British Columbia is the westernmost province of Canada, settled between the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. It has cities as diverse as its geography known for their impressive architecture and skyscrapers. While Vancouver is home to the majority of British Columbia’s high-rise buildings others can be found in Burnaby, New Westminster, and Surrey. Currently, the crown of the tallest building in British Columbia is held by the Living Shangri-La, Vancouver. Below is the list of tallest buildings in British Columbia.
This blog delves into the tallest buildings in British Columbia whilst highlighting their distinctive features.
Living Shangri-La
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At 201 metres, the Living Shangri-La is a mixed-use skyscraper in downtown Vancouver and is the tallest building in British Columbia, Canada. The 62-storey tower houses a five-star hotel, spa, offices, and condominium apartments. The Shangri-La building has a stepped tower core design, which reflects the primary building functions and the triangular building mass.
- The Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver hotel occupies floors Ground to 15 with 119 rooms and includes several other amenities such as restaurants, shops, and Chi The Spa.
- The building also contains 307 residential units, consisting of a mix of live-work homes on floors (16 to 43) and private residential units on floors (44–600 with three penthouses on top floor 61 and curated private roof garden.
Living Shangri-La stands tall over the city skyline, offering spectacular views of the downtown core and the North Shore Mountains. In addition, it set Vancouver’s record at the time for both the deepest excavation and height, defeating the past record set by the One Wall Centre.
| Location- Vancouver, British ColumbiaHeight- 201 m
No-of Floors- 62 Completed- 2008 Type- Mixed-Use |
Paradox Hotel Vancouver
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The Paradox Hotel Vancouver, formerly known as the Trump International Hotel and Tower is one of the most luxurious hotel properties in Vancouver. The 188 m tall building is a residential skyscraper and hotel in Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia. Designed by the late architect Arthur Erickson, the building is known for its remarkable architecture design that twists up to 45 degrees from the base of the skyscraper. Due to this twist, each room has a different layout with some amazing views.
- The hotel features lavish amenities including the Lounge, two fabulous restaurants, a Spa by Ivanka Trump, and a wide artwork collection by the famous artist Miriam Aroeste.
- The building also houses Drai’s Nightclub – an 8,000-sq-ft Vancouver’s first pool bar nightclub.
The Trump hotel, one of the tallest buildings in British Columbia, was closed down in 2020, citing the economic downturn from the pandemic. However, the Holborn Group ( parent partner) reopened in 2022 under the name Paradox Hotel.
| Location- Vancouver, British ColumbiaHeight- 188 m
No-of Floors- 63 Completed- 2017 Type- Hotel and Resort |
One Burrard Place
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One Burrard Place is the iconic tower, mixed-use development by Reliance Properties and the Jim Pattison Group at Burrard Street, Vancouver. At 550 feet high, it marks a key entrance point to Vancouver’s Downtown, making it one of the tallest buildings in British Columbia. The tower is designed by world-renowned IBI Group Architects. Part of a three-building complex, this high-rise building features 444 dwelling units including 50 rental units and three office floors.
- The LEED Gold high-rise structure boasts an impressive suite of amenities and spectacular views of the city, the mountains, and Burrard Inlet.
- The building encapsulates a private in-suite elevator that provides added vertical circulation between all floors of the penthouse.
| Location- 1290 Burrard St, Vancouver, BC
No-of Floors- 54 Completed- 2021 Type- Mixed-use |
The Private Residences Hotel Georgia
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The Private Residences, a 48-storey mixed-use tower was built in 2012 by IBI Architects group for Delta Land Development Ltd. This high-rise condo is located adjacent to the historic Hotel Georgia in downtown Vancouver.
In the epicentre of Vancouver’s International business district, this modern skyscraper offers a unique urban and luxury experience. Also, it is in close proximity to corporate head offices, leading law firms providing the perfect residential space for those who like to work hard and play harder.
- The residential tower includes all amenities of a modern multiuse building: 156 units of living space, office space and underground parking.
- The interesting feature of this skyscraper is the angular termination of the corner facades above the upper-most penthouse level which provides a distinctive skyline profile.
Both the buildings are physically connected so that the residents of the tower can use certain hotel services, such as the spa and swimming pool. At a soaring height of 162 metres, the Vancouver tower is one of the tallest buildings in British Columbia.
| Location- 667 Howe Street, Vancouver, British ColumbiaHeight- 162 m
No-of Floors- 48 Completed- 2012 Type- Residential apartments and condos |
Civic Plaza
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Located in the heart of Surrey, 3 Civic Plaza is Surrey’s premium hotel + residential mixed-use tower. Rising to 52 storeys, the Plaza is home to Western Canada’s first Marriott Autograph Collection Hotel. The Plaza is the tallest residential tower in the South of the Fraser. This high-rise building offers unobstructed views of Metro Vancouver and beyond. It sits next to Surrey Central SkyTrain station, Central City Shopping Centre, SFU and more.
- This high-rise building brought metropolitan living to the next level with its world-class amenities and sustainable architecture design by ZGF Cotter Architects. The building implied a unique solution to meet the challenges of structurally-different uses by constructing an innovative external concrete shear wall with distinctive, guitar pick-shaped window openings.
- 3 Civic Plaza offers stylish living including- premium residential concierge services, a fitness centre, a lap pool with a sundeck, and a rooftop garden on the top of the hotel.
| Location- 13495 Central Ave, Surrey, British ColumbiaHeight- 157 m
No-of Floors- 52 Completed- 2017 Type- Residential tower and Hotel |
Sovereign
Sovereign is Burnaby’s, 45-storey mixed-use project combining retail space, office space, Element Hotel by Westin, and residential units. As one of the tallest buildings in British Columbia and the highest in Burnaby by far, Sovereign brings you the stunning vistas of Downtown Vancouver. The high-rise building lies in Burnaby’s cosmopolitan Metrotown neighbourhood with close proximity to SkyTrain Rapid Transit, Crystal Mall, Deer Lake Park and other conveniences.
- The interiors at Sovereign are spatially designed providing dynamic views from every home inducing comfort and luxury.
- The building is set on a geographical high point, and offers unparalleled views and a level of luxury making it a uniquely identifiable landmark in the Metrotown landscape.
| Location- 4508 Hazel Street, Burnaby, British ColumbiaHeight- 162 m
No-of Floors- 45 Completed- 2015 Type- Mixed-Use |
Vancouver House
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The world-famous Danish architects Bjarke Ingels Group designed this twisting tower and its accompanying podium buildings. The 59-storey tower takes its shape after the site’s complex urban restrictions – A slender triangle base forms the nine-storey podium, ultimately widening into the rectangular residential tower as it rises to meet the sky. Therefore, the resultant silhouette has a remarkable appearance that changes from every angle increasing the desirable spaces for living at its top, while freeing up ample public space at its base.
- This iconic skyscraper comprises 375 residential homes, 106 rental homes, as well as retail, workspace and amenity spaces, forming the core of a new waterfront community, the Beach District.
- The LEED-Platinum Vancouver House was awarded the World Architecture Festival’s Future Building of the Year in 2015 for its intriguing design and captivating beauty.
| Location- Vancouver, British ColumbiaHeight- 150 m
No-of Floors- 49 Completed- 2019 Type- Mixed-use development |
Harbour Centre
Vancouver’s iconic landmark, and one of the tallest buildings in British Columbia, Harbour Centre a one-of-a-kind complex. Soaring at a height of 148 m this high-rise building has offices, retail and the downtown campus of SFU( Simon Fraser University). Perched above the office tower is a revolving restaurant The “Lookout” and an observation deck that offers mesmerising views of downtown Vancouver and is a popular tourist destination.
- The tower lies near Waterfront Station, a major multi-modal transit hub which serves as the Downtown Vancouver terminal for various Translink operations.
- The Harbour Centre was inaugurated by Neil Armstrong who left behind his footprint in the cement.
| Location- 555 West Hastings Street in Downtown, Vancouver, British ColumbiaHeight- 147 m
No-of Floors- 28 Completed- 1977 Type- Office and Retail |
Telus Garden
Telus Garden is a one-million-square-foot, office mixed-use redevelopment project designed by Henriquez Architects comprises a 24-floor office tower and a 53-floor residential tower with 428 residential units.
The signature office tower features a spectacular double-height wood sculpted roof, expansive green roofs growing organic produce for local restaurants and sky box meeting rooms, thereby merging the public and private realms; giving users a memorable connection to the city.
- Talus Garden defines an exclusive business environment and hosts first-class amenities- Nosh cafe, Glowbal restaurant, and vibrant new retail on Robson Street
- Talus Garden uses next-generation energy-saving solutions and innovative technologies to reduce the building’s footprint. It has marked the ground by becoming Vancouver’s first LEED Platinum certified office tower.
| Location- 510 W Georgia St, Vancouver, British ColumbiaHeight- 135.6m
No-of Floors- 54 Completed- 2014 Type- Office Mixed-use development |
The Upcoming Tower- Pinnacle Lougheed Redevelopment
Right next to Lougheed SkyTrain station, A new development proposal is slated to be the tallest building in B.C. — at 259 m with 80 storeys high. The proposed four-tower Pinnacle International is in the early stages of a rezoning application. The upcoming project is within the first phase of development with the east tower at 80 storeys high, and an attached secondary tower reaching 782 ft (239 metres) with 73 storeys. The tallest tower is proposed to consist of 788 condominium units including office and retail space within the podium below the residential floors. Altogether, Pinnacle Development is intended for a total of 2,822 homes within this four-tower multi-use complex at Gatineau Place. It would not only be the region’s tallest, eclipsing Living Shangri-La in downtown Vancouver but all other future tallest towers proposed, planned, or already under construction.
| Location- Austin Road at Gatineau PlaceHeight- 259 m
No-of Floors- 80 Completed- Not yet Type- Mixed-use development |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
British Columbia had 106 existing or under-construction skyscrapers as per March 2020.
Fort Langley Storehouse is the oldest building in BC.
The tallest Building is the Shangri-La Vancouver, at 201 m and 62 floors. How many skyscrapers are in BC?
What is the oldest building in BC?
Which is the tallest building in Vancouver?
