Eaga Canada Services has found a new home, having come a long way since it’s inception in 2007. As part of this growth we are excited to announce the move to our new offices in the historical Flack Block on the edge of Gastown:

It’s hard to believe so much history lies inside the impressive stone archway and modern lit entrance of the newly renovated building – but the fact that the intersection at Victory Square was once the centre of the city is only the beginning of a story that starts with one kind of gold and ends with another.

The Flack building was originally conceived of by Thomas Flack back in 1898; whose Klondike gold led to the building’s execution under architect William Blackmore, one of Vancouver ’s most respected practitioners back in the day.

The building soon rose to prominence as one of the largest and most elaborate in the city; becoming a local landmark on the busy shipping district of Hastings Street. It was the home for small retailers, barristers, insurance agents, mining brokers and the original Bank of Vancouver. Gold dealers and jewelers also took up space in the building and the reminders of their influence can be found in over 10 vaults throughout the now modernized office space. They’re quite a contrast to the glass partitions and polished wood floors; and up close the massive steel doors bear former company insignias, which are engraved into the surface and serve as tiny reminders of the history still embedded in the newly renovated white walls.

Outside on street level, the building façade is a whole other story in itself. Since Thomas Flack’s heyday, the original sandstone had weathered to a nearly decrepit state, and as a corner building near the water suffered over the years from wind erosion.

“It was leading to demolition by neglect,” says the Flack Block’s restorer, Robert Fung of The Salient Group, in one interview about the $20 million renovation. The project could not have happened without Vancouver ’s heritage incentive program and the federal government’s commercial heritage properties incentive fund.

This exterior repair work was just as careful to respect the building’s past as was the interior modifications, and the original limestone archway above the entrance was recreated in Indiana grey limestone by local artisans using vintage photographs. With the help of the Architectural Stone Masonry (ASM) of Richmond and Abbotsford over 80,000 lbs of stone was hand carved, without the use of machinery.

Working with award winning Acton Ostry Architects, the Flack Block’s restoration includes a steel and glass fifth floor with a wraparound deck that overlooks the somber-salute to soldiers that is Victory Square Park and its historic cenotaph. The building is also built to a gold LEED certification for commercial interiors. From battery and CD recycling to timed lights and thermostats everything about the space encourages eco-consciousness.

“All tenants in the building have to prove a business based on green issues and sustainability,” says Lorriane Quinn, CEO of Eaga Canada . “So we will be well placed among like-minded businesses.”

The final product is one Thomas Flack would be proud of; and while the Klondike gold has turned to a gold LEED certification the final vision is still intact. The Flack Building brings a burst of life to a long-neglected block of the downtown eastside and as for Eaga employees settling into this modern historical site; we are proud to be a part of the positive change.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 3rd, 2009 at 11:10 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.