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A West Coast Midcentury Neighborhood Hangs On To Its Past
By Ken MacIntyre
July 11, 2025 (West Vancouver) – More and more, it seems, new construction has midcentury modern enthusiasts collectively mourning the loss of their favorite vintage buildings. While increasing density continues to threaten many of these structures, there’s one neighborhood in West Vancouver, Canada that boasts residential towers which take their modernist cues from the International Style, Tropical Modernism and, of course, West Coast Modernism. The neighborhood is notable not only for its unique architecture but also for preserving it as long as it has.
Shoreland Apartments, 1963
In 1959, when Metro Vancouver was enjoying its post-war boom years, 50 acres in the Ambleside, Dundarave and Hollyburn communities of West Vancouver were rezoned for apartment buildings, so it’s heartening to report that this area—specifically the waterfront blocks of Bellevue and Argyle Avenues near 22nd Street—still boasts nearly all of the midcentury modern buildings that were erected at that time … for now.
Some of the neighborhood’s sleek residential concrete properties harken back to the days of Tropical Modernism, towering next to the ocean with pastel-colored edifices and stylish-looking balconies, part of a movement known as New Sensualism.
The Crescent, named for its distinctive curved profile, was the area’s first condominium tower, and the very first in all of West Vancouver. Designed and built by Kenneth Gardner and Warnett Kennedy in 1961, the 10-story building is topped with a series of playful “spider legs” and features repurposed terra-cotta drainage tile on every floor, which doubles as a breeze-block brise soleil for its south-facing floor-to-ceiling windows.
Surfside Towers, 1965
The boom years continued through the 1960s, and several of the area’s towers built during that decade are now considered to be some of Metro Vancouver’s most sought-after accommodations.
Two of the neighborhood’s standouts had been slated for redevelopment just a few years ago; the circular, turquoise-colored Shoreland Apartments designed by Don McIntyre in 1963—said to have been inspired by a Hawaiian vacation—and the iconic Villa Maris apartments, known to locals as the Pink Palace and also designed by Don McIntyre, circa 1965.
Fortunately, a new property management company stepped in to purchase the iconic buildings, giving them a new lease on life … which is not to say they’ll be immune from future redevelopment. They’d need to be a designated a Heritage Property by the Municipality of West Vancouver in order to stave off those kinds of inevitable threats.
While the demolition of midcentury properties has been de rigueur of late—and the uncertain future and potential loss of these buildings would be a tragedy for sure—it’s gratifying to know that communities like this one are hanging on, with one foot still planted firmly in the past.
For additional information about this neighborhood, and more, check out the North Shore Heritage Preservation Society. You can also follow the West Vancouver Art Museum, who host West Coast Modern Week tours every July.
The Crescent, 1961