The building was constructed as mixed use, with the main floor including storefront space. Details making it typical of late Victorian architecture include its four arched, vertically-coupled recessed double-hung windows; its rusticated stone stringcourse and sills; its front elevation with decorative brickwork, including stepped brick dentil below cornice level, semi-circular arches over fourth-storey double-hung sash windows, and moulded brickwork under rusticated stone string course. It may have been designed by George William Grant, whose nearby Ormidale Block bears some similar features. In 2003, the city of Vancouver recognized the building as one of historical significance.
History
Like others built around the turn of the century, the lodging house originally hosted primarily single men working in seasonal resource industries. In 1913, it was called "Drexel Rooms", a name it kept until the 1980s, then later renamed the NorthStar Hotel or North Star Rooms, a single room occupancy hotel. It is closed in 1999 after repeated code violations.
At approximately 4 p.m. on October 22, 2006, organizers from the Vancouver Anti-Poverty Committee launched a march from Vancouver's Pigeon Park to the North Star hotel which was entered and declared a squat. The top floor of the building is being occupied by a handful of squatters while protestors remain outside. Protestors claimed the action was taken because of the failure of Vancouver's Non-Partisan Association to purchase unused hotels and convert them into affordable housing. Since Vancouver housing costs had increased dramatically in the past years, protestors were concerned that buildings with single-room accommodation would be converted to other, more expensive, forms of housing. In 2006, hotel closures have led to a loss of as many as 200 housing units. At first the police resisted any immediate action. "We're not going to move in until there's any sort of health and safety issue or until we've heard from the owners," said Vancouver Police Constable Tim Fanning. "It's been very peaceful." On October 24, however, 20 police officers announced a final warning and entered the North Star hotel to evict the six squatters inside. A group of protesters followed the police wagon on foot, protesting and blocking traffic. Vancouver APC organizers have declared their intention to occupy another building in the near future. The Vancouver Anti-Poverty Committee also organized the 2002 squatting of Vancouver's Woodward's building.
Renovation
In 2014, in what was described as a "highly unusual" application, the Solterra Group applied for permission to renovate the building with half the rooms reserved for low-income residents. In the proposal, five of the rooms were to be rented at the provincial shelter rate, and another 13 rooms at the provincial rent supplement rate, locked in for 30 years. In 2015, city hall voted to give the developer $50,000 to restore the building's facade, though as of 2016, the plans had not received all necessary permits.
