flexiblefullpage -
billboard - default
interstitial1 - interstitial
catfish1 - bottom
Currently Reading

A 42-story tower envelops residents in Vancouver’s natural beauty

Multifamily Housing

A 42-story tower envelops residents in Vancouver’s natural beauty

Ole Scheeren’s first North American residential building maximizes space and light.


By Novid Parsi, Contributing Editor | March 15, 2022
FIfteen Fifteen exterior
Fifteen Fifteen is meant to add to the city's beauty.

The city of Vancouver is world-renowned for the stunning nature that surrounds it: water, beaches, mountains. A 42-story tower, Fifteen Fifteen, will envelop residents in that natural beauty. Designed by Ole Scheeren, the residential skyscraper will include 202 residences ranging from studios to three bedrooms—all with floor-to-ceiling windows and access to outdoor spaces. 

Studios to 3 Bedrooms
Fifteen Fifteen will consists of studios, as well as three bedrooms.

On the mid and upper levels, the tower also will boast 18 glass-encased homes called “Observatory Residences.” With a starting price of $5 million, each Observatory Residence features 270-degree, floor-to-ceiling windows in a cantilevered space that protrudes from the building, engineered with steel I-beams and diagonal bracing. For residents, the design creates the sensation of floating above the city, ocean, and mountains.

Observatory Residences
Observatory residences consists of 270-degree floor-to-ceiling windows. 

Located on Vancouver Harbour in the downtown neighborhood of Coal Harbour, Fifteen Fifteen is starchitect Ole Scheeren’s first North American residential building. It’s also the only one for which Scheeren has designed both the interiors and exteriors. His design aims to maximize space and light while maintaining privacy and security. The building has over 65 floorplans, and each residence can be customized with bespoke features and finishes. Residents can choose from three color and material palettes that Scheeren designed to reflect Vancouver’s natural surroundings.

Nature aspect
Interaction with nature was important in the design of Fifteen Fifteen.

“For many years, I have explored the question of how we want to live—in relation to our own private spaces as well as our communities, our cities, and the environment—and what architecture means in this context,” Scheeren says in a statement. “Fifteen Fifteen is about connectivity—connecting people to each other and to their surroundings—and offers an interactive way of living.”

Commissioned by Bosa Properties and Kingswood Properties in 2015, Fifteen Fifteen is expected to open in 2026.

Owner-developers: Bosa Properties and Kingswood Properties

Design architect and architect of record: Ole Scheeren

MEP engineers: Bycar and Nemetz

Structural engineer: Glotman Simpson

Related Stories

| Jul 23, 2014

Architecture Billings Index up nearly a point in June

AIA reported the June ABI score was 53.5, up from a mark of 52.6 in May.

| Jul 22, 2014

Herzog & de Meuron unveil curvy concrete condo in Manhattan

Herzog & de Meuron have released renderings of their new $250 million New York building, a 12-story condominium with 88 luxury apartments. 

| Jul 21, 2014

Economists ponder uneven recovery, weigh benefits of big infrastructure [2014 Giants 300 Report]

According to expert forecasters, multifamily projects, the Panama Canal expansion, and the petroleum industry’s “shale gale” could be saving graces for commercial AEC firms seeking growth opportunities in an economy that’s provided its share of recent disappointments.

| Jul 18, 2014

Contractors warm up to new technologies, invent new management schemes [2014 Giants 300 Report]

“UAV.” “LATISTA.” “CMST.” If BD+C Giants 300 contractors have anything to say about it, these new terms may someday be as well known as “BIM” or “LEED.” Here’s a sampling of what Giant GCs and CMs are doing by way of technological and managerial innovation.

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Construction Management Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Jacobs, Barton Malow, Hill International top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest construction management and project management firms in the United States. 

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Contractors [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Turner, Whiting-Turner, Skanska top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest contractors in the United States. 

| Jul 18, 2014

Engineering firms look to bolster growth through new services, technology [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Following solid revenue growth in 2013, the majority of U.S.-based engineering and engineering/architecture firms expect more of the same this year, according to BD+C’s 2014 Giants 300 report. 

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Engineering/Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Jacobs, AECOM, Parsons Brinckerhoff top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering/architecture firms in the United States.

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Engineering Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Fluor, Arup, Day & Zimmermann top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest engineering firms in the United States.

| Jul 18, 2014

Top Architecture Firms [2014 Giants 300 Report]

Gensler, Perkins+Will, NBBJ top Building Design+Construction's 2014 ranking of the largest architecture firms in the United States. 

boombox1 - default
boombox2 -
native1 -

More In Category




halfpage1 -

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021