SPIRIT BAY CHANNELS FISHING VILLAGE VIBE
Vancouver Island development ‘ticks all the boxes’
For more than two years, Jim and Mary Quinn had been searching for the “just right” location, a place that felt right, that would serve as their retirement home.
The Calgary retirees put a lot of thought, effort, and miles in their lifestyle search, travelling as far as Scotland, hitting more than a few spots in the United States, checking out “in great detail” the Alberta foothills, along with Bragg Creek, Canmore, and across the Rockies to Fernie, Nelson, and Vernon.
But after two years of looking, none of those locations came up to the standards of their search criteria — until near the end of a day-trip up the coast of Port Renfrew on Vancouver Island.
“We just stumbled onto Spirit Bay by chance on our way back to Victoria,” says Jim. “All our boxes were ticked.” Spirit Bay, being created by Spirit Bay Developments on the Salish Sea in Metchosin, B.C., will have 400 single-detached homes spread over 100 acres of seaside landscape 35 minutes from Victoria on the south shore of Vancouver Island when the five planned phases are complete.
The first phase of 58 homes is 75 per cent sold, with 20 homes complete and another 18 under construction. Current pricing has cottages from $390,000 to $550,000, and larger homes from $550,000 to more than $1 million. Custom home lots are priced from $400,000 to $1 million, according to Geoff Gosson, Spirit Bay ’s director of marketing.
In May of last year, they moved into their new full-time home, a 3,000-square-foot Stonington model with vaulted ceilings, comes with three bedrooms, three baths, a study, gym, cellar, and 30-foot deck.
“We were looking to downsize but into something with character, style, quality, energy-efficiency, and a great location,” says Jim.
But getting the home that blended with their retirement lifestyles — Jim worked in the Calgary oilpatch and Mary was with Alberta Health Services — was just one the many boxes ticked off. “It’s near the water, but more than that, there is the sea air, amazing coastline, trails and forests, a dark sky lighting mandate, really good community feeling, and the developer’s plans and vision for the community,” says Jim.
The vision for Spirit Bay is multipronged, says Gosson.
“Firstly, this isn’t a housing development, it’s a thriving village with central square with real businesses that provide real needs for the residents,” he says. “And it was our goal to create the most sustainable development anywhere where humans are seen to be a contribution to the ecosystem.”
Then there is the architectural identity of Spirit Bay. For Spirit Bay, it was the look of a fishing village.
“One of the distinguishing characteristics of most fishing villages, no matter where they are found, is their colourfulness. A second characteristic is the architecture. By keeping consistent with the fishing village roots, which in Spirit Bay goes back millenniums, we can continue to keep traditions alive, including with the resources of the sea,” Gosson says.
The developer, along with a pair of partners — the Trust for Sustainable Development, and the Beecher Bay First Nation — has sustainability as a pillar of its development strategy — places that work with nature, where people can live and grow together, he adds.
The Quinns took all of this into consideration that day they stumbled into Spirit Bay.
“It was location, the Spirit Bay staff, the architect, the flexibility of design — and waking up to a spectacular view every day,” says Jim.
THE BUYERS
Jim and Mary Quinn retired from their jobs in Calgary and, after extensive investigation, decided to buy a full-time home on the Salish Sea at Metchosin, 35 minutes from Victoria.
WHAT THEY BOUGHT
The 3,000-square-foot Stonington model, which the Quinns customized to suit their lifestyle, comes with vaulted ceilings, and has three bedrooms, three baths, a gym, study, cellar, and 30-foot deck.
ABOUT SPIRIT BAY
Spirit Bay is more than a housing development, it’s a village with a central square and a variety of businesses that cater to the needs of the residents.
It is being created by Spirit Bay Developments, along with partners the Trust for Sustainable Development and the Beecher Bay First Nation.
At build out, Spirit Bay will have 400 single-detached home priced from $390,000 to more than $1 million, along with custom home lots priced from $400,000 to $1 million. Amenities include a homeowners’ club, sports fields, tennis court and marina.
There are views of the Olympic Mountains and the Salish Sea, and sits adjacent to a 3,500-acre wilderness park.