Welcome

Values

The 2400 Motel is important for its historical, formal, aesthetic and cultural values, most particularly for being a prominent marker of the evolution of Kingsway following the Second World War. One of the premier motor court addresses following its construction in the years immediately following the Second World War, the 2400 Motel is the sole remaining record of Kingsway assuming the key role in providing up-to-date car-oriented accommodation for North Americans traveling to Vancouver. The 2400 is a marker of the coming-of-age of Kingsway as the northern terminus of the Pacific Highway, which linked Vancouver via the Pattullo Bridge and the King George Highway to the American highway system south to Mexico. The Motel is a local remnant of the continent-wide infrastructure serving the North American romance for the road trip, providing guests with a familiar suburban home-away-from home.

The 2400 Motel’s continued existence and relatively unchanged nature are significant markers of Kingsway’s diminished regional role and economic decline following the construction of more modern vehicular routes into the city in the 1960s. The 1960s addition of the word “Motel” to the out-of-date name “2400 Court” is representative of the ad-hoc responsiveness of small family-run operations to the increasing sophistication demanded of tourism accommodations and the general trend towards chain motels and hotels. Enough of the original site remains for the 2400 to be a singular record of the culture of the modest and proud family business, which combined orderliness and continuity in the running of a successful establishment. The site and building design, including the units with original interiors, provide a visual reminder of the typical modest residential accommodation in the several decades following the Second World War.