A now vacant downtown Kelowna motel is about to get a colourful rebirth.
The former Abbott Villa Motel, across from City Park, has been bought by the Accent Inns hotel chain and is being remodelled to join its vibrant-coloured Hotel Zed brand.
The company already has Hotel Zed properties in Burnaby and Victoria and feels Kelowna is ready for one too.
Zed hotels feature vibrant, bright colours on the outside, a retro look inside the rooms and what city staff describe as a funky vibe.
And they say they are happy to see money being spent in the Abbott Street-Leon Avenue area of downtown.
"The city welcomes investment in this area of town and hopefully it'll stimulate further development there," said planner Terry Barton.
The city is keen to see lower Leon Avenue area redeveloped and notes the motel backs on to the street. As part of the colourful change, the large wall separating the motel property from Leon along one side of the property is to be painted purple, said Barton.
While that had some councillors concerned about the possibility of grafitti, in general they liked the idea of the remodelled hotel.
"This will be a big asset to the city," said Coun. Brad Sieben. "This is not just refreshing what's there, this is a fresh new approach and a huge investment in a key area. I'm really excited to see this get off the ground."
With more lighting, security measures,fencing and a rooftop patio overlooking the park and surrounding area, Mayor Colin Basran said he was pleased that there will be more "eyes on the street" in that area of the downtown.
Work is currently underway to transform the motel into its new look and it is expected to open later this year.