The corner of West 4th Avenue and Macdonald Street in Vancouver a site of major redevelopment
Darby’s, the landmark Kitsilano pub, will close to make way for a six-storey building that will house rental apartments and ground-floor commercial space.
If approved by the city, construction of the 60,000-square-foot building will begin in the summer of 2026 and should be complete within two years.
The structure will have five levels with a total 68 market-rental suites — 19 studios, 25 one-bedroom units, and 24 two-bedroom units. The liquor store and other retail uses will occupy the ground floor. There will be 28 underground parking spaces for the whole building.
Like the pub, the building will have a rooftop deck.
Government records show the Darby’s pub and liquor store site is owned by a numbered company 1328069 B.C. Ltd., that has as its directors David Bentall of the Vancouver property development family, Ian Moes and Kiyokazu Godo. Moes and Godo are also directors of Darby’s Hospitality, which is owned by the same numbered company.
Records show 1328069 B.C. Ltd. purchased two properties alongside Darby’s on West 4th in October 2021 for $10.4 million. The Darby’s site had an assessed value of $6.3 million on July 1, 2023.
So the value of the land at the proposed development site, with a total street frontage of 140 feet along West 4th, is around $17 million.
The northeast and northwest corners of Macdonald and West 4th are currently being developed. The four-storey Kitsilano Block condo project at the northwest corner is the most progressed with all floors constructed and is expected to open next summer, with a Fresh St. Market as it anchor tenant.
On the northeast corner, Third Space Properties has started on a six-storey rental development that will include a restaurant. It is expected to be completed next year.