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The History of Buena
Vista by the Sea
The Buena Vista was created in 1937 by Mr. Sam Little, who
built St. Andrews Lodge and Cabins in Qualicum Beach, and
an unknown contractor. The Buena Vista sits on approximately
half an acre of prime land on the waterfront in Qualicum
Beach. The original building housed the Denman and Hornby
Suites.
A second wing was added in 1941 ( the Georgia Suite) and
a third wing in 1949, which now houses the Texada Suite,
the Lasquiti Suite, the Ballenas Suite and the Winchelsea
Suite.
The large residence wing, which is the office and two stories
for the owners, was added in 1980. In January, 1990, Rob
and Claire Murphy, the current owners, purchased the Buena
Vista, which, by 1990, had become fairly run down.
Since
then, renovations have been ongoing. The extension of the
center wing was completed. All new wiring, plumbing and
drywall were installed. In spring of 1998, the Denman, Hornby,
Georgia and Malaspina Suites were completely redone with
up-to-date washrooms and marble baths in two suites. At
the same time, the exterior received a face lift, with cobble
stone stamped concrete sidewalks and a huge court yard and
walkway to the beach.
A 1000 sq. ft sundeck was built on the beach, and gardens
were added with palm trees and roses. In 2003 a 2500 sq.ft.
sundeck was added to the west side of the property. Top
grade Vinyl Tech windows and sliding doors have been installed
and the rooms re-decorated. The whole roof was redone in
2006.
Many
wonderful stories about the Buena Vista have been told to
the Murphy’s over the past 16 years.
Rob and Claire agreed from the start that they would only
take from the Buena Vista what they needed to have a comfortable
life style, and the rest would go back into this beautiful
little charmer. They will keep this promise and when the
time comes to say goodbye, they will see that the Buena
Vista is left in the right hands. A few dozen Heritage buildings
still exist in Qualicum Beach, and these are important to
our history. The Murphy’s are pleased to be able to
preserve a little piece of this history.
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