Peter Wall (property Developer) - One Wall Centre

One Wall Centre

Wall's most famous building is One Wall Centre, part of the Wall Centre Complex in downtown Vancouver. Completed in 2001, it has been called "the crowning achievement of his life's work". The commissioned architect, Peter Busby, said that "Wall represents a dying breed — a client willing to take a risk to build a tower that will stand out". The building became, however, the object of a legal battle between Wall and the city.

At 137 metres (449 ft), the tower was designed to exceed the height limit of 92 metres (302 ft) for the location. Toronto's Financial Post reported that Wall "obtained an exemption from the bylaw on his promise the tower's windows would be transparent", only for the city subsequently to sue on the basis that "the tower's windows were not transparent, and that the building threatened to be a 'dark, forbidding obelisk' on the highest ground in the downtown core". In turn, Wall counter-sued and offered the city $2–3 million if they would let him keep the dark glass. In the course of the ensuing public debate, the building was nicknamed the "Death Star", and Wall, "Darth Vader".

The issue was resolved by the installation of darker glass on the first 30 floors, and lighter glass from floors 32 to 48. Wall fitted each unit in the upper floors with dark blinds which, in the view of the authors of Vancouver: The Unknown City, "mimic the original dark glass when closed". In 2002, the building was named the previous year's "best new skyscraper" by skyscraper.com. For Vancouver, some felt it showed that "if Mr. Wall has his way, laid-back Lotus Land is in for some flamboyant changes".