City Square Mall

City Square Mall

Location	Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Opening date	1989
No. of stores and services	45
No. of anchor tenants	4
Parking	3 levels of underground parking
Website	http://www.mycitysquare.com/

City Square Shopping Centre is a mall across the street from City Hall in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is located in the heart of the heritage district of central Vancouver, on the northwest corner of 12th Avenue and Cambie Street.

City Square Shopping Mall and office complex, as we see it today, was inaugurated in 1989 and is a spectacular example of adaptive reuse of heritage buildings. With its outdoor tree-lined courtyard and charming blend of shops and services, City Square Mall has the ambiance of a European village mixed with the bustle of West Coast urban life.

History

Unique to Vancouver, City Square's shopping mall and office complex is an inimitable mix of modern and heritage architecture. The heritage portions of the complex were built in 1905 and 1908 to house the Model School and Normal School, respectively. Graduates from the Teacher’s Training Program applied their skills, norms (hence the name “Normal School”) and educational theories at the Normal School to gain practical experience. In 1986 the City of Vancouver designated both school buildings as municipal heritage sites, saving them from demolition.

The Model School and Normal School are impressive three-storey granite and sandstone buildings designed in the Italianate style by architect E.E. Blackmore. The stained glass windows, copper cupola and slate roofs add further charm and character to the architecture.

The schools were restored to their original grandeur and then connected to two six-storey office towers by a large modern spacious glass atrium. The complex was designed by the renowned architect, Paul Merrick. The shopping mall's retail storefronts simulate a streetscape with ceiling skylights and old-fashioned lamp posts. The interior emulates a series of small open-air courtyards. City Square received an Award for Excellence in Innovative Design and Construction of a New Center by the prestigious International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) based in New York City.

The present management is proud to upkeep the heritage tradition of the building. In 2005, the 100th year anniversary of the Model School was celebrated with the restoration and unveiling of an ensemble of original stained glass windows. As a result, in February 2006, in recognition of our efforts to maintain and preserve the heritage aspect of the building, City Square was honoured to receive a Heritage Award of Recognition by the City of Vancouver.

City Square Today

City Square's continued success lies in its ability to remain relevant to the community. On the retail level, the shopping mall offers a balanced variety of over 50 shops and professional services, including various medical and dental offices, and a diverse international food court, in a prime central location. In addition to the stores and services on the retail level, City Square has two six-storey towers that house many offices, including Provincial Health Services Authority offices, a travel agency, a law firm and more.

City Square is professionally managed by Colliers International, the leading provider of commercial real estate services in Canada.

Shops and services

Anchors include:

• Safeway
• Kirin Restaurant
• Scotiabank
• Fitness World
• Blanche Macdonald Centre, Makeup, Fashion, Hair & Esthetics School

Retail levels shops and services include a beauty salon, an insurance company (Autoplan broker), the 4 cell phone operators, cookware, women's fashion, a florist, a dollar store and more.

International Food Court

City Square Mall contains a diverse International Food Court.

• A&W
• Beard Papa's
• Cultured Coffee and Tea
• Dairy Queen/Orange Julius
• Everybody Loves Veggies
• Hybar Naturally
• India's Flame
• Starbucks
• Sizzling Wok
• Soup Zone
• Subway
• Sweet Williams Dessert Shop
• Teya Grill (formerly Edo Japan)
• Toyama Sushi
• Vana Vietnamese Cuisine

Transportation

City Square Shopping Centre is at walking distance of the Broadway-City Hall skytrain station (Canada Line) and buses (B-Line 99, 9 and 15)

External links

• Official site