New 30-storey tower with 100% hotel uses proposed for downtown Vancouver

Hotel concept for 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Perkins & Will Architects/Forme Development/Paul Y. Construction)

Proponents of redeveloping 848 Seymour Street in downtown Vancouver into a major hotel are making it clear they would like to build their project in time for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

A new rezoning application outlines the plan to turn the mid-block surface parking lot immediately east of the Orpheum Theatre into a 317-foot-tall, 30-storey hotel tower with 393 guest rooms.

The project is being spearheaded by Hong Kong-owned Paul Y. Construction, with Forme Development as the local development manager and Perkins & Will Architects as the design firm.

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If approved, this would be the largest infusion of new additional hotel supply in downtown Vancouver since the construction of Parq Vancouver’s JW Marriott and Douglas Autograph Collection hotels.

Hotel development site at 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

Hotel development site at 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Perkins & Will Architects/Forme Development/Paul Y. Construction)

The proponents are requesting the City of Vancouver to allow the proposal to fall into an expedited application review stream that would see its rezoning and development permit applications reviewed within 18 months — about one year less than the usual process.

The applicant believes this is achievable due to Vancouver City Council’s acknowledgement in the past that more hotel rooms are needed, and that the proposal is not challenging to review given that it follows existing City policies for the location and does not exceed the height restriction of 317.5 feet due to the mountain view cone over the development site.

If the expedited review is granted, the development permit would be reviewed and approved by the first quarter of 2024, and the hotel would be completed by early 2025 — more than a year before Vancouver’s key co-hosting role for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Hotel concept for 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Perkins & Will Architects/Forme Development/Paul Y. Construction)

According to Destination Vancouver’s analysis, the potential economic loss in forgone hotel room demand as a result of delaying this project by one year is 440 fewer full-time jobs, $52 million less in the total value of goods and services output, $29 million less in gross domestic product, and $7 million less in total tax revenues.

“Providing both supply and variety in the types of hotel rooms is fundamental for Vancouver to have a competitive edge when competing internationally for conferences or special major events, like FIFA 2026. One major hurdle is the challenge of securing hotel room blocks at a price comparable to other major centres to house the participants and their audiences,” reads the application.

Vancouver is currently facing an extreme shortage of hotel rooms that threatens the ability to sustain job-supporting tourism. There were over 1,100 fewer rooms just before the pandemic compared to the period just before the 2010 Olympics, largely due to the redevelopment or conversion of hotel properties into residential uses. The shortage was further exacerbated during the pandemic by the decisions of governments to acquire hotel rooms for the rapid conversion into supportive housing.

Hotel concept for 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Perkins & Will Architects/Forme Development/Paul Y. Construction)

Based on a recent analysis, Destination Vancouver anticipates there could be up to 3.4 million additional visitors to the city on an annual basis by 2030, which would necessitate the construction of enough new hotels to expand the city’s accommodation capacity by up to 5,000 rooms.

The opportunity cost of not doing so is about $2.6 billion annually in lost economic benefits, $387 million in direct tax revenues, and tens of thousands of jobs.

Hotel concept for 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Perkins & Will Architects/Forme Development/Paul Y. Construction)

The proposed hotel tower will dedicate the first three floors to lobby, restaurant, bar, lounge, and amenity spaces, including a unique three-storey atrium with sliding glass walls that open to the outdoors. Additional amenity spaces will be situated on the top two floors.

The laneway will be activated for an inviting, designated passenger drop-off area.

The building will have a total floor area of 238,400 sq ft, establishing a floor area ratio density of a floor area that is 17.7 times larger than the size of the lot. Four underground levels will contain both replacement vehicle parking and back-of-house hotel operations.

Hotel concept for 848 Seymour Street, Vancouver. (Perkins & Will Architects/Forme Development/Paul Y. Construction)

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