Costco--but with 800 apartments

[tomh009]

I think it would be quite hard to retrofit existing locations… modern warehouses are truly the simplest steel boxes you can build.

Quite true. But because they are so simple, it would not be difficult to add concrete columns and/or supporting walls (to support the upper walls) without massively disrupting the basic warehouse steel/concrete box. Essentially the ground-floor warehouse would be as is, you don't use any of it for supporting the upper floors, instead building the supports either just outside the existing walls or in the interior of the existing warehouse.

[danbrotherston]

I think it would be quite hard to retrofit existing locations… modern warehouses are truly the simplest steel boxes you can build.

Quite true. But because they are so simple, it would not be difficult to add concrete columns and/or supporting walls (to support the upper walls) without massively disrupting the basic warehouse steel/concrete box. Essentially the ground-floor warehouse would be as is, you don't use any of it for supporting the upper floors, instead building the supports either just outside the existing walls or in the interior of the existing warehouse.

Honestly these structures are designed to be throw away. The cheapest thing to do would be to demolish the existing building and build something new in it's place. The lower cost of engineering a new structure would easily pay for the cost of demolition. The biggest loss would be the time the store is not operating, but I'm unconvinced you could keep a store operating while constructing a building through the existing building anyway.

[Bytor]

I think it would be quite hard to retrofit existing locations… modern warehouses are truly the simplest steel boxes you can build.

Quite true. But because they are so simple, it would not be difficult to add concrete columns and/or supporting walls (to support the upper walls) without massively disrupting the basic warehouse steel/concrete box. Essentially the ground-floor warehouse would be as is, you don't use any of it for supporting the upper floors, instead building the supports either just outside the existing walls or in the interior of the existing warehouse.

Warehouse buildings like that are generally designed for a 30-year lifespan. At that point, the escalating repair costs are not seen as worthwhile and the building is either torn down and a new one built, or it is gutted and completely refitted. That refitting, though is almost as expensive as a new building from scratch.

As such I am not sure that retro-fitting to be a pillar base would be a practical or viable option.

There is also a Costco in Vancouver right by the Stadium-Chinatown Skytrain station.

[ac3r]

Quite true. But because they are so simple, it would not be difficult to add concrete columns and/or supporting walls (to support the upper walls) without massively disrupting the basic warehouse steel/concrete box. Essentially the ground-floor warehouse would be as is, you don't use any of it for supporting the upper floors, instead building the supports either just outside the existing walls or in the interior of the existing warehouse.

It really isn't worth doing this. It's much cheaper, easier, faster and environmentally better to knock it down, recycle the steel and building an actual permanent structure in its place. These kind of buildings are worthless and are almost always designed to be temporary. Nobody would want to spend the money and time to retrofit something like that.