I helped my partner move into her new office and thought I'd compare the difference in bike parking. She is a year round bicycle commuter and uses these facilities daily. Hopefully we're looking at the wave of the future.

Before: 1st Canadian Centre (BMO building)

The small windowless bike storage room is isolated on the side of the building. You access the room from the exterior with a swipe card, lock your bike to a wheel-killing floor rack, exit by the same door and access the office tower like a regular pedestrian. Bike security was very good but personal security was bad: muggers could watch you enter the storage area and wait outside to jump you on your exit. If sketchy folks were hanging around, it was a bad idea to enter the bike room at all. Tenants received reports of attacks and were urged to be alert and cautious.

After: 8th Avenue Place (Former Penny Lane)

The bike storage room is in the parkade. There is a man/bike door adjacent to the vehicle door, which is controlled with a swipe card and monitored by CCTV. Through the door you descend a ramp to the bike cage. While this ramp is roomy enough to enter and exit, it is uncomfortably narrow for bikes to pass each other in opposite directions. You enter a bike cage by using your swipe card again, which is specifically programmed for bike cage users apart from general parkade users. There is a lot of bike storage and you can lock your bike frame directly. You exit the cage through a different door on the far side and have access to male and female locker rooms. There are day use lockers available, toilets and sinks, and several showers. These facilities are maintained by the building. You exit the locker room area and access the building interior through an internal stairwell. I think this setup is really nice and I congratulate the developers at 8th Avenue Place for doing such a good job. Here are a couple of snapshots: