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By Soo Kim
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Plans for Canada’s Georgia + Abbott development, which will feature Vancouver's first supertall building and will be, once built, the tallest tower in Western Canada, have marked a "defining milestone" following approval from the city council.
The mixed-use project, designed by Henriquez Partners Architects and developed by Holborn, spans more than three million square feet across three interconnected downtown sites on West Georgia Street and Abbott Street. Its centerpiece will be a 1,033-foot hotel tower topped by a "forest in the sky," exceeding the 300-meter (around 984 feet) threshold that defines a supertall skyscraper.
"The City of Vancouver has approved Holborn's Georgia + Abbott project," a spokesperson for Holborn told Newsweek. "The council's approval is an important milestone, and we estimate approximately five years of design development, technical studies, permitting, and other approvals before construction can begin."
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The approval follows a public hearing in July after the city council reviewed an addendum filed earlier this year that consolidated the development sites. As part of the approval conditions, the council also endorsed the rezoning of a Holborn-owned parking lot into a social housing tower with a child-care facility and an Indigenous art gallery, according to local media reports.
“The site is really underutilized from a public benefit [perspective]. This council has said it's fully committed to a vibrant Vancouver...this is very consistent with that,” noted Vancouver councilor Sarah Kirby-Yung, according to Canada’s CBC.
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The developer said their latest project will create new public spaces, strengthen transit connectivity, support tourism, and generate significant employment and investment while bringing year-round activity to currently underutilized sites.
The latest renderings of the project shared with Newsweek include an updated design of the development’s public plaza featuring Indigenous art, gathering spaces, and active programming, with Indigenous representation integrated throughout the development.
The city council’s approval comes amid debate over the scale of the upcoming skyscraper and the developer's history, with some raising concerns about height exemptions and pointing to delays in a previous social housing project developed by Holborn.
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A Sea Sponge-Inspired Tower with a ‘Forest in the Sky’
In a statement shared with Newsweek, Holborn called the council's decision "a defining milestone for one of the most significant city-building projects in Vancouver's history."
The development's 920-room hotel will feature an observation deck and landscaped green space at the top, described by Henriquez Partners Architects as a "forest in the sky." The elevated public space is intended to provide panoramic views of the city, mountains, and the ocean.
Holborn said the development draws inspiration from British Columbia's rare glass-sea-sponge reefs, ancient marine structures found off the Pacific Coast.
According to the developer, the reefs' strength, resilience, and structural lattice informed the tower's architecture, from its exoskeleton to sculptural residential balconies.
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Housing and Public Benefits
According to Holborn, the Georgia + Abbott project will deliver 1,783 homes, including market, purpose-built rental, and non-market housing. The project will also provide 237 social housing units to the city as part of its Community Amenity Contribution package.
The developer told Newsweek that there are currently no residential tenants on either development site, noting that the Abbott parcel is a dirt parking lot while the Georgia site is largely a surface parkade. Once completed, the building site, including the social housing, child-care facility, and commercial space envisioned for an Indigenous art gallery, will be transferred to the city.
Holborn argues that the benefits extend beyond housing. The company told Newsweek that the project is intended to reconnect Vancouver's central business district with Gastown, Chinatown, and the Downtown Eastside while contributing to downtown revitalization. The development also targets net-zero operational carbon and a 54 percent reduction in embodied carbon beyond the municipal baseline, according to Henriquez Partners architects.
"Replacing underutilized downtown parking sites with vibrant mixed-use destinations," Holborn said, the project combines "internationally significant architecture and substantial public benefits," including housing, tourism infrastructure, heritage conservation, and public space improvements.
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Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Charlotte Nisbet and Gray R. Thomas
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