The Regent Hotel – East Hastings Street between Main and Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia

The Regent Hotel, 160 East Hastings Street, was built 1913. It is an eight-storey Chicago-style early skyscraper. Although it is now considered one of the run-down "dive" Hotels on the eastside of Vancouver, especially with the recent death of a person falling from one of the upper windows; the hotel was quite grand when it first opened.

At the turn of the twentieth century, this area of Vancouver developed as a shopping area as commercial activity spread outward from its early roots in Gastown. As the young city grew, so did its commercial district. It was the home of several hotels, lodgings, and small retail outlets, which were established to serve the growing blue-collar population.

Built in 1913 for Art Clemes by architect Emil G. Guenther, the building is significant because it is one of two adjacent buildings from the same era with arched windows. Art Clemes was a partner in Alexander Pantages’ theatre next door, which explains the similarities in their construction and some of the window design. At the time of its demolition in the summer of 2011, the theatre was considered the oldest remaining vaudeville theatre in Canada. (This photo shows the theatre being demolished.)

The Regent Hotel’s fine finishes would indicate that it catered to tourists and business travelers, who were expected to arrive after the completion of the Canadian Northern Railway and the Panama Canal. In addition to providing accommodation, the Regent offered services, including a barber shop, cigar store, and shoe shine stand, all catering to the largely male traveling public.

The Chicago-style grid – including the Louis Sullivan-inspired decorated spandrels – presents a symmetrical face to the street, while the pilasters emphasize the verticality of the structure. The building illustrates the increasing use of technology: buildings of this height were possible only with the use of steel frames, concrete and the development of the elevator.

The Regent Hotel has been renovated by the Downtown Eastside Residents’ Association as affordable social housing. It therefore continues the transient nature of accommodation in the Hastings Street area.