New hotel and rental tower to replace Listel Hotel on Robson Street

New hotel and rental housing tower to replace Listel Hotel on Robson Street in downtown Vancouver

Artistic rendering of the new Listel Hotel Vancouver tower at 1300 Robson Street. (Henriquez Partners Architects)

Listel Hotel Vancouver on Robson Street will be undergoing a redevelopment to create a new mixed-use tower with a modern hotel.

Currently, the building at 1300 Robson Street — the southwest corner of the intersection of Robson Street and Jervis Street in downtown Vancouver — is a 1986-built, six-storey building with 129 hotel guest rooms and the home of two restaurants, Forage and The Jervis Joint. Listel Hotel opened its Vancouver location in 1992.

A development permit application that has been newly submitted to the municipal government calls for a new 28-storey tower containing 174 hotel guest rooms within the lower levels — representing a net gain of 45 hotel guest rooms — and 126 secured purpose-built rental homes within the upper levels.

The added steps of the rezoning application and public hearing are not needed as the project already fits existing zoning regulations.

You might also like:

With a high degree of certainty in proceeding with this project, the Listel Hotel, as it exists today, will permanently close in November 2024, which will enable demolition work to begin immediately afterward. Construction will begin in September 2025 for a scheduled completion in 2028.

Existing condition:

listel hotel vancouver 1300 robson street 10

Site of the Listel Hotel Vancouver at 1300 Robson Street. (Google Maps)

Future condition:

Artistic rendering of the new Listel Hotel Vancouver tower at 1300 Robson Street. (Henriquez Partners Architects)

listel hotel vancouver 1300 robson street

Artistic rendering of the new Listel Hotel Vancouver tower at 1300 Robson Street. (Henriquez Partners Architects)

The redevelopment is a 50-50 partnership between Bosa Properties and the Listel Hospitality Group, a Tokyo-based Listel Japan division. Henriquez Partners Architects is the project’s design firm.

“I am incredibly proud of the role Listel plays and will continue to play in the Vancouver hotel market and economy,” said John Nicholson, the vice president of hotels and restaurants for Listel Hospitality Group, in a statement.

“Bosa Properties’ reputation for excellence and its track record of creating meaningful impact where it builds resonate with us, complementing our own commitment to our community, our employees and our industry.”

There will also be ample amenity spaces, including a Japanese-inspired spa, a swimming pool, a fitness gym, an amenity lounge/games room, and meeting and conference spaces. Some of these indoor and outdoor amenities will be situated on the lower rooftop level on the new building’s base podium, where the swimming pool and outdoor lounge space will be located.

New restaurant offerings will also cap off this new “bold urban destination” on the Robson strip.

Artistic rendering of the new Listel Hotel Vancouver tower at 1300 Robson Street. (Henriquez Partners Architects)

“We’re very excited to announce our partnership with the Listel Hospitality Group, an experienced operator that brings a rich history of successfully managing hotels and restaurants across Vancouver and Whistler,” said Wayne Vickers, vice president of Partnerships, Bosa Properties.

“This project shows the power of relationships and what’s possible when we work hand-in-hand with partners. Together, we’re able to craft a vision for a unique hotel and rental housing offering that contributes to the continued growth and vibrancy of our city.”

There will be some short-term pain for long-term gain. With the hotel’s planned closure in late 2024 to enable its new-build reopening in 2028, this means the property will not be able to be used for the much-needed accommodations capacity when Vancouver hosts its largest convention ever in 2025 — the 60,000 delegates expected for the International Convention Convention of Alcoholics Anonymous, the first AA event since the pandemic — and the massive influx of visitors expected for the month-long 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Existing condition of the Listel Hotel Vancouver at 1300 Robson Street. (Listel Hotel)

With a net gain of hotel rooms in the redevelopment, this also goes toward the goal of filling the gap of Metro Vancouver’s hotel room shortfall over the coming years. Destination Vancouver estimates there is a need for 20,000 new hotel rooms across the region over the coming decades, including 10,000 within the City of Vancouver.

If the supply of hotel rooms remains at current levels, real demand will exceed supply in the summer months in the City of Vancouver starting in 2026, with the shortage also becoming apparent in the rest of Metro Vancouver beginning in 2028.

The new Listel Hotel will be the fourth high-rise tower construction project within the Lower Robson area in recent years.

This follows the 2021 completion of the 21-storey rental housing tower at 825 Nicola Street (on Robson Street) by GWL Realty Advisors, and the completion later in 2024 of the Landmark on Robson — the redevelopment of the Empire Landmark Hotel complex — with 28-storey and 30-storey towers containing 240 condominium homes, 84 social housing units, office space, and ground-level retail/restaurant uses activating the city block-length building’s frontage with Robson Street.

Existing condition of the Listel Hotel Vancouver at 1300 Robson Street. (Listel Hotel)

You might also like: