City of Vancouver lets go of top building official

The City of Vancouver has let go of Saul Schwebs, its chief building official, CTV News has learned.

According to his LinkedIn, Schwebs worked for the city for 12 years.

His work consisted of overseeing building inspections, demolitions and examining the condition of vacant buildings.

In an interview with Business in Vancouver in 2025, he described himself as an independent statutory decision maker, and “the final arbiter of all things related to buildings, and building safety in the City of Vancouver.”

In a statement to CTV News, the city said it thanks Schwebs for his dedicated service and many contributions to the city.

Kevin Lau has accepted a temporary appointment as chief building official and Grahame Hamilton has accepted a permanent appointment as city electrician, the city added.

Schwebs isn’t the only senior staffer to lose their job in recent months.

In May, the city fired two senior clerks, Katrina Leckovic and Tina Penney.