Sutton Place hotel at Kelowna airport moved forward

Kelowna International Airport will be getting its own hotel on site.

Development and variance permits for the new hotel, which will be called Sutton Place, were moved forward with a unanimous vote of support from city council during the Tuesday evening meeting.

Only coun. DeHart was absent from the vote as she considered her employment outside of council (at another hotel) to be a conflict of interest.

Plans for the hotel were unveiled in January by Northland Properties.

The six-storey hotel will have 245 suites, a restaurant, a bar, gym, swimming pool, conference centre and banquet facilities.

Although the hotel will be located in an existing parkade just outside the airport, developers will maintain 195 parking stalls.

City staff said no landscape area is required, but the developer will be adding 41 trees on the property.

The variances, which included a height increase from three to six storeys and bigger signs, were moved forward with no concerns raised by councillors.

According to the staff report, the Kelowna International Airport – 2045 Airport Master Plan has indicated a strong desire for such a building on site to give travellers a closer option for late night arrivals and early morning departures.

“In October 2021, Kelowna International Airport (YLW) advertised the expression of interest for a long-term lease to build a hotel and parkade on the airport property,” the report said.

“YLW underwent a robust multi-stage process to select the preferred proponent, and The Sutton Place Hotel, operated by Northland Properties was the chosen operator.”

Next steps will see the developer receive their building permit, which will trigger the start of construction.