Could a floating hotel take over part of Vancouver’s waterfront in Coal Harbour?
That’s the proposal being put forth by Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre (VHFC) on behalf of the Sunborn Group, which is hoping to build a 250-room floating hotel in a water lot dock system just off of 1055 Canada Place.
VHFC says this is a unique proposal due to its location on the water, which the City of Vancouver says would require a rezoning in the area.
“It takes the form of a floating vessel,” VHFC said in its rezoning application. “Sunborn Vancouver hotel will be built offsite, eliminating any construction impact and significantly speeding up delivery times.”
“With plans to directly connect to the Vancouver Convention Centre’s existing infrastructure, the new floating hotel will operate like a normal building on land, with no discharge to the water.”
The application says the hotel will use no fossil fuels of any kind, using renewable energy.
The hotel would include a restaurant, bar, cafe, and spa, and would employ as many as 225 full-time workers, it says.
Last year, Destination Vancouver released a report that said the city needs to build 10,000 hotel rooms by 2050 to keep up with increasing demand.
VHFC says the floating hotel would help address this shortage.
“The proposed Sunborn vessel would provide much-needed hotel rooms at a faster-than-typical pace, given that vessel construction would not require a building or redevelopment permit and could begin off-site following rezoning,” it says.
The company says the hotel could be in operation as soon as 2027, pending approvals.
City staff says the company’s proposal is consistent with the Vancouver Official Development Plan, but is recommending that the rezoning application and plans be referred to a public hearing due to the “unusual nature of this floating structure in the marine environment.”
Council is set to discuss the proposal at its next meeting on March 31.
