Every time I go back to 'Rotown, I take a close look at the latest condo towers. The big development right now is Stn Sqr, which is eventually going to have five of them. Two are already up, and the taller one is the new tallest building around. Before going over to a friend's for dinner in the neighborhood, I compulsively checked out the fencing around this site.

To my surprised delight, I found that the solid chainlink wall had in one place been removed to give access to a firefighters' standpipe. This dark little alcove, imposingly barricaded by a strip of red caution tape, was enclosed by temporary fencing, connected at one corner by a bit of twisted wire and another by nothing but another strip of caution tape. This I ripped, then went to my friend's for dinner, looking forward to a postprandial explore.

When, four hours later, I returned, the tape had been replaced! This briefly gave me pause; but I had had two glasses of wine with dinner, so I ripped this tape too and slipped inside. 

I found a stairwell which took me only to the third floor, then another which took me up one more, to a rooftop garden shared by the two towers. I circled the taller building, trying a few locked doors before finding one wide open. I went inside, found the stairwell, and climbed to the 56th minus 6 (no numbers ending in 4) = the 50th floor to the lower roof; a climb up a ladder and out a hatch brought me to the upper roof. 

Looking down on 'Rotown Mall.

Looking south toward the shimmering lights of Richmond.

Looking down on Crystal Mall. My old friend, Element Hotel, now looking paltry on the right.

It was a warm night and the view was scintillating. I tried my best to drink it in, but I was tired and my thoughts wandered. It crossed my mind that perhaps I enjoy the idea of topping roofs, the satisfaction and pride of having topped roofs, rather more than the actuality. Also, I had to shit; so I took a dump in the highest portable toilet in Burnaby, reflecting with pride and satisfaction that they'd need a sixty-story crane to dispose of my DNA. 

I climbed back down, exiting perhaps forty-five minutes after entering. The tape had not been repaired, but while getting on my bicycle, I did see a security guard shambling around the perimeter towards my point of entry. Perhaps my timing had been good.