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Opsal Steel Building

97 East 2nd Avenue, Vancouver, British Columbia, V5T, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1994/11/21

Exterior view of the Opsal Steel Building; City of Vancouver, 2007
2nd Avenue (side) elevation
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Other Name(s)

Opsal Steel Building
Columbia Block and Tool Company

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1918/01/01

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2009/01/29

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

Located at the corner of East 2nd Avenue and Quebec Street, the Opsal Steel Building is an important, surviving and excellent example of early twentieth century industrial architecture. It is a legacy of the industrial history of the southeast False Creek area.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Opsal Steel Building lies in its contextual and architectural value.

The building was designed by architect T. H. Bamforth and built by Dominion Construction in 1918. It has long been known as the Opsal Steel Company ""OSCO"" and its distinctive Art Moderne addition was added in the early 1940’s.

The building is a landmark at the corner of East 2nd and Quebec and is a very visible reminder of the area’s - and the city’s - industrial past. There is a brick manufacturing building directly across the street to the south, a vacant lot diagonally opposite, a low-rise industrial building opposite to the east and the large concrete structure of Mario’s gelato factory across the lane. Its long linear profile to East 2nd Avenue is an important part of its contextual value.

The building is composed of a pair of long gable-roofed ranges parallel to East 2nd Avenue, made up of heavy-timber frame, two-storey high bays. A low roof element connects the two ranges mid-site. A series of rooftop light monitors are found on the northern lane-fronting range. Originally clad in board and batten siding, the building has for some time been clad with horizontal wood siding, painted a box-car red. Multi-paned sliding windows are found at regular bay spaces along the facade. An important part of the southern facade is the painted sign ""Opsal Steel Limited - OSCO - Logging Equipment"". The part of the building at the corner of Quebec and East 2nd is a stucco-clad Art Moderne section, housing administrative offices; it has horizontal banded windows and until recently had a sign ""Opsal Steel Ltd."" in Moderne era metal letters.

The exterior of the building is largely original, although there have been some changes over time. The building has suffered a considerable amount of deterioration over the past decade, with major decay in the lower sections of the wooden siding, windows and the roof. Inside the building are a number of interesting artifacts related to the casting and manufacturer of steel equipment for the logging industry, including a gantry crane and wooden casting moulds.

Source: City of Vancouver Heritage Conservation Program

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements that define the heritage character of the Opsal Steel Building include its:

- location in the southeast False Creek industrial area
- landmark visibility at the corner of West 2nd Avenue and Quebec Streets
- facade, comprised of long low horizontal frontage along West 2nd Avenue
- two parallel ranges of low-pitch gabled roofs
- regular pattern of rooftop monitors on northern range of building
- repetitive pattern of window openings
- simple wood-frame multi-paned sliding windows
- Art Moderne streamlined addition
- large open interior volume in two parts
- exposed timber frame and trusses
- gantry cranes

Recognition

Jurisdiction

British Columbia

Recognition Authority

City of Vancouver

Recognition Statute

Vancouver Charter, s.582

Recognition Type

Community Heritage Register

Recognition Date

1994/11/21

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

1940/01/01 to 1940/01/01

Theme - Category and Type

Developing Economies
Extraction and Production

Function - Category and Type

Current

Historic

Industry
Metal Products Manufacturing Facility

Architect / Designer

T. H. Bamforth

Builder

Dominion Construction Company

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

City of Vancouver Heritage Conservation Program

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

DhRs-736

Status

Published

Related Places

n/a

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