'Very good opportunity': 172-room hotel finally opens in Nanaimo
A long awaited hotel in downtown Nanaimo has finally opened.
After a soft opening in March, the Courtyard by Mariott hotel has officially opened its doors in the Harbour City.
"Opening a hotel in the spring time on Vancouver Island is the time you want to be doing it," said Ryan McRae, senior vice president for business development for hotel firm Hotel Equities.
The 172-room hotel is posed for success, according to Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog, and in the middle of that expected long term success is the Snuneymuxw First Nation.
The nation played a key role in getting the nearly two-decade project to fruition.
The hotel sits on the traditional territory of the Snuneymuxw First Nation, and its location has a lot of historical significance.
"It's one of our main village sites where a lot of our people lived over time," said Snuneymuxw Chief Mike Wyse.
Several Snuneymuxw members also work at the hotel, including in management roles.
"Snuneymuxw First Nation are a key partner for us on this," said McRae. "They actually have a significant ownership interest in the asset."
Local First Nation art can also be seen throughout the hotel.
An opening ceremony for the Courtyard by Mariott hotel in Nanaimo is shown. June 1, 2023. (CTV News)"It’s a very good opportunity for our people, our community, that gave us the greenlight to move forward," said Wyse.
"We really wanted to create a sense of place [that's] local here to the Snuneymuxw territory and the City of Nanaimo," added McRae.
In April, construction of a new foot passenger ferry terminal for service between Nanaimo and Vancouver began as well.
The Snuneymuxw First Nation is a partner in that long awaited venture too.
It's a project that's taken just as long as the hotel to develop.
"We are so connected to this land and being a part of the progress moving forward is such a big uplifting for our community," said Wyse.
The Courtyard by Mariott is also expected to attract larger events to the Vancouver Island Conference Centre across the street, which will boost the local economy and help revitalize the downtown core.
Just don't expect to get a room in the next few days.
"We are actually fully sold out," said McRae. "One hundred per cent occupied."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 employees across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.