All remaining tenants of the Luugat SRO Hotel on Granville Street have now moved out, the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs confirmed to Global News.
As of mid-August, B.C. taxpayers were still paying to keep the building open for one remaining resident.
The B.C. government promised to close the Luugat by the end of June, but one tenant remained.
“All residents of the Luugat have been relocated to alternative housing,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the tenant was relocated from the building last week.
“The final resident’s tenancy has ended and they are now living in other housing, while their remaining belongings are in the process of being moved.”
The late checkout at the former hotel comes with a big bill for taxpayers, including $101,000 for July.
“It may only seem like a couple of months and in the whole scheme of things it may not feel like a big deal to the big provincial government, but the impact in the community every single day is a big deal and… they can do better,” Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim said.
Global News is waiting for a breakdown of total government spending on the Luugat, since the province purchased the Howard Johnson Hotel property for $55 million in 2020, including operations costs, staffing, repairs and taxes.
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“I do think there are a lot of questions that need to be answered,” Sim said.
“Why did it take so long? How much did it cost? How much is it going to continue to cost as they repurpose the building?”
A past tenant of the building, Vance Hughes, told Global News that once the SRO was turned into social housing, it was quickly destroyed.
He described it as a “cesspool,” saying there were too many drugs.
Despite being told that the media could not tour the inside of the Luugat while a tenant was still residing there, Global News was told we could not tour the Luugat on Wednesday again.
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The CEO of Downtown Van said she hopes this closure brings some momentum.
“Now we’re focused on making sure that the process keeps moving and that the province keeps their word and that the folks who are in the other two provincially-owned SROs in the entertainment district are relocated to homes and facilities that suit their needs,” Jane Talbot said.
The province has no timeline for the closure of the St. Helen’s Hotel and Granville Villa SROs.
The future of the former Howard Johnson Hotel is also unclear.
In a statement to Global News, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) said that while the last tenant is now gone, the taxpayers are still waiting for answers.
“The government spent $55 million on the Luugat, spent another $101,000 keeping it open for one tenant in July, and still won’t say what the total bill has been or let the cameras see inside,” the organization said in the statement.
“Taxpayers deserve accountability. The province’s acquisition of the Luugat was a disaster for taxpayers, for the community and for the tenants placed in an unlivable building.”
The CTF said that now the building is empty, there is no excuse for secrecy.
The ministry said that now that housing operations at the Luugat have ceased, Community Builders Group has shifted to a nominally staffed, security-focused model that manages vacant building risks.
ABOUT
FREAKIN’
TIME!!
The is how fiscally responsible the NDP govt. are.. B.C. can do better. We have neve seen such a scourge on our province. Eby is used to it coming from his former working days in the DTE. Let’s drain the swamp!
In other news can you believe a bunch of Kerry-Lynne Findlay supporters and Alberta separatists are out there starting forest fires? That’s so crazy
“Jay Voorhees
August 27, 2026 at 3:13 pm
So it’s like the building I live in”
You mean my condo in the River District. It’s a lot nicer than the trailer park you live in buddy 😂😂
So it’s like the building I live in
“Colin
August 27, 2026 at 1:39 pm
Now the building is infested with cockroaches and bedbugs for sure. Graffiti, mold, infestation, repairs, etc.
Massive bill coming up. At least 2 million to fix it up”
So it’s like the building you live in 😂😂
Our government is so ridiculous. Wasting so much money should be a crime especially when it’s taxpayers money, not their own.
Now the building is infested with cockroaches and bedbugs for sure. Graffiti, mold, infestation, repairs, etc.
Massive bill coming up. At least 2 million to fix it up
this NDP is one big utter failure
i would be interested to know what the security costs will now be on the vacant building as well
Awww now the bitter old Conservatives will have to find something else to cry about
even if the building is empty it will still cost a 100K a month for security and to maintain it, having said that it’ about time they pithed his sorry ass out
Someone finally took out the garbage!
Good riddance
“ The late checkout at the former hotel comes with a big bill for taxpayers, including $101,000 for July.”
You forgot August!
Incompetents!