With a vote of eight to one, Vancouver council has approved a proposal by Sunborn International for a 250-room floating hotel to be located along the city’s waterfront, adjacent to the Vancouver Convention Centre. Described as a “floatel” by Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung, there is optimism that it will be “an exciting and fresh addition” to the city’s waterfront, while addressing demand for hotel units.
“I think it delivers economically. I think it delivers environmentally,” she said. “I think it delivers from an experiential point of view and a city building point of view, and I’m proud to support it.”
The plan is to build the vessel as a low-carbon, energy-efficient hotel with no generators or engines on board and a black water holding system that will be connected to the convention centre. “We will hold no oil or fossil fuels on board whatsoever,” Sunborn International CEO, Hans Niemi, said. “That will also mitigate and de-risk any environmental concerns of leakage of oil, or things that [one] normally would associate with vessels and maritime assets.”
The public will also gain waterfront access. Similar to a city park, the public will have access to the public seating areas and gardens, as well as the café and spa from the hours of 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
The company has had success building floating hotels in Gibraltar and London, the latter of which the Vancouver hotel will be most similar to, given its connectivity to the convention centre’s infrastructure.
Coun. Lenny Zhou said the hotel is an example of innovation “in how we think about land use, tourism and our relationship with the waterfront.” Zhou said in a city where land is very limited, demand continues to grow for housing and hotel rooms. “This project explores a new frontier, activating our marine space in a thoughtful and purposeful way,” he said.
