A New Landmark for Vancouver: The Freedom Mobile Arch Opens

At Vancouver’s Pacific National Exhibition, a new landmark has arrived.

The Freedom Mobile Arch is more than a 10,000-seat open air venue; it’s a space designed to bring people together, from concerts, community gatherings, to shared moments that define a city. Behind its sweeping form is something equally remarkable: one of the world’s largest free-span mass timber structures, an achievement that pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in design, engineering, and construction. 

With no internal columns interrupting the space, the Arch’s canopy stretches overhead in a continuous span, creating an open, unobstructed experience for thousands of guests. It’s the kind of innovation that transforms an ambitious idea into something people can feel the moment they walk in. 

“Sites like this remind me how fun it is to do what we do,” said Craig Enns, Senior Vice President & Area Manager, EllisDon. “I remember first opening the PNE Amphitheatre RFP and immediately knowing this job was meant for EllisDon — it was complicated and unique on just about every front: the geotechnical conditions, the buttress foundations, the one-of-a-kind glulam roof and, most of all, the unrelenting FIFA schedule deadline. In the process, our Construction Management team drew on just about all of our Cradle-to-Grave services to solve these challenges. We engaged our ground engineering group to propose a new foundation design, our construction sciences team led the mass timber strategy, we self-performed the concrete, and Oxford Builders purchased high-capacity cranes specifically for this project along with the vast majority of the project's rental equipment. Drawing on all these groups culminated in a highly successful project for both EllisDon and the City of Vancouver. I couldn't be more proud of both our local Construction Management team and all the internal groups that supported us along the way.”

Delivering Something Truly Different

From the outset, the Freedom Mobile Arch stood apart; not just for how it would look, but for how it would be built.

Delivering a structure of this scale required close coordination across teams, trades, and partners, with each phase building on the last. From installing the iconic King Arches to advancing the mass timber canopy and completing the concrete anchor points that support it, every milestone depended on precision, timing, and alignment.

At the same time, the work extended below the surface. The team navigated complex site conditions, including existing underground infrastructure, a high-water table, and environmental considerations, all while keeping construction moving forward. Critical systems were rerouted, excavation was staged alongside active work, and thousands of feet of conduit were installed to support the venue’s power, security, and audiovisual systems.

It was a process defined not by a single challenge, but by many, solved in real time through collaboration, adaptability, and a shared commitment to progress. In the end, that effort delivered more than a complex build, it created a lasting addition to Vancouver’s cultural landscape, and a space shaped as much by collaboration as by design.

Built to Be Experienced

Some projects are defined by how they look. Others are defined by how they’re experienced.

The Freedom Mobile Arch is both.

It’s a striking addition to Vancouver’s skyline, but its real impact will be measured in what comes next; when people gather for the first time, and in the moments that follow.

Most will never see the complexity behind it, or the decisions that shaped it along the way, but that’s what makes a project like this stand apart: not just what was built, but the lasting role it plays in the life of a city.