An application for rezoning could change the Nanaimo waterfront skyline. Waterfront Holdings, which owns Waterfront Suites and Marina at 1000 Stewart Avenue has applied to the city to build a new 10-storey hotel. The application is currently waiting to be reviewed by the city, as the developer requires a variance permit to go against the community plan, which only allows for a maximum of four storeys above Stewart Avenue on the waterfront.
This week V2V Vacations announced it is shutting down. The company, which is owned by the Australian company Riverside Marine Group, has been operating a premium cruise service between downtown Victoria and downtown Vancouver for the past three years. General manager Julian Wright says the financial prospects for the company were unsatisfactory, which made continuing to offer the service economically non-viable. Anyone who has purchased a ticket for the 2020 season is eligible for a refund. The catamaran will be docked in the Victoria port. No further information was available as to whether the company would sell the catamaran.
Most municipalities saw a decrease in property values in the Capital Regional District, according to BC Assessment. The value of single family homes in Langford , Sooke and the Gulf Islands has increased, by two, three and five per cent respectively. Central Saanich and Highlands saw no change, and every other municipality in the CRD saw a decrease in property values of between one and six per cent. The notices, which were sent out last week, reflect the assessed value of a home as of July 1, 2019.
Destination Greater Victoria’s (DGV) board has renewed CEO Paul Nursey’s employment contract, noting Nursey has contributed to the growth of the tourism industry in the region. The board will see a change as Kimberley Hughes, general manager of the Delta Hotels by Marriott Victoria Ocean Pointe Resort, has been elected the new chair of the board, succeeding Starr McMichael, president of Starboard Enterprises. DGV anticipates tourism will bring an estimated $47 million in total business sales to the region in 2020.
