Category: Kamloops Real Estate News

This article appeared in the Kamloops Daily News on October 22, 2011 and was written by Cam Fortems.

Developer Mike Rink has failed to meet a payment deadline on the half-completed Mission Hill project in Kamloops and continues to face a court challenge in the Shuswap.

That Shuswap project, the controversial West Beach Village, is the only one of Rink’s imperiled real estate holdings that promised to pay back financial institutions and trades people owed millions of dollars.

The latest information on Rink’s progress is in a report filed as part of the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA).

Begun in 2010 when he could no longer make payments on seven real estate developments in the Interior and Squamish, the bankruptcy protection process is nearing an end but it remains unclear whether the Kamloops developer can successfully complete key projects — Mission Hill in Kamloops and West Beach Village in the Shuswap.

Mission Hill is now outside the CCAA process after a deal was brokered among creditors to continue construction and offer promissory notes to trades people based on success of the project.

But a key deadline was missed at the end of September, when Rink was supposed to come up with $4 million from selling outside family property and pay that sum to first creditor Harbour Canadian Capital Corp.

The monitor’s report presented to the B.C. Supreme Court said Rink has not met that deadline. Mission Hill was also supposed to be marketed and offered for sale once again.

Now that the deadline has lapsed, Harbour is free to trigger a foreclosure and take over the project.

However, Rink filed an affidavit in court, stating Mission Hill has been proceeding and “crews are working daily to finish exterior and interior of the building to position Phase 1 for occupancy at the end of November.”

He did not return phone calls Friday.

It also states a marketing proposal will be presented to Harbour for approval.

The only projected moneymaker from Rink’s $100 million worth of projects on the books two years ago is at West Beach. But Columbia-Shuswap Regional District has taken a hard line against the proposal, saying it doesn’t meet zoning.

An earlier condominium development proposal in the same location was turned down in a public hearing process that received national attention due to its proximity to Adams River and its sockeye run. Undaunted, Rink moved ahead with a 165-unit RV park he said fits with existing zoning for the campground.

The project also calls for several motels to be developed at the site.

The two sides are headed for court unless they can come to an agreement.

A proposal was submitted Wednesday to the CSRD board, which met in camera to consider a compromise.

Director Denis Delisle acknowledged the matter was discussed but the meeting was held in camera. It remains in the hands of lawyers on both sides.

The CCAA process has been stretched out several times, with the latest deadline Nov. 30. If Rink and the CSRD cannot come to an agreement on acceptable uses for the proposed RV park, the B.C. Supreme Court will decide on the legality.

If it rules in the regional district’s favour, the court monitor concluded that ‘the project will not be viable.”

Link

This article appeared in the Kamloops This Week on October 19th, 2011 and was written by Jeremy Deutsch.

Construction in Kamloops this year could go down as the tale of two sectors. While residential-permit activity at city hall has taken a bit of a dive in 2011, commercial construction has been there to pick up the slack.

Through September in 2011, the city has handed out $50 million in commercial building permits, compared to $40 million at the same time last year. However, the $79 million in residential permits issued is a drop from the $107 million in 2010.

The city has recorded $137 million in construction activity in 2011, compared to $153 million through the same span last year. In September, the city handed out $11.4 million in building permits, compared to $14.8 million during the same month in 2010.

David Trawin, director of development and engineering services, said the solid numbers from September were better than expected. “It’s one of the strongest commercial years, which has helped keep us strong,” he said. Trawin is now predicting the city will hit $150 million in overall permits, exceeding the target for the year.

In 2010, the city issued $191-million worth of building permits, but expected that number to drop in 2011 to about $140 million.

The city issued $2.3-million in commercial-building permits for the month, a slight dip from the $2.9-million value in September 2010.

The number of single-family permits issued in September hit 14, two-thirds of the 21 permits issued at the same time last year. The city handed out $7.6-million worth of residential permits last month, compared to $10.8 million in September 2010.

Kamloops has only topped the $200-million mark in permits once, in 2008, when it doled out $207-million worth of permits, which remains a record.

Link

Many people do not understand how a City tax sale works. Here is an article featured in the Kamloops This Week on September 19th, 2011 and was written by Jeremy Deutsch.

If you’re looking to buy a cheap home, Kamloops City Hall might be the best place to get a bargain.

Every year, several homes for which the owner has not paid their property taxes for three consecutive years get put up for auction by the city.

It’s a chance to buy a home for a fraction of the value, but there’s a catch. The homeowner has a year to pay off the outstanding debt to get their house back. And, in the last 20 years, not one sale has stood up for the entire year.

“I always get people in here going ,‘Oh, can I get a great deal on a house?’ And the answer is no,” said Tanya Garost, the city’s revenue and taxation manager. She said the auction is really a tool to get people to pay their taxes.

Garost explained that since many of the homes on the auction list still have a mortgage, the lending company will always come to the rescue and pay the taxes so it doesn’t lose interest in the property.

There are about 60 properties on the list for this year’s auction, but Garost predicts that number will drop to about 10 before the bidding even begins.

The city is owed about $400,000 in unpaid property taxes.

Though the odds of snagging a cheap house are remote, it can still be a good investment. Typically, the bidding for each property starts at the amount owed in taxes, plus some service charges. The person with the winning bid then cuts a cheque to the city for  the amount.

When the delinquent homeowner eventually comes to pay the tax bill, the investor gets their money back, plus the interest for the time it was held.

The interest rate this year is six per cent, while the bank rate is just one per cent. It’s the homeowner who pays the interest,  not the city.

The auction will be held in city council chambers at 10 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 26.

Garost noted the auction usually attracts  about 15 to 20 people each year.

Link

This article was written by Cam Fortems of the Kamloops Daily News on September 12, 2011.

Sewer expansion on TIB lands funded under a federal government program designed to create jobs after the last recession will provide even more economic opportunity in the future, leaders said Monday.

Tk’emlups Indian Band held a official opening at its arbor Monday morning to celebrate completion of its $9.7-million sewer mainline trunk expansion.

The system feeds into the City of Kamoops sewage treatment plant.

While the Sun Rivers development and Sk’lep school have always been connected to the City plant, most of the band lands remained on septic systems.

TIB councillor Fred Seymour, who headed the project for the band, said that fact limited commercial development potential, as well as housing for band members. The 114 homes at the band’s main George Campbell subdivision are on one-acre lots to allow septic fields. But Seymour said the trunk line extension will allow more dense land use, including multi-family projects for band members.

Seymour said the band had long wanted to expand its sewer system and was ready to approach Ottawa in the wake of the last recession, when government was looking for “shovel-ready” projects to help create jobs and boost the economy.

Chief Shane Gottfriedson said now that the more than seven kilometres of trunk line is in place, the band and individual certificate of possession owners will be looking at development and hooking up in the next phase. That includes Mount Paul Industrial Park, which is currently on septic systems.

“We’d like to get the business case and financial planning together.”

In addition to hooking up existing development, Gottfriedson said the sewer expansion allows servicing of 20 hectares of developable land along the South Thompson River beside the Chief Louis complex.

“We’re looking at a riverfront atmosphere with restaurants and fine dining,” Gottfriedson said. “We want to build upon what we started at the Chief Louis Centre.”

The band originally looked at building its own sewage treatment centre, but has an agreement with the City of Kamloops dating back more than a decade. One of the possible outfalls was on the North Thompson River.

Kamloops Mayor Peter Milobar said the City has always factored in development on band lands into its wastewater treatment planning.

“Anytime you can have one less outfall is a good thing for all the residents of the region.”

Both the engineering and construction were done by Kamloops-based companies. One of the band’s stipulations was 30 per cent of the construction workforce was First Nations.

The band also trained and will employ two workers to maintain the series of lines and lift stations.

Link