Vancouver city council has deferred a developer’s proposal to build a 25-storey hotel on Barclay Street in the West End over concerns related to density and lack of rental housing incorporated in the project.
Marcon Barclay Properties Ltd. had applied to build a 248-room hotel at 2028-2038 Barclay St., which is the current site of a four-storey, 27-room boutique hotel built in 1959 and renovated in 1988.
Rosellen Suites is located mid-block in an area west of Denman Street.
The surrounding neighbourhood is predominately residential and consists of a mix of purpose-built, low-rise rental and strata buildings ranging from three to 26 storeys. Stanley Park and Lost Lagoon are nearby.
The proposed new hotel, which was designed by Henriquez Partners Architects, would have reached 272 feet in height and included a ground-floor restaurant.
Council voted 8-1 on March 12 to send the project back to staff to work with Marcon to study options that would increase the number of existing rooms in the boutique hotel — by at least one room — and look to add market and below market rental housing.
Coun. Mike Klassen initiated the referral, noting the strong opinions from the community in opposition, but also in support of the project. A ground-floor restaurant and lounge included in the proposal was a concern raised by residents, Klassen said.
“The overt commercial uses in this part of the West End have left me feeling very concerned that this would be pushing things a bit further than the neighbourhood and the community would be ready to embrace,” he said.
Coun. Peter Meiszner, a former West End resident and regular visitor to the area, told council during debate that he supports the development of more hotels in Vancouver, but not at the proposed site.
“If this hotel was on Denman Street or Robson Street or Davie Street in the same neighbourhood or elsewhere in the [central business district], I would enthusiastically support it,” Meiszner said.
“But I can’t think of another similar location to this one in the city where we’re considering building a large hotel tower of this scale on a mid-block site, and near the end of what’s a minor street, and a considerable distance from rapid transit.”
Prior to casting her vote, Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung questioned whether referring Marcon’s application to staff would make “someone, anyone or no one” happy, noting any new project contemplated for the site would be large in size.
“What I’m thinking about and council probably needs to think about in potentially considering this referral is that it’s likely going to need a similar size [building for rental housing] and height,” Kirby-Yung said. “So we’re probably not going to be seeing a significant difference in height. I could be wrong.”
She also cited concerns about the effect on the promised amenities from Marcon, which included partnerships with non-profits for meeting spaces, as well as discounts for seniors and residents on food, fitness programs and aquatic centre access.
Offering discounts on hotel stays to people and families connected to the Dr. Peter Centre, along with creating an art gallery space in the hotel where locals could sell art were also promised by Marcon.
Coun. Lucy Maloney was the lone member of council to support Marcon’s project; councillors Lisa Dominato and Pete Fry were absent for the vote. Like Kirby-Yung, Maloney questioned whether a same scale building that was rental housing instead of a hotel would allay community concerns.
A staff report to council on the proposal said approximately 1,570 submissions were received from the public, along with a petition in opposition with about 5,700 signatures.
Supporters cited the need for increased hotel stock and the potential economic and community benefits. Concerns included impacts on density, the effect on neighbourhood character, noise pollution, traffic and parking.
An in-person open house scheduled for Oct. 8, 2025 was cancelled at the request of the applicant team citing their concerns over safety and crowd control. In lieu of an open house, Marcon reached out to select community groups to discuss the project, the staff report said.
In 2018, a development permit application was submitted by Marcon in collaboration with Henriquez Partners Architects and Shift Architecture for 2030 Barclay St. The proposed project consisted of a 10-storey market residential tower with 19 suites catering to families.
A development permit “minor amendment” was submitted in April 2022 and a development permit was approved and issued in July 2022, establishing the site as the location for a secondary tower on the block, according to Marcon’s rezoning application.
In an emailed statement Tuesday, Nic Paolella, executive vice-president of Marcon, said:
“First, I want to thank everyone who participated. We appreciate the passion the community has shown engaging in the process. We respect council’s decision to have our team refine the project further with city staff. Our goal remains the same — to renew this site in a way that contributes positively to the neighbourhood and West End. We will continue working with city staff to achieve that.”
