East Hastings at Gore, the Salvation Army Temple Block

Photographed along East Hastings Street at Gore Avenue, this scene captures the block where the Salvation Army Temple once anchored the Downtown Eastside streetscape. The tw-storey concrete hall at 301 East Hastings Street, designed by Mercer & Mercer and completed in 1950, was a rare Vancouver example of Moderne era institutional design, purpose- built as an assembly space and later cited as one of the neighbourhood’s last large historic halls with potential for reuse as community cultural space. 

Although the building remained on the Vancouver Heritage Register, redevelopment planning for the site moved forward under a partnership involving Vancouver Coastal Health and BC Housing, with heritage advocates repeatedly flagging the risk of losing a significant mid-century landmark. 

The temple was ultimately demolished in 2025, marking a visible shift in how this stretch of East Hastings is being remade, one project site at a time.