Vancouver council approves seven-parcel development in city's entertainment district

Vancouver council approves seven-parcel development in city’s entertainment district

Vancouver City Council recently approved an application by Perkins&Will Canada to rezone 800-876 Granville St. for an ambitious project.

The development is located in Vancouver’s downtown entertainment district, a seven-block stretch of Granville that is known for its bars, dance clubs and nightlife.

The site contains the historic (built in 1929) Commodore Building, home of the popular live-music venue Commodore Ballroom and Commodore Lanes and Billiards.

The proposal is for the development of a 43-storey north tower and 39-storey south tower mixed-use building.

Features of the project include:

Retention of the Commodore;
construction of a structural bridge to support new floors;
retention of façade of four heritage buildings;
commercial businesses on levels one to five; and
hotel on levels six to eight in the north building.

The towers will contain 523 secured purpose-built rental homes with 450 market rental units and 73 below-market rental studio units.

The site is one block south of the intersection of Granville and West Georgia Street, the heart of downtown.

The development comprises seven parcels that make up almost one city block bounded by Granville, Robson, Seymour and Smithe streets.

It extends right up to the property line of the Orpheum Theatre’s Granville Street entrance.

The developer is Vancouver-based Bonnis Properties.

Residential uses are generally discouraged on the Granville strip due to the sort of late-night activity that is typical of entertainment districts.

However, the Granville Street Plan (GSP) allows some residential uses at the northern and southern ends of the area, including the 800-876 Granville site.

In 2025, city council approved the GSP, a 20-year plan to revitalize a part of downtown that not only was looking shabby, but had also acquired a reputation as disorderly and even dangerous.

Bonnis Properties’ idea for 800-876 Granville has changed significantly since an earlier application.

In 2022, the developer applied to rezone the site for a 17-storey mixed-use commercial building with approximately 470,000 square feet of office space.

“Before COVID-19 there was a big demand for large floor-plate office space in Vancouver,” says Kerry Bonnis, principal in Bonnis Properties and co-partner with brother Dino Bonnis. “At the time, Vancouver had one of the lowest office vacancy rates in North America. But since then the situation has changed drastically because of COVID and a slowing economy, and it is no longer feasible to build office space.”

Perkins&Will architect Ryan Bragg says the development will completely preserve the Commodore.

“The other four heritage buildings will be partially demolished and their facades on Granville and the back lane will be retained as much as possible,” says Bragg.

The Commodore will be made more functionally efficient.

“The exits will be widened and the loading dock made big enough for semi-trailers,” says Bragg. “And we’ll be installing real freight elevators, which the Commodore hasn’t had before.”

Bragg says upgraded building infrastructure will enable the Commodore to hold 50 per cent more shows per year.

Erick Villagomez, a lecturer in the School of Community and Regional Planning at the University of British Columbia, says, “Right now, Granville is struggling. It’s heavily oriented toward nightlife, which creates long stretches that feel empty or uncomfortable during the day.”

Villagomez says the project introduces a mix of uses — housing, a hotel, retail — that will likely bring more people throughout the day and evening. “That kind of mix can generally help stabilize a street,” he says. “This project leans toward market rental housing, tourism and large-scale retail. It will likely make Granville more attractive to visitors and investment.”

Large, high-profile projects, such as this one, can catalyze change in an urban neighbourhood.

“We’ve seen that in places like Times Square, Yaletown (a former Vancouver warehouse district), or parts of downtown Toronto,” he says. “They can attract investment, shift perceptions and bring more people into an area.

“So I’d say it may improve the block in terms of activity and investment, but whether it improves it as a public, inclusive urban space is a more open question.”

The rezoning application for 800-876 Granville Street was approved in principle in February 2026.

According to the city, before construction can begin, the applicant will need to enact the draft zoning and be issued a development, building and other permitting required in order to facilitate the proposal.

“It will take – ideally – between two and two-and-a-half years to get all the permits applied for and approved,” says Bonnis. “After that, another 30 to 36 months for construction. It’s not a normal development. It’s very complex, with many moving parts.”