Five buildings in the Alberni Valley have been nominated for VIREB commercial building awards. There are a total of 36 finalists from across Vancouver Island.
“We are so pumped,” said Wish Puusepp of Riverbend Cafe and General Store, one of Port Alberni’s finalists.
This is the second year in a row that Chims Guest House has been nominated for a Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) commercial building award. “We are thrilled to be a finalist again and share with the building community what we accomplished in 2021,” said Naomi Nicholson, who owns Chims with her husband Ed. “Thank you for your support. We couldn’t have completed this without the help of many.”
Maitland Street Village, which opened at Eighth Avenue and Maitland Street in Port Alberni in December, is a low-energy housing development that has been nominated. The other two local nominations are for the Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC) base facility and Nucii Building C, one of the Uchucklesaht First Nation’s buildings at the Redford Street complex.
The 15th annual VIREB awards will take place in person Thursday, April 28 at the Tigh Na Mara Seaside Spa Resort in Parksville.
For the past two years, the event was held virtually due to coronavirus pandemic restrictions on in-person gatherings.
“We are thrilled with the response thus far, and we believe there’s an extra level of excitement this year due to the fact that we can meet in person,” says Mark MacDonald of Business Examiner, which coordinates the event. “The quality of the nominations is outstanding and seems to continue to get better each year, and to have 36 with all of the difficulties facing us the past two years is really great.”
Gold Sponsors of the Awards are MNP LLP , Knappett Projects Inc. and Coastal Community Credit Union. Category sponsors thus far are RBC Royal Bank, RE/MAX Commercial, NAI Commercial, Herold Engineering and Yellow Sheet Review. Black Press is the Media Sponsor.
Commercial, industrial and revenue-producing projects, including renovations, from the Malahat to Port Hardy are up for these awards, and must have been completed between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2021.
Finalists are, by community:
Campbell River (3) – North Island College Aboriginal Gathering Place, Parq Shore and Qwalayu House Home Away From Home.
Cobble Hill (1) – Stanko-Caswell Place.
Comox Valley (7) – Aurora, Comox Valley Hyundai, 680 5th Street, Residences at The BLVD, Cumberland Fire Hall, Cumberland Museum and Denman Island Child Care.
Duncan (4) – Berkey’s Corner, Queen Margaret’s School, Arrow Brewing Company and the VIHA Overdose Prevention Site.
Malahat (1) – Malahat Skywalk.
Maple Bay (1) – Kingsview.
Nanaimo (8) – 10 Buttertubs, 1726 Kerrisdale, Colville Medical Centre, European Specialty Automotive Services, Garry Oak Park, Nanaimo Regional General Hospital Thermal Energy Centre, Nanaimo Search and Rescue and Nanaimo Toyota.
Parksville (2) – Quality Foods and Sandscapes Townhomes.
Port Alberni (5) – CHIMS Guest House Phase II, Maitland Village, Nucii Building C, The Riverbend Café and WCMRC Response Base Facility.
Qualicum Beach (2) – Arrowsmith Search and Rescue and Tidal Brewery.
Tofino (1) – Tree Houses at Middle Beach Lodge.
Ucluelet (1) – Raincoast Commons Phase II.
There will also be a Judges’ Choice award for the best overall entry. Last year’s winner was the Village on Third project in Nanaimo. A team of four independent judges from the real estate industry adjudicate the entries.
Organizers expect the awards to sell out early, so reservations should be made quickly to avoid disappointment. Tickets are $140 plus GST and can be booked through:
For information, please contact MacDonald at 1-866-758-2684 Ext. 120 or email mark@businessexaminer.ca.
