Guayaquil’s Casa Tola Moves Toward Commercial Redevelopment Behind a Preserved Facade

A private redevelopment project will transform Casa Tola, a patrimonial property in central Guayaquil, while preserving its historic facade on 9 de Octubre.

The building, located at the corner of Escobedo and 9 de Octubre, was constructed in 1918 and is privately owned. Its condition deteriorated substantially after humidity damaged the wood and insects affected much of the structure. Part of the facade collapsed in 2022, and a side wall on Escobedo fell in April 2026 without causing injuries.

The project illustrates a recurring development problem in historic urban centers: preserving a public-facing architectural element while making the underlying property safe, usable, and commercially viable.

A commercial use, not the earlier cultural proposal

A national investor group acquired the property from Javier Tola. The new plan gives the site a commercial use, replacing an earlier proposal considered by the National Institute of Cultural Heritage (INPC) in 2024 that would have emphasized art, culture, and gastronomy.

ZyL Asociados will lead construction, while ARQH.EC will handle the architectural design. The facade facing 9 de Octubre and the building’s first bay will be conserved. The interior will be replaced with a new structure.

The project will not reproduce the original floor plan. The proposed structure will have a ground floor and one upper level, or two levels in total, while the exterior will seek to maintain a similar apparent height. The ground floor is planned at approximately 4.5 meters, with the next level reaching about 7 meters.

Technical work before the rebuild

The building’s wooden elements cannot be assessed fully from the street. The team has been drilling on the property with a specialized robot for soil study, and approximately 60% of the building has already been digitally scanned.

The facade will be held by a metal support structure while the rest of the building is dismantled. The support is being prepared in a Guayas workshop. A first fumigation has already taken place, with another planned during the work to control the insects damaging the wood.

The INPC and the Municipality of Guayaquil will oversee the heritage requirements. Replacement wood must maintain characteristics similar to the originals, and moldings and other facade details will be conserved.

Timeline and execution risk

The dismantling could take approximately 60 days. Construction of the new structure could last nine to 11 months. The project team includes about 12 professionals working across architectural, structural, electrical, sanitary, and conservation areas.

For a commercial investor, the schedule is long enough for heritage supervision, structural discovery, and site logistics to matter. The project’s final commercial value will depend on what the team finds once the wood and interior structure are exposed, not only on the concept presented from the street.

What to watch

Watch the September dismantling phase, the INPC and municipal inspections, the degree of facade retention, and the eventual tenant or operating model. The source does not identify the project’s value, future tenants, or opening date. The immediate signal is that a deteriorated patrimonial property has moved from prolonged inactivity into an active, supervised redevelopment process.

Source: El Universo