Downtown Vancouver ‘stabilizing’ but challenges remain, annual report finds

Vancouver’s downtown is starting to bounce back, but many challenges remain, according to the eighth annual State of Downtown report.

“This year’s report shows that downtown Vancouver is stabilizing—but “stabilizing” isn’t enough,” Jane Talbot, president and CEO of Downtown Van stated in the report.

“Downtown Vancouver matters, and until we meaningfully address the challenges it faces, we won’t fully realize our city’s potential.”

Hotel occupancy in the downtown core has returned to pre-pandemic levels, the report found, with an average occupancy of 80.5 per cent.

They are expected to rise this year during the FIFA World Cup to near full capacity.

This tourism growth is also driving new development, according to the report, with more than 6,500 hotel rooms in various stages of development in the city as of March 2026.

2:28 Accountability when spending tax dollars on the Downtown Eastside

As more workers returned to offices in the downtown area, visits to Vancouver’s central business district held steady in 2025 and for the first time since the pandemic, transit boardings in the downtown district stabilized at approximately 45 million in 2025.

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The downtown office market also appeared to hold steady, ending 2025 with a 12.3 per cent vacancy rate, which is up from 2024, suggesting the market is becoming more stable, the report found.

However, challenges remain when it comes to businesses in the downtown area.

The report found that downtown is at its lowest vacancy rate in three years at 12.7 per cent; however, Granville Street vacancy improved significantly at 24.9 per cent in January.

In a statement to Global News, the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs said that they are working to relocate tenants in three single-room occupancy buildings into subsidized and supportive housing outside of the Granville Street area.

“This is part of a broader agreement that will replace the three SRO sites with approximately 280 self-contained units outside of the Granville Entertainment District,” the ministry said.

As of April 7, 29 tenants have been relocated from the Luugat to alternative housing, one tenant has moved out on their own and 50 others remain, according to the ministry.

The province and BC Housing are working to relocate all tenants from the Luugat by the end of June 2026 and cease supportive housing operations at the site.

Both restaurants and businesses in the downtown area continue to feel economic pressure, the report found, and consumers are still being cautious with their spending.

Travel and entertainment spending, however, rose slightly, which is consistent with broader Canadian spending trends.

Safety and crime continue to be an issue, the report found, with calls increasing in every category in 2025 — most notably with open drug use calls and welfare checks.