City of Vancouver to demolish Balmoral Hotel in Downtown Eastside

City of Vancouver to demolish derelict Balmoral Hotel in Downtown Eastside

Balmoral Hotel at 159 East Hastings Street, Vancouver. (Google Maps)

A decision has been made by the City of Vancouver to demolish the Balmoral Hotel in the Downtown Eastside.

In a released statement today, the municipal government states its Chief Building Official issued an order today requiring the demolition of the 1908-built structure at 159 East Hastings Street, which was used as an SRO for low-income individuals for decades.

You might also like:

The demolition poses “numerous life-safety concerns” and “a risk of injury to the public and persons adjacent to the building in the event of a fire or similar incident.”

The property, highly challenged by its extremely poor condition, was one of two SRO buildings acquired by the municipal government in December 2020 in a deal with BC’s Sahota family. The other property, the Regent Hotel, is located across the street at 160 East Hastings Street.

The municipal government originally aimed to expropriate each building for just $1.00, but this was not attainable, and the City ultimately paid millions. Even if the structures were worth nothing, the land carried significant value.

The value of the deal was not disclosed as its privacy is protected under the contract, but the City reportedly paid $11.5 million. And ever since the acquisition, the City has reportedly paid $1 million in security costs for both buildings combined annually to prevent homeless encampments and fires.

Downtown Eastside on Hastings Street looking east towards Main Street, with the Balmoral Hotel on the left and the Regent Hotel on the right. (Google Maps)

“Despite the City’s ongoing efforts to maintain the safety of the building, the decades of underinvestment and mismanagement by the building’s previous owners was irreversible,” reads a statement by the city today.

“After receiving two, third-party engineering reports on the current fire and structural risks it became clear that the building has deteriorated to the point that it poses a danger to the public and adjacent buildings.”

The City adds that demolition planning is already underway, and City staff will work “expeditiously” to execute the order.

It is anticipated that demolition of the building will take months to complete, which will be conducted by contractors.

After demolition and environmental clean-up, the municipal government will activate the vacant property until plans are ready for its redevelopment into a new affordable housing building in partnership with BC Housing.

The City has not indicated there are plans to demolish the Regent Hotel at this time.

You might also like: