Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Category: Mixed-Use Buildings
Year: 2025
Architects: Revery Architecture
Design Team: Venelin Kokalov, Bing Thom, Amirali Javidan, Shinobu Homma, Nicole Hu, Bibi Fehr, Culum Osborne, Cody Loeffen, Kailey O'Farrell, Mark Melnichuk, Dustin Yee, Daniel Gasser, Zhuoli Yang, and Lisa Potopsingh
General Contractors: Icon West Construction (New Construction); and The Haebler Group (Heritage Construction)
Clients: Westbank Corp. and First Baptist Church
Photographers: Ema Peter
Located in the heart of Vancouver, this 600,000 sq ft mixed-use project by Revery Architecture pairs a 57-storey luxury tower with the restoration and expansion of a century-old landmark. Designed to meet LEED Gold with an on-site low-carbon energy plant, the project exceeds local sustainability targets while offering community amenities, affordable housing, and access to nature.
Emphasizing natural light and a sensory experience, it dissolves boundaries and fosters mindfulness, human connection, and a renewed sense of place. The Butterfly and First Baptist Church development is an elegant celebration of nature’s cycles of transformation and the passage of time.
The tower itself is a significant innovation: the floor plate is split, creating breezeways and sky gardens at each level. These shared outdoor spaces introduce nature into daily life and foster spontaneous social interaction, transforming vertical living into a more humanized and connected experience while also supporting natural ventilation and daylighting. The project’s sculptural façade system— an assembly of curved, insulated GFRC panels and high-performance glazing—provides superior thermal performance. The 50-meter swimming pool spans the podium with prefabricated structural ribs integrating mechanical, lighting, and acoustic systems—a pioneering solution that merges performance with poetry.
Planning constraints included the sensitive restoration of a Grade-A heritage building and integration with the surrounding West End neighbourhood. Revery Architecture worked closely with the City of Vancouver and community stakeholders to ensure the project respected the church’s heritage.
The construction approach preserved and rehabilitated key elements of the historic church, including original timber supports, oak pews, masonry, millwork, and stained glass while replacing deteriorating features like the asphalt roof with natural slate.
Sustainability targets include 68% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, a 45% reduction in energy use, and a 26% reduction in energy cost (compared to ASHRAE 90.1 – 2010 BAU). A low-carbon district energy plant, stormwater management, water efficiency, and green mobility programs further support its climate-resilient design. By blending heritage with innovation, the project enhances urban livability and elevates the Vancouver skyline.
