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The Client envisioned a transformative mixed-use development that would integrate a new 57-storey residential tower and midrise social housing with the revitalization of the historic First Baptist Church in downtown Vancouver. The brief was simple - the Client asked the architect to take their breath away. 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 while introducing a new dynamic architectural landmark to the city.
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Prominently located in the heart of Vancouver's downtown peninsula, the site is a transition point between the business district and the historic West End neighbourhood. Revery worked in collaboration with the Clients, the community, and City of Vancouver officials to create a development that enriches the public realm while sensitively integrating with existing structures and infrastructure. The base of The Butterfly tower, which is inspired by the church's pipe organ, honours the historic First Baptist Church while maximizing the project’s ground plane to accommodate new courtyards and programmed green space for the public to enjoy. The adjacent lane is beautified and integrated in the project as a contiguous and community-oriented outdoor amenity.
Sustainability targets include 68% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, a 45% reduction in energy use, and a 26% reduction in energy cost. 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. Operational carbon is reduced by up to 84% through efficient HVAC systems, heat recovery ventilators, water efficiency, and stormwater management, and further reinforced through the energy provided by the onsite energy plant. A robust green mobility strategy includes extensive bike storage, car-share access, and an EcoWheels program offering low-emission transport options.
This 600,000 sq ft mixed-use project 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, it fosters mindfulness, human connection, and a renewed sense of place. The development is an elegant celebration of nature’s cycles of transformation and the passage of time. The tower’s iconic sculptural design is the development’s defining feature. Open-air sky gardens on each level promote wellbeing, social inclusion, and passive environmental strategies, enhancing ventilation and daylight while reducing reliance on mechanical systems and artificial lighting. A 50-metre indoor pool spans the podium roof, enclosed within transparent glazing and prefabricated, modular ribs with integrated systems. The church restoration also showcases significant innovation. Rather than retrofitting piecemeal, the design team approached it holistically, reinstating original features like the double-height Pinder Hall while introducing new community amenities in the tower’s 5-storey podium. An inviting galleria bridges the tower and church, offering a flexible space for receptions and events while also creating a valuable “third space” for the community, ensuring that the church remains relevant and accessible to the broader public.
It started with an impossible idea. We asked for pure light, fluidity; a place that could connect us to nature and to each other. Revery has given us a defining presence on the Vancouver skyline, as light and ephemeral as it is distinct - drawing in nature through daylight, fresh air, and natural forms. The challenges we encountered, the solutions we uncovered, and the process of bringing this work to life are all carried with lightness. The impossible idea has metamorphosed into The Butterfly.
Revery Architecture is an internationally recognized architecture, planning, and interior design practice, based in Vancouver. Our name reflects a balance of creative reverie and technical precision that is fundamental to our design approach.
Venelin Kokalov is Revery’s Principal and longtime Design Lead. His passion for creating inspiring, authentically responsive buildings that encourage connection, improve quality of life, and bring joy is central to the firm’s mission of community placemaking and aligning architecture with broader social initiatives. Our work strives for an authentic sense of place that brings people together and we look to create lasting positive impact that extends beyond the walls of the building. Our designs are resilient and transformative. We believe that meaningful sustainability lies at the intersection of environmental, economic, and social realms, and that each must be addressed to deliver a successful and enduring project.
