Rio Vista

The work of Charles Marega (1871-1939)

by Eve Lazarus on March 26, 2016

Charles Marega died on March 27, 1939.

And, while you may not know his name you will know his work. Those are his two lion statues at the south end of the Lions Gate Bridge. And while the lions may be his most well known work, Charles (or Carlos as he was christened) was a prolific sculptor in Vancouver.

I first heard of him when I was writing about Alvo von Alvensleben for At Home with History. Alvensleben owned what’s now part of Crofton Girl’s School and the 20 acres it sat on at West 41^st Avenue and Blenheim in Kerrisdale. He hired Marega to carve a magnificent riot of gargoyles, bats, rabbits and assorted weird faces in the white plaster of his dining room ceiling.

Crofton House ceiling courtesy Crofton House

Marega maidens At that point Marega wasn’t very well known, but he had just shocked Vancouver’s sensibilities by carving nine topless terra cotta maidens on L.D. Taylor’s building (now the Sun Tower), which likely appealed to the flamboyant Alvensleben.

Other commissions include the bronze bust of David Oppenheimer, Vancouver’s second mayor at the entrance to Stanley Park; the statue of Captain Vancouver in front of Vancouver City Hall; the 14 famous people on the Parliament Buildings in Victoria; and the drinking fountain that sits in Alexandra Park to honour Joe Fortes.

As Marega was creating sculptures for public places, his plaster work was also in demand for private mansions. His work can be found at Rio Vista on South West Marine Drive, Hycroft in Shaughnessy Heights, and Shannon at 57^th and Granville.

While Marega worked for the wealthy, in the 1930s he and his wife Bertha lived a humble existence at 1170 Barclay Street–a simple two-storey grey stucco apartment building in the West End with the improbable name of “The Florida.”

Charles Marega's home in the 1930s — The Florida on Barclay

To make ends meet, Marega taught at the Vancouver School of Decorative and Applied Arts (the forerunner to Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design). In fact, he had just finished teaching a class in 1939 when he had a heart attack and died. He was 68.

Tags 1170 Barclay Street, Alvo von Alvensleben, At Home with History, Carlos Marega, Charles Marega, Crofton Girl's School, Hycroft, Rio Vista, Shannon, Vancouver School of Decorative and Applied Arts

From Casa Mia to Lynn Valley: Development is coming

by Eve Lazarus on July 7, 2013

I got a call from Bobbi Spark yesterday. Bobbi is a former Hospice boss and runs a research and reporting company in Abbotsford.

The Southlands Community Association hired her to look at the issues flying around Casa Mia, the former Reifel-owned mansion on South West Marine Drive.

Casa Mia means "My home" — Casa Mia, 1920 South West Marine Drive

These days the Reifel’s are best known as the name behind the Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary in Ladner, but at one time the family owned four breweries and two distilleries and made a fortune in rum running during US prohibition. Some of these proceeds were invested back into real estate: the family homes of Casa Mia (1920 South West Marine Drive), Rio Vista (2170 South West Marine Drive) the hunting lodge in Ladner, now headquarters for the Canadian Wildlife Service, a Langley farm, and the Commodore Ballroom.

Casa Mia is a stunning mansion. Features include nine fireplaces, 10 bathrooms, a sauna, hand-painted murals in the playroom, and a full-size art-deco ballroom in the basement.

Owners include Ross Maclean a high profile psychiatrist and Nelson Skalbania. Over the years the price tag has lurched between $4 and $20 million.

About three years ago Maureen McIntosh and Lynn Aarvold of the Care Group paid $10 million for the mansion. The Care Group operates six extended care facilities in BC. They want to operate a 100-bed facility at Casa Mia. Residents want no more than 50.

City Council has asked for a new plan with less density — Proposed plans for Casa Mia

Residents say the proposed additions overshadow the historical nature of the building, and would set a precedent for development that would run roughshod over the heritage and monied character of the neighbourhood (my words).

These residents who have deep pockets and lots of clout, say that they aren’t opposed to converting Casa Mia into a small scale care facility for seniors, just the “aggressive” (their word) rezoning application.

Bobbi’s call made me think of some of the larger issues that affect all municipalities as population increases and we look for affordable housing solutions that don’t involve replacing fine old houses with mega mansions, skyscrapers or parking lots.

Here in Lynn Valley, we’re trying to stop developers from plonking 20-plus storey high-rises into what’s essentially a village. Basically we want Whistler, developers want Metrotown.

Residents are fighting plans that could see highrises of up to 20-storeys — Developer’s proposal for Lynn Valley Centre

“Development is coming one way or another,” says Bobbi. “You will either be driven by it or you can ride the beast and get involved and make suggestions and be an organized community with a constructive voice.”

Sensible advice, but I wonder if that’s even possible in a province where half the electorate can’t be bothered to vote.

So whether it’s threat of sagging property values or heritage conservation that’s driving Southlands, at least they’re out there doing something, and so far the residents are in the driving seat. The city rejected the Care Group’s latest proposal and sent Stuart Howard Architects back to the drawing board.

Personally, I think a senior’s facility that preserves Casa Mia is a lot more palatable than other options and hopefully they can reach an acceptable compromise.

As Bobbi says you can’t stop change, but you can manage it.

“They need to get a handle on this and not just let some developers and some city planners downtown make all the decisions for their community but they have to accept that there are going to be changes and that’s the way of the world.”

Tags Bobbi Spark, Casa Mia, Commodore Ballroom, Lynn Aarvold, Lynn Valley, Maureen McIntosh, Nelson Skalbania, Reifels, Rio Vista, Ross Maclean, Southlands Community Association, the Care Group

Commodore Ballroom voted 8th most influential club in North America

by Eve Lazarus on July 8, 2011

For more about the Commodore Ballroom see Sensational Vancouver

Built by the Reifel's in 1930 — Casa Mia

Billboard Magazine hit the streets last week naming our Commodore Ballroom one of North America’s 10 most influential clubs, right up there with New York’s Bowery Ballroom and the Fillmore in San Francisco. According to Billboard, the Commodore scored a spot on the list because it’s well-branded with great sightlines and amazing sound. “Plus that certain intangible something that just equals cool.”

Photo by Stuart Thomson for Star Newspaper — The dance floor of the Commodore Ballroom, December 1930

As well as hosting a bunch of legendary performers such as Bryan Adams, The Guess Who, U2 and the Police, the club has a fascinating history.

Built by Rum Runners in 1929

I wrote a chapter about the Reifel family in At Home with History, a family name that is probably best known today for the Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, brewed the family fortune and built the cabaret during US Prohibition.
Around the same time, the Reifel brothers Harry and George built mansions on “Millionaire’s row” on Southwest Marine Drive. George had architect Ross Lort design Casa Mia—a Spanish-style colonial villa. Harry moved into the equally lavish Rio Vista a few blocks away.

For their weekend getaways, Harry bought a story-book cottage on a farm near Langley, bred jersey cows and trained race horses. Pleased with his architect’s work on Casa Mia, George commissioned Lort to design a hunting lodge at his property on Westham Island just outside Ladner. It’s now the offices of the Canadian Wildlife Service.

Harry Reifel raised jersey cows and trained race horses at his Langley farm — Bella Vista, 6270 Glover Road, Milner

Casa Mia has nine fireplaces, 10 bathrooms a sauna, hand-painted murals in the playroom by Walt Disney Studio artists and a full-size art-deco ballroom similar to the Commodore’s. Rubber tires and horsehair inserted under the dance floor created a spring so that when lots of people stepped onto it, it felt like jumping on a trampoline.

And, Depression it might have been, but in December 1930, the Commodore Ballroom opened to a sold-out crowd of 1,500 soon attracting names such as Tommy Dorsey, Count Basie and Rudy Vallee.

The Reifels Resign

The Reifel’s owned a number of boats that made frequent trips down the coast of the US, but managed to stay fairly clean until 1933. The following July the Vancouver Sun ran a story that the Reifel’s had resigned from the board of directors of Brewers and Distillers of Vancouver–the “best known liquor company of the Pacific Coast” because of allegations that their products had found their way south of the border during Prohibition.

A few days later the Province reported that the Reifels were indicted and being sued by Seattle’s Attorney-General for $17.2 million. “The alleged operations included the formation of special companies and the use of a fleet of boats, some of which were directed by radio from British Columbia.”

The case eventually settled out of court for $700,000.

Tags Billboard Magazine, Bowery Ballroom, Brewers and Distillers of Vancouver, Canadian Wildlife Service, Casa Mia, Commodore Ballroom, Fillmore, George Reifel, Harry Reifel, Rio Vista, Ross Lort, rum runners, Westham Island

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