Vancouver developer cancels 17-storey office tower for Granville Entertainment District
A major project to help revitalize Vancouver's Granville Entertainment District has hit a speed bump.
Bonnis Properties, the developer behind the project, has canceled plans to build a 17-storey office tower, citing a lack of urgency from city planners and a shift in office vacancy rates.
“Time kills all great things, and what really killed this project was city staff and planning,” said Kerry Bonnis, a principal with the development company.
Bonnis said declining demand for office tenancy also contributed to the company’s decision.
“The effect of COVID-19 was extremely detrimental to office tenancy demands,” he said.
The project, called 800 Granville, is still slated to include restaurant and performance spaces. It's part of the city’s push to revitalize the Granville strip. Part of that planning includes expanding and enhancing public space to support a range of activities, protecting and strengthening job space, expanding tourism and improving transportation.
Coun. Rebecca Bligh said she was disappointed to hear the developer’s decision to cancel the office component.
“It’s obviously a little troubling as a city councillor when we see major proposals back to the drawing board," she said.
Bligh said despite the setback, the city is committed to renewing the area.
“We know that revitalizing this area in terms of the overall opportunity that there is to create a really exciting, vibrant hub in our downtown core is 100 per cent a priority,” she added.
Bonnis said the company is now looking at finding other uses to fill the space.
“We need to sort of define and refine what looks possible,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Scottie Scheffler isn't the first pro golfer to be arrested during a tournament
Scottie Scheffler's arrest hours before his second-round tee time at the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky, will go down as one of the most shocking in professional golf history. It certainly wasn't the first, though.
NEW What a wildfire survivor says she regrets not grabbing before leaving home
Carol Christian had 15 minutes to evacuate her home during the Fort McMurray wildfires in 2016. She ended up losing the house and everything inside. Now, she wants to share the lessons she learned.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
Canadian convicted of attacking Nancy Pelosi's husband with a hammer sentenced to 30 years
The man convicted of attempting to kidnap then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and attacking her husband with a hammer was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison.
World No. 1 golfer charged with police officer assault before PGA Championship second round
World number one golfer Scottie Scheffler was arrested and charged with the assault of a police officer in what he called a 'chaotic situation' before being released in time to start his second round at the PGA Championship on Friday.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.
B.C. optometrist warns against trending eye colour change procedure
A medical procedure that can permanently change a person's eye colour may be trending on social media, but a B.C. optometrist is warning about the significant risks associated.
An airplane passenger was spotted in an overhead bin. This was the reaction
Airplane overhead compartments. Home to luggage of all shapes and sizes, the odd coat or two, several duty-free bags, a fair bit of dust and… passengers?