THE City of Vancouver on Wednesday completed the demolition of Gastown’s Winters Hotel building at 203 Abbott Street.
Demolition equipment finished leveling the last areas of the building at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. Work is now underway to clean up the area around the site, and to reopen Water Street.
This was a complex and challenging undertaking involving a fire-damaged structure that shared a wall with a neighbouring building, an area power outage, site security and significant road closures, the City noted.
The City said that it recognized that this was a significant disruption to residents and businesses and that it made every effort since starting work on April 21 to finish the demolition as quickly and safely as possible.
(Two bodies were recovered during the demolition process on April 22.)
The City added that it appreciated the patience and cooperation shown by local residents and businesses throughout this process, and the work of Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services and the Vancouver Police Department for their emergency response and ongoing efforts.
Following Provincial regulations, materials on the site will now have to remain for the next two weeks. During this time the property owner will be contracting a materials assessment and site clean-up plan.
Some of the sidewalk or portion of the curb lane may remain closed as security fencing will stay in place around the 203 Abbott Street site. The City said it will work to open as much of the sideway and roadway as possible to support residents, businesses and visitors in the area.
VFRS is currently conducting an investigation into the Winters Hotel fire on April 11. This process will be thorough and include analyzing evidence and speaking to witnesses. The results of the investigation will be released once completed, and a spokesperson will be available to speak at that time, the City said.