$50M hotel proposal before city of Nanaimo

[sunsetmountainland]

A major Chinese tourism company is preparing to pitch a hotel deal worth $50 million to Nanaimo city council.

Nanaimo Economic Development Corporation CEO Sasha Angus said the offer to build a luxury hotel in downtown Nanaimo offers an "incredible opportunity" for the city.

Representatives from Suzhou Youth Travel Services Co. Ltd. are slated to make their pitch to councillors at the next council meeting Monday night. Under the proposal, the investors would build a 200-suite building with a rooftop restaurant on the city-owned vacant site next to the Vancouver Island Conference Centre.

By Spencer Anderson, Daily News

http://www.canada.com/proposal+befor...343/story.html

http://www2.canada.com/nanaimodailyn...3-2d8115619fa4

http://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news/207000491.html

[Phil McAvity]

It sounds too good to be true. Hopefully it isn't.

[Mike K.]

This proposal doesn't add up. Why spend $50 million building a new hotel when existing hotels are operating at far below their ideal capacity levels?

And for a proposal of this magnitude a four month planning process, as quoted in the article, also doesn't add up. It takes years to finalize the details of a major construction project -- not months.

Fingers crossed something eventually materializes on this site, but when something looks like it's too good to be true it probably is.

[sunsetmountainland]

I have a video clip of the proposal. I hope this link works.

http://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/video?clipId=924471

I hope this explains a bit more. I will look for more information to post when I find it.

[sunsetmountainland]

I have another clip this one from chek news. I am sorry, I am not able to go direct to the article, but if you click back to May 16 2013 then click hotel proposal.

http://www.cheknews.ca/index.php?opt...age&Itemid=202

Maybe you can help clean it up Mike? A bit of a novice or not as well organized for the forums yet. Thanks in advance

[Mike K.]

Here you go:

[sunsetmountainland]

Thanks Mike! I was just reading an article that relates to your question regarding why this project works. Even when existing hotels are below capacity. The company plans to fill this hotel with Chinese tourist. This company also has close ties to Vancouver Island University. Here is that article.

http://www2.canada.com/nanaimodailyn...5-108762d25b0b

[sunsetmountainland]

More details about possible convention centre hotel. It will be 17 storeys

http://www.nanaimobulletin.com/news/207453381.html

[sunsetmountainland]

A representative for a major Chinese tourism firm says the company is "very close" to reaching a deal to build a new, luxury hotel on city-owned land on Gordon Street downtown.
http://www.nanaimodailynews.com/a-ho...naimo-1.335543

[Metro-One]

I hope this tower goes through, it will be a great addition to Nanaimo. I have always loved the layout of that city and the layering of downtown due to the escarpments, and this project plays with those aspects very well.

[sunsetmountainland]

Councillors voted to give approval in principle to a deal with a Chinese tourism firm that will see a 17-storey hotel built next to the Vancouver Island Conference Centre on city-owned land at 100 Gordon Street.

http://www.nanaimodailynews.com/down...uncil-1.392165

[giallo]

^Nice. Encouraging news.

[sunsetmountainland]

After hotel, council now in 'advanced stage' of discussions for downtown ferry service

http://www.nanaimodailynews.com/afte...rvice-1.559446

[Mike K.]

According to nanaimoite on VibrantVictoria's forum, the hotel proponents are now asking for 40 additional rooms and three additional storeys for a 20-storey total height.

[Phil McAvity]

^That should be a breeze since Nanaimo isn't towerphobic like Victoria with two buildings already taller than this proposal.

[Mike K.]

Oh yeah definitely, this won't be a problem. But I'm still wondering what the Nanaimo hotel industry thinks of all of this given the high vacancy rates for Nanaimo's existing hotels.

[Mike K.]

Nanaimo city council have voted to approve the tower's construction permit.

Meanwhile the public doesn't quite know what the tower looks like and won't know until December, according to a statement.

[sunsetmountainland]

This is the most recent article in the nanaimo daily news.

Headline is Hotel development gets go ahead

http://www.nanaimodailynews.com/hote...ahead-1.652348

[Dylan Leblanc]

[Phil McAvity]

If the building ends up looking like that, it will be a real beauty!