The corner of Douglas Street and Caledonia Avenue which White Spot occupied for nearly 50 years will soon look a whole lot different, if a proposed development is approved.
Earlier this year, the province announced it had partnered with a private developer in acquiring a half-city-block site, Âcontaining the former White Spot Restaurant and Capital City Centre Hotel, located between Caledonia Avenue and Discovery Street.
BC Housing is working on the venture with Chard Developments Ltd., which bought the White Spot site for $7.5 million last November.
The province purchased the 96-room hotel and parking lot in April 2021 for $25 million and has been operating it as a shelter since October 2020.
“In partnership with BC Housing, Chard is unveiling an exciting proposal for an inclusive community in Victoria’s core,’ said Chard Developments on its website.
“Located at the northern edge of Downtown Victoria, this proposed development touches four levels of the housing continuum including market condominiums, market rental, below market rental and supportive housing.”
A proposal by Chard Development is being presented to Victoria council Thursday, October 6th to gauge if elected officials support the vision before sending it off for a public hearing.
If approved, the development will be anchored by a central podium featuring a large full-service grocery store, shops, a community childcare facility, office space and an open outdoor public space.
The project would see nearly 540 homes constructed within three towers on the site, and 133 of those would be priced below-market rentals.
There would be one 16-storey building, along with two 21-storey tower buildings.
According to the developer’s website, the project will see the following amenities added:
- full-size grocery store
- a childcare centre
- an 8,600 square foot public plaza
- 41,000 square feet of office space
- retail storefronts including space for a restaurant or cafe
White Spot had anchored the corner of Douglas Street and Calendonia Avenue since 1971, the family restaurant became a destination for many families prior to hockey games or concerts at the nearby Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre (and of course the Victoria Memorial Arena).
At the time of the closure a representative with the company told Victoria Buzz the location has been one of the hardest hit by the direct and indirect impacts of the pandemic.
Below are photos of what the corner could soon look like:
