Description du lieu patrimonial

Located on the east side of the 800-block of Seymour Street in downtown Vancouver, the Great War Veterans' Association (G.W.V.A.) Hall was constructed in 1926. The two-storey building is characterized by its Classical symmetrical front façade with large multipaned windows and central peaked pediment.

Valeur patrimoniale

The G.W.V.A. Hall is significant for its association with Canada's largest veteran organization. The building is additionally valued as an excellent example of refined Classical interwar architecture, as designed by architect A.A. Cox, and for its later use as the Playpen Central, an important part of Vancouver's LGBTQ2S+ nightlife scene.

The G.W.V.A. Hall is valued for its association with Vancouver's First World War veterans and the national movement to unite and advocate for the former members of the Canadian military. Following the War, a variety of organizations were formed across Canada to assist members of the Canadian military with beginning their post-war lives. The G.W.V.A. was formed in 1917 and by1925 there were more than 700 branches across the country, including Vancouver; it grew to become the largest veteran organization in Canada. In 1925, veteran groups across the country, including the G.W.V.A., amalgamated, which led to the creation of the Canadian Legion in 1926, the same year this building was constructed. The Hall originally bore the name 'G.W.V.A. Branch No. 19 of the Canadian Legion' and served Vancouver veterans for more than three decades before transitioning to commercial use.

The G.W.V.A. Hall is an excellent example of Classical interwar architecture as designed by prominent architect Alfred Arthur Cox. Classically trained in England, Cox moved to Canada and maintained a successful and prolific practice for sixteen years in Montreal, where he specialized in commercial buildings. In 1908, Cox moved west, establishing his practice in Vancouver. Cox obtained numerous commissions from prominent businessmen, corporations, and the provincial government, for commercial and institutional buildings, and designed several buildings for the Vancouver General Hospital between 1912 and 1915. His career was paused by the First World War, however, he, like many of his contemporaries, recovered during the interwar development boom. During this period, Cox designed a variety of buildings, including the Bank of Nova Scotia in Victoria (1923), the Vancouver Women's Building (1926), and this Hall in 1926. The G.W.V.A. Hall exists as an example of Cox's progressive work, which bridged the Classical prewar architectural trends with the advance toward Modernism. Cox's understanding of Classicism is evident in the subtle and refined design of the building, which was pared down to essential elements in a manner that pointed in the direction of emerging modernistic trends. By 1934, Cox had returned to England and the G.W.V.A. Hall remains a late and masterful example of his work in Vancouver.

The G.W.V.A. Hall is significant for its later use, from 1976 to 1992, as the Playpen Central nightclub. The club was at the heart of the LGBTQ2S+ nightlife community of the time, which encompassed six other bars within the two block area. Located on the second floor of the building, the club was created by Vance Campbell, who, along with partner Blaine Culling, would go on to found Granville Entertainment, which opened the Roxy, managed the Vogue Theatre, and opened two clubs at the former Comfort Inn on Granville Street. Following its use as Playpen Central, the space became a Karaoke bar and was subsequently reincarnated as a venue for LGBTQ2S+ nightlife events. The G.W.V.A. Hall exists as an important representation of Vancouver's LGBTQ2S+ community and the growth of the community's nightlife spaces beginning in the 1970s.

Éléments caractéristiques

Elements that define the heritage character of the Great War Veterans' Association Hall are its:

- mid-block location along Seymour Street in downtown Vancouver;
- institutional form, scale, and massing as expressed by its two-storey height with flat roof, main floor set one half-storey above grade, banked windows, and twin recessed entryways on each side of the front façade;
- reinforced concrete construction, with parged front façade, and terrazzo steps and landings;
- Classical design features, including: a rigidly symmetrical front façade; central two-storey engaged pilasters with engaged pediment above; paired recessed entrances with projecting bracketted cornices, front façade parging with scored block lines, extending as quoined returns on side elevations; second floor projecting bracketted sills; and abstracted parapet shields;
- original wooden-sash windows, including 2-by-4 casements in double assembly and 3-by-4 casements in triple assembly.