Downtown Vancouver church plans to build 56-storey highrise

In an unusual partnership, the First Baptist Church in downtown Vancouver is working with Westbank Projects and Bing Thom Architects to build a striking 550-foot residential tower behind its Gothic-style church at Burrard and Nelson. The tower, if approved, will be at the peak of the city’s downtown peninsula and will closely rival the Shangri-La tower on the city’s skyline, although it won’t be as tall.