House C
Built by celebrated Vancouver architect Barry Downs as his personal home and testing ground for his designs, the Downs House II is at extreme risk of redevelopment; Iconic Vancouver landmarks designed by Downs include Canada Place, Library Square and Yaletown
The following description is courtesy of the architects. West Coast Modern is issuing an urgent plea for an architecture-loving buyer to come forward and save the at-risk Downs House II from likely destruction. The 1,464-square-foot home, built by influential Vancouver architect Barry Downs, sits on a half-acre waterfront lot in West Vancouver and is not protected, making it a prime target for redevelopment unless a buyer who appreciates its architectural and heritage value can be found.
“The survival rate of homes like these is very bleak,” says Trent Rodney, Co-Founder at West Coast Modern. “Unless we are able to find a buyer who appreciates the architectural significance of this home more than the redevelopment value of the land, it is doomed to join the long list of west coast modern homes that have been lost to history.”
Located at 6664 Marine Drive in West Vancouver on its own private road, the 1979-built Downs House II was designed by Downs to be in harmony with its natural surroundings. The home’s multiple levels cascade down the rock cliff it is perched upon offering splendid views of Garrow Bay and the Strait of Georgia beyond. Select walls and windows are rounded at the top to mimic the soft edges of the surrounding bluff while cedar shingles evoke the bark of nearby trees. The home was intentionally positioned by Downs to preserve all of the existing trees and use the hill and vegetation to protect it against storms and the sun.
Downs’ work often balanced the austere modernism of his day with an earthy sensibility that reflected the environment of the west coast – with Downs House II being a perfect example of this. As the name implies, this is the second home that Barry Downs designed for himself and his family – with the first being Downs House I built in 1959 in the Dunbar neighbourhood of Vancouver.
Downs distinguished himself among his contemporaries for the wide range of projects that he worked on – everything from single-family homes (including collaborations with other modernist heavyweights like Fred Hollingsworth) to civic buildings and whole neighbourhoods that have come to define Vancouver such as Canada Place, Yaletown and the main branch of the Vancouver Public Library. His substantial contributions to Vancouver’s architectural fabric and the west coast modernism movement were recognized in 2015 when he was awarded the Order of Canada, the country’s highest civilian honour.
According to West Coast Modern, an average of 2 west coast modern homes a year are torn down. They estimate that, of the around 1,100 homes originally built during the west coast modern movement, only around 256 remain today.
“This is Vancouver’s time to reverse the trend that sees iconic waterfront homes demolished – like Arthur Erickson’s Graham House and Arthur Mudry’s Beaton House – and continue Downs’ vision for Vancouver to join other global cities in saving and celebrating their architectural landmarks,” continues Rodney. “In Los Angeles, Saks Fifth Avenue executives stepped up to save Frank Lloyd Wright’s Ennis House from demolition and, in Palm Springs, a fund manager came forward and saved John Lautner’s Kaufman House from a similar fate. These cities have developed a community of architecture enthusiasts who are willing to stand up, become custodians of these significant homes and protect them from the wrecking ball. With the Downs House II being put up for sale for the first time, it is now up to Vancouver to decide what the future of this landmark home will be.”
