User:Meechjes/McBarge

The McBarge, officially named the Friendship 500, is a former McDonald's restaurant that opened in May 1986, built on a 187-foot-long (57 m) concrete and steel barge for the world Expo '86 on transportation and communication in Vancouver, British Columbia. The name Friendship 500 was coined as it was the 500th McDonald's restaurant in Canada. Moored on Expo grounds in Vancouver's False Creek, it was the second floating McDonald's location in the world (the first being in St. Louis, Missouri), intended to showcase future technology and architecture. Although the floating design allowed for the barge to operate in a new location following the exhibition, the derelict McBarge was anchored empty in Burrard Inlet from 1991, amid industrial barges and an oil refinery, until it was moved in December 2015 to Maple Ridge, British Columbia. Apart from brief use by its original owner, McDonald's, in 1986, the McBarge has never actively been used for anything and has been drifting from owner to owner for thirty-four years.

Design
The two storey floating restaurant was designed by Robert Allan Ltd. for Expo 1986 and was one of five McDonald's locations on the Expo grounds, all of which were constructed for a total of $12 million with the McBarge rumored to have cost approximately $8 million. The Expo was held at a time of a cultural shift, where consumers were turning away from products that seemed inherently cheap. To address this, the design was intent with raising McDonald's status to ensure the restaurant's success during the Expo. Key differences between a storefront McDonalds and the McBarge, apart from the McBarge being on water, were that the kitchen was hidden, food was brought out to the front counter by conveyor belt to the customers to retrieve, and staff were uniformed in sailors outfits versus the typical McDonald's uniform. The restaurant interior was nautical themed and also featured potted plants, wooden floors, framed art, as well as panoramic views of Vancouver from glass paneling around the dining areas of the barge which sat around 390 people inside. One other feature was a small boat named Tiny Tug, that was equipped to retrieve any litter that ended up in the waters below the floating restaurant.

History
McDonald's originally intended to continue using it as a restaurant after Expo '86, but ultimately closed it's doors on October 13th, 1987 and the barge remained empty at the Expo grounds until 1991, costing McDonald's approximately $150,000 per year in maintencence. When the Vancouver government sold the grounds the barge was held, and the new owner, Lee Ka-Shing, asked for McDonald's to remove the barge from the property in 1991. It has since been anchored derelict in Burrard Inlet, north of Burnaby, British Columbia.In 2003, Marvel Entertainment and New Line Cinema rented the barge as a filming location for the 2004 film Blade: Trinity as the lair of the Nightstalkers.

In June 2009, the McBarge's current owner, Gastown developer Howard Meakin and his wife Kathy, submitted a proposal to the Mission city council for a waterfront development on the Fraser River, with the former McBarge as the centrepiece. Named "Sturgeon's on the Fraser", the development would include multiple restaurants and a marina complex, including paddlewheeler excursions and float plane service to Victoria and Nanaimo. As of August 2010, the proposal enjoyed local support, but awaited council approval. Concerns over float plane noise and other environmental issues meant the development was ultimately rejected. Other proposals that have been put forward without owner interest include using the barge as a homeless shelter to alleviate overcrowding in Vancouver's current temporary shelters.

In 2011, with no plans for restoration, Friendship 500 was then renamed to Seaborne II and listed for sale for over 7 hundred thousand dollars. The barge did not sell and would continue to be under the ownership of Meakin.

In December 2015, Meakin announced that the barge would soon be leaving Burrard Inlet after nearly 30 years. It was moved to Maple Ridge, British Columbia on December 22. The barge was scheduled for a $4.5-million refit there before being relocated to an undisclosed location.

In 2017, the barge's owners, alongside diving pioneer Phil Nuttyen from Nuytco Research, announced plans to convert it into an attraction called the Deep Ocean Discovery Centre with hopes of it playing a role in ocean education and conservation. Proposals for the Deep Ocean Discovery Centre included television screens that would be connected to camera's underwater in various locations in Vancouver in order to learn about live organisms such as sponge reefs or to view cruise ships in travel. Nuttyen would have also included his own collection of antique submersibles and diving equipment.

An event was planned for 21 October 2017 to launch a crowdfunding campaign in order to raise enough money for the barge's renovations, but was cancelled due to weather concerns. A petition to Vancouver City council to give the barge Historic Place Status received only 185 signatures. No mention has been made of a rescheduled event, its Facebook and Twitter have not been updated since 2017, and its YouTube account has been closed.

In 2020, owner Howard Meakin revealed his plans to completely refurbish the barge with new servicing, air conditioning, plumbing and heating in order to turn it into a seafood restaurant by the fall of 2020 once an appropriate location is secured for the barge. The barge is now located on the Fraser River.