Two historic Chinatown buildings are changing hands and the potential new owner is considering a gentrification plan.
The two-storey buildings at 533-537 Fisgard St., and at 534 Pandora Ave., are both more than a century old and on Victoria’s heritage designation list. They total 515,517 square feet.
The buildings went on the market last month, listed at $3 million with Colliers International’s Victoria office.
A conditional offer from a local heritage developer has been accepted.
The potential buyer’s name and the selling price were not revealed.
“They are gorgeous old buildings,” said Ty Whittaker, one of the Colliers’ listing agents.
He said the buyer is considering a renovation plan that maintains the integrity of the two buildings.
Seismic upgrading will be needed on the properties, Whittaker said, adding that the brick work is in good condition.
The Fisgard property’s ground floor is home to Bean Around the World cafe, the Chinese Canadian Cultural Association and Dales Gallery.
Arched windows line the upper level featuring a design of patterned brick. A couple of potted plants sit on outdoor ledges, overlooking the street and its strings of colourful hanging lanterns.
A two-storey residential four-plex is located at the rear of the Fisgard building, said the Colliers listing. A courtyard separates the buildings.
Interior courtyards are common in Chinatown.
The narrow, pale-yellow-coloured 534 Pandora Ave. building has office, storage and unused rental space on the ground floor, with unoccupied residential on the second level, Colliers said. It also has decorative designs on the exterior of its top level.
A driveway on the west side runs to the rear of the property and connects to the other site.
On Wednesday afternoon, tourists in an open-top double-decker bus had their cameras out as they craned to see the Fisgard site and other buildings in Victoria’s Chinatown, which is one of Canada’s National Historic Sites. It is the oldest surviving Chinatown in Canada, according the historic sites website. “It is one of a very few Chinatowns in North America to retain cohesive groupings of high heritage value and is dominated by its historical buildings,” the website says.
In the late 1800s, Chinatown had the largest Chinese community in Canada. Many of its residents arrived to work in the gold fields and on construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway, first coming here in the mid-1800s.
Chinatown’s revitalization efforts began in the 1970s, according to a University of Victoria document. Cultural organizations, retail shops, art galleries, cafes and grocery stores stacking merchandise on the sidewalk all contribute to its lively atmosphere.
Victoria Coun. Pamela Madoff said it is rare to see Chinatown buildings on the market.
Some buildings are owned by local organizations and may have multiple owners, she said. In this case, the buildings are owned by a family. Government records list eight owners. An owner at the properties Wednesday referred questions to Colliers.
Madoff is concerned about developers seeking additional height and said it is important to retain buildings in their original form.
