Brentwood College School was named winner of the Judges Choice Award for best overall entry in the fourth annual Vancouver Island Real Estate Board’s (VIREB) Commercial Building Awards at Crown Isle Resort in Courtenay.
This was the first time the event was held in Courtenay and it was a sellout.
Brentwood College’s building features their dining hall and student centre in Mill Bay and it also won the Excellence Award in the Institutional category, sharing honors with Nanaimo’s new East Wellington Fire Hall.
Dignitaries at the Commercial Building Awards included; Greg Phelps, Mayor of Courtenay; Eric Russcher, Mayor of Ucluelet; Allan Corbett, Canadian Commercial Council Chair Elect; Dennis Germyn, attending on behalf of the BC Commercial Council; Stephen Shea, Victoria Real Estate Board’s Commercial Division Chair and Jim Stewart, VIREB president.
Finalists and winners came from various VIREB zones, including the Comox Valley, Cowichan Valley, Parksville-Qualicum Beach, Port Alberni, the West Coast, and Nanaimo. VIREB’s 2011 Commercial Building Awards Chair, Jay Cousins says the quality of entries were simply outstanding.
“The interest in our Commercial Building Awards has been well received again this year. The calibre of workmanship and design is setting a standard for Vancouver Island that would be the envy of any area in the country!”
To be eligible for nomination, an investment, commercial or industrial building, development or renovation projects had to have been completed between Jan. 1, 2010 and Dec. 31, 2010.
The challenge of naming the finalists went to a team of independent judges, selected from the professional and development industries, who traveled to the various communities to see the projects first-hand.
The Judges Choice Award, selected from 10 Awards of Excellence winners, went to Brentwood College School in Mill Bay for Best Overall Entry. Brentwood College’s building features their dining hall and student centre in Mill Bay and it also won the Excellence Award in the Institutional category, sharing honours with Nanaimo’s new East Wellington Fire Hall.
Winners of the Award of Excellence, Award of Merit, Honourable Mentions and Finalist Award in the ten categories are:
Institutional: Brentwood College in Mill Bay & East Wellington Fire Hall of Nanaimo (Awards of Excellence); Ucluelet Community Centre of Ucluelet and BC Ferries Departure Bay Waiting Room in Nanaimo (Awards of Merit); North Island College Trades Training Facility in Courtenay (Finalist Award) and VIU Deep Bay Field Station Centre for Shell Research of Deep Bay (Finalist Award).
Industrial: BC Hydro Port Alberni Operations Facility in Port Alberni (Award of Excellence); Amazonite Corner in Duncan (Award of Merit); Rotor Maxx Support Ltd. in Parksville (Finalist Award); U-Lock Storage in Nanaimo (Finalist Award); and Building at 1965 and 1975 Bollinger Road in Nanaimo (Finalist Award).
Retail: Highland Village Shopping Centre Phase 2 in Comox (Award of Excellence); PostNet Business Centre in Parksville (Award of Merit); Thrifty Foods Shopping Plaza Expansion in Parksville (Finalist Award); Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar in Courtenay (Finalist Award); Island Honda in Courtenay (Finalist Award); and Metro Toyota in Duncan (Finalist Award).
Renovation: Nanaimo Maps & Charts Façade Upgrade in Nanaimo (Award of Excellence); University Village Shopping Centre of Nanaimo (Award of Merit); Native Sons Hall 1928 of Courtenay (Honourable Mention); and Valley Vision Optometry in Port Alberni (Finalist Award).
Mixed Use: Terra Verde of Qualicum Beach (Award of Excellence); Rutherford Ridge of Nanaimo (Award of Merit); City Centre Condos of Nanaimo (Honourable Mention); and Seven Sails in Nanaimo (Finalist Award).
Office: HUU-AY-AHT Multi-Purpose Building in Bamfield (Award of Excellence); and the building at 1650 Terminal Avenue in Nanaimo (Award of Merit).
Multi Family — Townhouse: Maveric Place in Nanaimo (Award of Excellence); and Sun Meadows at Cottle Creek on Mercedes Way of Nanaimo (Award of Merit).
Multi Family — Condo: Thornbridge at Longwood in Nanaimo (Award of Excellence); and Meredith Court in Nanaimo (Award of Merit).
Seniors Housing: Oak Tree Manor in Nanaimo (Award of Merit).
Community Enhancement: North Island College Gathering Place in Port Alberni (Award of Excellence); Waterfront Walkway, Phase II in Parksville (Award of Merit); Seine Floats Washroom Building in Port Hardy (Finalist Award); and Amphitheatre at Bowen Park in Nanaimo (Finalist Award).
Commercial Building Awards Co-Chair Dave Hammond, with VIREB, says VIREB’s Commercial Division, now in its sixth year, has proven to be a great success.
“As a division, we really wanted to find a way to come together to recognize and honour the best in commercial buildings north of the Malahat on Vancouver Island.”
Title Sponsor for the event was Re/Max Western – Commercial; Gold sponsors included Invest Comox Valley, Fortis BC, Colliers International and Coastal Community Credit Union. Category Sponsors were RBC Royal Bank and the Business Development Bank of Canada; Host Sponsor was Business Vancouver Island newspaper.
VIREB’s Commercial Division is dedicated to: the advancement of excellence in commercial development; providing access to Canadian and provincial online commercial networks (such as ICX.ca and clslink.ca); and promoting the expertise of the commercial division to members of the public.
Commercial Division members handle industrial, multi-family, retail and commercial needs of their clients.
— Vancouver Island Real Estate Board