https://apnews.com/article/space-needle-seattle-base-jump-93e51a529d950e68835f9da70da53503
Daredevils scale and jump from Space Needle in Seattle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t6CP3u29VsU
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/26/us/seattle-space-needle-base-jumpers.html
https://www.bbc.com/news/live/ce8pyw37dpkt
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/mass-shooting-reported-at-seattle-center/
https://www.cnn.com/2026/07/26/us/seattle-center-shooting-festival
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/27/bite-of-seattle-shooting-center-food-festival
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_Tower , https://www.smithtower.com/
https://www.smithtower.com/history
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_Tower#Construction_and_opening
https://pioneersquare.org/businesses/smith-tower-observatory-bar/
https://visitseattle.org/members/smith-tower-pd/
https://living-future.org/case-studies/smith-tower/
https://unicoprop.com/properties/smith-tower
https://www.reddit.com/r/skyscrapers/comments/1qtcrug/smith_tower_seattle_wa/
https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/seattle/98104/june-weather/351409 Wow, Seattle actually got to have 18 June days that were at least 70F. That's pretty bad that barely half of June got above 70F. Only 8 days in June reached or exceeded 80F. That's pretty sad to barely have just over a quarter of June in the 80s. However, only 6 days in June were at least 30C or 86F.
https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/anchorage/99501/june-weather/346835 At least Seattle was warmer than Anchorage, Alaska today.
Seattle usually has significantly hotter summer days than Vancouver, BC (V-BC).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Northwest#Climate
https://www.extremeweatherwatch.com/compare-cities/vancouver/seattle
https://www.globe-gazers.com/vancouver-vs-seattle If you think that Seattle has too much rain, you will find it even more unpleasantly damp in V-BC.
https://thedigitallabyrinth.blogspot.com/search?q=Seattle
https://thedigitallabyrinth.blogspot.com/search?q=30C+and+86F
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pyramid_of_Giza#Surveys_and_design
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Monument#Pyramidion .:.
The Washington_Monument is the only structure in DC that was ever allowed to be taller than the Great_Pyramid_of_Giza.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Monument#Height
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/31360/whats-the-point-of-a-pyramid-atop-washington-monument
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/wamocap.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Monument#Aluminum_apex
https://www.tms.org/pubs/journals/jom/9511/binczewski-9511.html
https://evolutiondc.museum.gwu.edu/the-washington-monument-capstone/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Custom_House_Tower For several decades, nothing in Boston was allowed to be taller than the pyramid on top of the Custom House Tower. It would take until the 1960s for the UK, Canada & Australia to permit a building to be taller than the Boston_Custom_House_Tower.
Of course 14_Wall_Street wasn't going to stop much taller buildings to be constructed in NYC. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14_Wall_Street
It wouldn't be until the late 1960s when the Smith Tower was no longer the tallest in Seattle. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smith_Tower
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_City_Hall For several decades, nothing in LA was allowed to be taller than the pyramid on top of City Hall.
The Cairo_Tower was the first modern structure in Egypt to be taller than the Great_Pyramid_of_Giza. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cairo_Tower
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_and_structures_in_Egypt
https://www.dezeen.com/2026/05/05/olson-kundig-otis-elevators-double-decker-elevators-space-needle/
https://www.spaceneedle.com/elevators
Double-deck_elevator technology has been around for quite a while.
A building hasn't reached its full strength potential until the main part of the construction process is completed.
A building collapse during the construction process can be more dangerous, because of all the extra construction vehicles, machinery, materials and equipment.
https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2989931/quake-hit-bangkok-declared-disaster-area
Of course no building is indestructible from an earthquake, or other things.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_structures_in_Thailand#Tallest_completed_buildings
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/terror-commuters-bangkok-skytrain-shakes-135746637.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_structures_in_Thailand#Under_construction
Bangkok is a tall building city like, Tokyo, Shanghai, HK, Seoul, Singapore, Kuala_Lumpur, Jakarta, Mumbai, Melbourne, Sydney, Ackland, LA, SF and Seattle.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_structures_in_Thailand#Approved_and_proposed
https://thedigitallabyrinth.blogspot.com/search?q=Earthquake+in+Myanmar
https://thedigitallabyrinth.blogspot.com/search?q=earthquakes
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c15q5zegd34o
Myanmar doesn't have tall buildings, compared to many other cities.
How well would have buildings that were a few times taller hold up?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Myanmar
Diamond_Inya_Palace is still the tallest in Yangon. - Estimated to be about 122 m (400 ft) tall
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Myanmar#Tallest_under_construction
The building heights in Yangon are even more limited than those in Honolulu or SD.
https://www.bgs.ac.uk/discovering-geology/earth-hazards/earthquakes/where-do-earthquakes-occur/
Several cities can be affected by earthquakes, but they still build up big and tall.
Of course Tokyo, Shanghai, HK, Seoul, Singapore, Kuala_Lumpur, Jakarta, Mumbai, Melbourne, Sydney, Ackland, LA, SF & Seattle, aren't afraid to build much taller structures, despite many cities being in an earthquake zone.
https://simpleflying.com/boeing-707-barrel-roll-seattle/
The_barrel_roll over Seattle in 1955 by test pilot Alvin_M._Johnston.
https://www.historylink.org/File/21030
https://www.smithsonianbooks.com/store/aviation-military-history/tex-johnston-jet-age-test-pilot
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2387144.Tex_Johnston
What happens if you ROLL an airliner? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhzaogGQNFU
https://www.npr.org/2023/12/03/1216870386/alaska-airlines-to-buy-hawaiian-airlines
The Alaska_Air_Group is about to grow, big time.
https://www.adn.com/business-economy/2023/12/03/alaska-airlines-to-acquire-hawaiian-airlines/
https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/alaska-air-buy-hawaiian-airlines-19-bln-2023-12-03/
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alaska-airlines-buying-hawaiian-airlines/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Airlines
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Stevens_Anchorage_International_Airport
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaiian_Airlines
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_K._Inouye_International_Airport
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Air_Group#Headquarters
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle-Tacoma_International_Airport
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/earthquake-greater-victoria-1.6990956
Victoria,_British_Columbia (V-BC) has some of the shortest buildings of any major city in Canada. V-BC is just a backwater provincial capital, whereas Melbourne, Vic. is a mighty state capital.
The city seems bent towards never allowing a 30 story residential building anywhere in Victoria. The tallest office building isn't even 15 stories.
"The project was initially discussed as a 29- or 30-storey building. In the fall, Townline said it would go with a slightly shorter building after finding some resistance at city hall." https://www.timescolonist.com/real-estate-news/victorias-tallest-building-at-26-storeys-gets-approval-4661187
https://www.timescolonist.com/local-news/45-earthquake-shakes-greater-victoria-washington-state-coast-on-sunday-night-7658398 Perhaps this will help BC with another excuse to keep Victoria as a provincial backwater.
https://www.cgenarchive.org/victoria-earthquakes.html
https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/bc-earthquake-victoria-washington
A stump building in Seattle or Melbourne would be a tower in Victoria, BC. So far, no building on Vancouver Island is allowed to be as tall as the Old_City_Hall_in_Toronto at 103.64 m (340.0 ft). Old_City_Hall_(Toronto) is still a grand building, but its become a stump in TO over the past several decades.
No building in V-BC is allowed to attain or rival the height of St_Paul's_Cathedral,_Melbourne.
"Once the central spire, named the Moorhouse Spire, was completed to its full height of 312 ft (95m),[5] St Paul's became the tallest structure in central Melbourne and dominated the city's skyline when viewed from the south." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Paul's_Cathedral,_Melbourne#20th_and_21st_centuries
Unlike the state of Victoria and Washington State, backwater BC will use any excuse to hold back its urban scale and its infrastructure. It seems that by the time electric power was installed in Toronto, TO was never going back to just being another provincial backwater city.
Wellington,_NZ is just as scenic as V-BC if not moreso, but it allows for some taller buildings and is also in an earthquake zone. The Vancouver_Island part of backwater BC should have had a modern train like this by now. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Wellington_suburban
Apparently, V-BC is to never allow anything to rival the tallest buildings in Wellington, Ottawa-Gatineau, Halifax, Quebec_City, Winnipeg & Edmonton. Just barely taller than Regina,_Saskatchewan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wellington#Transport
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver_Island#Demographics
https://thedigitallabyrinth.blogspot.com/search?q=earthquakes
https://pnsn.org/earthquakes/recent
https://earthquaketrack.com/p/united-states/washington/recent
By the time electric power was established in Seattle, the city was well on its way to becoming the largest in the Pacific_Northwest.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle_City_Light#History
https://thedigitallabyrinth.blogspot.com/search?q=earthquakes
https://bridgemastersinc.com/record-setting-bridges-across-the-globe
https://www.axiomint.com/built-wide-bridge-across-the-great-divide
Cairo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_El_Farag_Axis_Bridge Has 12 lanes. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2019/6/egypts-new-bridge-becomes-the-widest-cable-stayed-bridge-580736
Brisbane: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sir_Leo_Hielscher_Bridges They provide a 12 lane crossing.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington_Bridge It has 14 lanes. https://www.panynj.gov/bridges-tunnels/en/george-washington-bridge/history.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verrazzano-Narrows_Bridge It has 13 lanes. https://www.nydailynews.com/2015/10/06/bike-lanes-eyed-in-400m-overhaul-of-verrazano-bridge/
Since the early 1970s, the 10 lane San_Francisco-Oakland_Bay_Bridge is augmented in a way, by the Transbay_Tube. Indeed, 10 car BART trains cross the San_Francisco_Bay. Unfortunately, the BART tube wasn't designed to have a provision for a 3rd or 4th set of train tracks, so capacity is limited.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_span_replacement_of_the_San_Francisco-Oakland_Bay_Bridge Unfortunately, the Bay Bridge doesn't have anything like Sydney_Harbour_Bridge_cycleway as of yet.
The Sydney_Harbour_Bridge has 8 lanes and 2 tracks of the North_Shore_railway_line. The Harbour Bridge is augmented by the 4 lane Sydney_Harbour_Tunnel. On the other side of the Harbour Bridge is the Sydney_Metro-tunnel , https://www.sydneymetro.info/article/history-under-sydney-harbour , https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/media/documents/2017/tbm-fatcheet.PDF , https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-04-21/sydney-metro-train-travels-under-harbour/102252872 , https://www.9news.com.au/national/sydney-news-train-goes-under-harbor-bridge-for-the-first-time-in-test/92d0ef56-3032-4416-a653-5b7c67dba002
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Gate_Bridge Has 10 lanes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingston_Bridge,_Glasgow Has 10 lanes.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anzac_Bridge Has 8 lanes.
The new Port_Mann_Bridge in Canada was the widest for a little while. However, the bridge should have also had 2 rapidbus lanes and a provision for 2 rail rapid transit tracks. https://www.itsinternational.com/its1/feature/widest-bridge-world-port-mann-open-vancouver
The George_Massey_Tunnel was built to classic backward BC standards with only 4 lanes and no bus lanes and no breakdown lanes. While its replacement will have 8 lanes, there is no provision for rapid_transit. No emergency lanes and no provision for extra HOV & bus lanes. https://biv.com/article/2023/06/bc-starts-bid-process-41b-massey-traffic-tunnel
These 3 fine crossings were possible, simply because they aren't under any Vancouver, BC type restrictions and limitations.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narrows_Bridge_(Perth) ,WA: Has 10 lanes and 2 train tracks.
Seattle, WA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_90_floating_bridges An 8 lane crossing with 2 train tracks.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Champlain_Bridge_(Montreal,_2019-present), Quebec: It has 8 lanes and 2 train tracks. Stubborn BC will likely continue to not follow the examples of WA & Q.
At the other end of the spectrum is the inept, 3 lane Lions_Gate_Bridge. It just might be the best example of bottleneck planning on the planet. The Lions-Gate-Bridge is too narrow and flimsy to accomodate 2 bus lanes, especially any trains. Unlike Sydney, SF & Montreal in the 1930s, Vancouver was just a provincial backwater. Thus, the Lions_Gate_Bridge opened with just 2 lanes. A bridge so narrow that some living rooms and swimming pools are wider than it. The 3rd lane was squeezed in during the early 1950s. The Lions_Gate_Bridge would be fantastic as a bus, bike and pedestrian crossing. However, an 8 lane tunnel with a provision for a train line, should be built from the North_Shore to Georgia_Street. The section of Georgia-Street that's closest to Stanley_Park is 7 lanes wide. However, unlike most major cities, Vancouver deliberately keeps falling behind, because congestive or stunted planning is the way to go.
Fortunately, the Vancouverism mentality didn't stop the Narrows_Bridge_in_Perth or Seattle's upgraded Interstate_90_floating_bridges and especially, the Champlain_Bridge_in_Montreal. (WA & Q)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2022/12/22/amtrak-northeast-corridor-route-overhaul
https://www.amtrak.com/regions/northeast.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Amtrak_routes#Northeast
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Amtrak_routes#Northeast_Corridor
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Amtrak_routes#West
Pacific Northwest
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Amtrak_routes#Cascades_Corridor
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amtrak_Cascades#Proposed_changes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Northwest_Corridor#Seattle%E2%80%93Vancouver
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/amtrak-cascades-vancouver-seattle-portland-new-train-airo
https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022PREM0061-001374 Could backwater BC actually start to eventually build better heavy_rail infrastructure? There really should be at least 4 tracks between Vancouver, BC (V-BC) & Seattle, WA. Two for freight & two for passenger trains.
https://wsdot.wa.gov/construction-planning/search-studies/ultra-high-speed-rail-study
https://www.axios.com/local/seattle/2022/06/10/high-speed-rail-150-million-pacific-northwest
https://crosscut.com/environment/2021/11/dream-high-speed-rail-pnw-may-finally-be-horizon
https://bikeportland.org/2022/12/05/metro-council-will-hear-plan-for-ultra-high-speed-rail-367840
https://www.cascadiarail.org , https://www.amtrak.com/regions/northwest.html
https://www.amtrak.com/routes/cascades-train.html To Vancouver, BC
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_(Amtrak_train)
Amtrak & VIA Rail's International Limited https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=npL-Fhu2krc
https://www.amtrak.com/routes/maple-leaf-train.html To Toronto
https://www.amtrak.com/routes/adirondack-train.html To Montreal
https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/bc-place-contact-festival-noise After all this time, many people just can't accept or allow Vancouver to become like a proper big city.
As a city and greater urban region grows and densifies and become more diverse, there should be more things to see and do. However, that's not always the case with Vancouver, BC. Even if the stunted city had a lot less rain, it still takes a watered down approach towards various things.
Since the late 1800s and early 1900s, Vancouver was a perpetual provincial backwater. Then during the post WW2 era, Vancouver was kept in a slow growth mode, especially when compared to Toronto, Montreal and Seattle. By the 1960s & 70s, those & several other cities really started to grow outward & upward, but not provincial backwater Vancouver.
By the 1980s and 90s, it was becoming quite apparent as to how firmly entrenched the, HOLD VANCOUVER BACK AGENDA, really was.
https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/top-10-seattle-grunge-bands Something really took off in Seattle, which can be just as rainy as Vancouver. However, Seattle never took the water things down approach like Vancouver did. https://dailyhive.com/seattle/grunge-visit
Even by the 2020s, Vancouver still isn't allowed to become a big business and infrastructure center like Calgary and Seattle are. Buildings are kept short, most roads & bridges are kept narrow & the trains are kept short when compared to what Montreal & Toronto, Boston, NYC & Chicago, SF & LA have.
http://www.nofuncity.org , http://www.nofuncity.org/about.php
"What she did see, however, was a place that often lives up to its unofficial title of No Fun City."
“My parents own two bars in Alberta,” Kroll says. “It was really interesting for me to see how much harder it was [to start a bar] here than in Alberta.”
"And a segment on the Downtown Eastside makes a great case for why something in Vancouver needs to give: there’s something seriously wrong when the city will allow open-air crack deals at Hastings and Main but won’t grant a venue like the Rickshaw a permanent liquor licence." https://www.straight.com/article-321074/vancouver/running-venues-challenge-no-fun-city by Mike Usinger on May 5th, 2010
No Fun City (Vancouver Music Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMTkd8JtWdU 2015 https://www.youtube.com/@ifhtfilms/videos
Vancouver is Boring?! | Why it's Nicknamed "No Fun City" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5y3tIauES0
https://www.straight.com/news/what-can-a-wealth-of-recent-reports-tell-us-about-affordable-housing-situation-in-vancouver If developers were allowed to build taller and wider structures, in exchange for providing much more affordable housing for various income levels, things might actually start to improve.
Canada's rental crisis: Why we’re losing affordable housing - The Fifth Estate https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSKOfmrHfQ4
What Nobody Told You About Canada https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gnDGBXACFk Although Canada is the 2nd largest country in area, it doesn't even have 1% of the world's population. In fact, Canada has yet to even contain half of one percent of the human population.
Why people are leaving Canada? Pros and cons of immigration. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFFEGToJSic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ac2ucNfBbTA , https://www.structuremag.org/?p=15416
This is part of a Calgary and Seattle comparison series to show what they can do, simply because they aren't under any Vancouver type controls and restrictions.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/Vancouver_HouseVancouver_House would have been much more impressive if it was permitted to be on the scale of what Calgary and Seattle allows. However, Vancouver is such a watered down backward city, with so many imposed restrictions and limitations of what can be built. Thus, Calgary's version is at least 70 m or 230 feet taller.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/Telus_SkyTelus_Sky is a 60 or 59-storey tower, 222.3 m (729 ft). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telus_Sky#Building_details
https://telussky.com However, from this picture, there seems to be 62 levels above ground, overall.
There seems to be a discrepancy with its total height.
https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/telus-sky/15466 225.4 m / 740 ft with 59 floors.
https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-s-60-storey-telus-sky-building-welcomes-tenants-1.5976668
https://calgaryherald.com/business/local-business/telus-sky-officially-opens-its-doors-to-calgary
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Calgary
Calgary and Seattle built theirs right side up, whereas Vancouver seems more like upside-down world. Nothing like Vancouverism has ever taken over other major cities in Canada or the USA.
https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/rainier-square/16751 258.2 m / 847 ft
The first Rainier_Tower is at much lower height at 156.67 m (514.0 ft) and it's very close in size to Vancouver House. That's the difference with Seattle, because they didn't have to water down or Vancouverize their 2nd tower in the complex.
This really illustrates the difference of how small Vancouver House would be, if it was in Seattle. https://www.architectmagazine.com/project-gallery/rainier-square_o
https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/15099-rainier-square-by-nbbj
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Seattle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4/C If this is built, it will be at least twice the height of the small scale Vancouver House.
https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/4c/21952 Indeed, 4/C would be very close in size as to what is being built in Toronto.
https://www.oneyongeskytower.com , https://www.torontooneyonge.ca
Unlike Vancouver, BC, Seattle is allowed to not only build something that is impressive by Toronto standards, but what would even be tall by Chicago standards.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Needle
Two iconic structures from the 1960s.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calgary_Tower
Vancouver, BC never permitted any structure to rival their heights until the 21st century.
Seattle´s Skyline Will Change by 2030 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlqACkt9LQg
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_tallest_buildings_in_Seattle#Tallest_completed_buildings
Seattle has been able to think, plan and build on a more grand scale than Vancouver, BC. That's because Seattle isn't under all the restrictions & red tape that Vancouver has imposed upon itself.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle#Transportation
Seattle is just as scenic as Vancouver, yet its allowed to be a big city. Of course Seattle has its share of urban problems, as many cities do. 2020 was quite a bad year for most cities.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seattle#Cityscape
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