We all know that buildings don't always turn out like the renderings. Last-minute changes and real-life materials can all cause discrepancies between the vision and reality of a project. In our weekly Flash Forward Friday feature, we take a look at how different projects stack up.

On a site that used to house a row of early 20th-century Arts and Crafts-style bungalows, The Hendrix now sits. The 30-storey Dialog Architects-designed condo tower was built by Edgar Development just south of the Oliver district of downtown Edmonton. Some of our readers noted at the time that the project relied upon a great deal of decorative spandrel panelling in lieu of windows, and the prominent exterior feature drew some criticism. Its alleged over-use came at the expense of offering residents the type of full floor-to-ceiling views that have become commonplace among the majority of recent residential developments. Looking back at these early renderings, the building's exterior aesthetic can be compared to the look achieved by the finished product.

The Hendrix, original rendering, image via Dialog Architects

Viewed above, the original design was clad in white panels from top to bottom with lime green accents surrounding the balconies, and window openings arranged in an alternating fashion spread uniformly across the entire height of the tower. Included at the base, the restored shell of the historic J. T. Ross House can be easily made out as the only structure to remain on site. Below, an updated second rendering reveals a host of changes to the design, most notably the accents have been removed and the opaque panelling now stops several floors short of the top, thus affording top-floor residents with a remarkably improved view.

The Hendrix, final rendering, image via Dialog Architects

Viewed below, the recently completed tower appears nearly identical to the second rendering. A symbolic tribute to the historic materiality of the associated heritage house, and perhaps to the former row of homes, the selection of masonry cladding for the townhouses, along with the stepped-down approach to the street, helps integrate the new development into the neighbourhood.

The Hendrix as it appears today, image by Forum contributor Daveography

Last but not least, the final image, with its perspective corrected to give a good view of the entire tower, shows the extent to which the design elements from the later rendering were carried out.

The Hendrix, tower and townhouses, image by Forum contributor Daveography

We will return next Friday with another comparison!