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Nicholson Road is an ongoing photo project aimed at sharing and celebrating the different communities in Metro Vancouver. Each week Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» will be featuring an image from the previous week, shot in one of the many 'hoods around town in order to draw your attention a little bit outside of the hyper-focus that we usually have on the City of Vancouver. |
Windsor Woods. You may have heard of it, but I hadn't. It's a unique little housing complex in Metro Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»- and I'd know, I've seen my fair share on my many photo expeditions!
Located down at the south end of Delta in Tsawwassen, Windsor Woods is a cluster of shops and apartment buildings with a fairly unique feature. When I decided to run up a short flight of stairs to get a better view of some neat apartments situated on an archway over the street, I spotted a fountain. And fountains are always a reason to explore further. Once I reached it, the narrow tree-lined path opened up to the view you see above. In the distance, a wooden footbridge crosses over the pond, where the water continues for the same distance you see here before narrowing and cascading down a few narrow, rocky tiers towards 56th Street. The closest area I could compare it to are the condos along Mariner Walk near Granville Island, but the architectural style is distinctly different.
What perhaps surprised me the most were the various ground-level patios built a foot or two below the water level. And get this - the massive 2-acre pond was a completely man-made creation, sitting (at least partially) on top of an underground parking structure! To the west, it terminates under a beautifully arching stone bridge shortly before reaching Highland Park. To the north, the footpath reaches 16th Ave but not before again passing under a few floors of apartments (one 2nd floor suite even has a couple window niches peeking into the interior of the passthrough.. Another neat architectural element you don't see everyday in Metro Van) To the south, a LEED certified mixed-use building, with yet another archway - this one lined with commercial shops.
What started out as a simple interest in a small plaza and unique architectural feature led to another awesome urban discovery. It just goes to show you, Metro Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»has tons to offer if only you spend a bit of time to get out and explore it!
Here's a snap of the Google Map of the area to give you a better idea!
Archives of the Nicholson Road project can be found .
