new building will be around 21,000 square feet, but only about 13,900 square feet will be added to the size of the mall because the new building will replace some existing square footage inside the current glass rotunda.

“Most of the build-out happens within the plaza,” said Perkins + Will Canada senior architect David Goyne, who is the project manager.

“Since our previous proposal, we’ve significantly reduced the amount of build-out on that site,” Goyne continued. “We’ve given a bit back to the public realm in terms of the amount of plaza space.”

The planned design of the Apple Store features a two-story glass facade and a massive metal cantilevered roof. The building itself will be rotated on a 45-degree angle to diagonally orient the store to face the Vancouver Art Gallery’s recently renovated North Plaza.

Materials that will be used in the building’s construction include grey limestone cladding, robust granite paving, wood soffits, low-iron glass, and metal-panel roofing, while the interior will feature stone walls, wood ceilings, and bench seating along the length of the windows of the second level.

The store’s proposed construction aligns with all of the design elements, materials, and the overall form and aesthetic of other Apple Store flagship locations elsewhere in the world — particularly the newer Apple Store flagship designs, such as the recently-opened Apple Michigan Avenue in Chicago.