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White Rock’s Lady Alexandra hearing date postponed

Lawyers are scheduled to sit before a judge this week
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Graphic of the proposed Lady Alexandra building.

The hearing for a petition filed against the City of White Rock by the developers of the proposed Lady Alexandra building has been postponed.

Lawyers for both parties were scheduled to meet in B.C. Supreme Court Thursday, but a judge was not available.

The matter could be pushed back to late August.

Calgary-based firm G.S.R. Capital filed the petition after councillors approved contentious OCP and zoning amendments for 1310 Johnston Rd. in March. Council voted 5-2 to approve the bylaw, which resulted in down-zoning of 1310 Johnston Rd. to a height of six storeys from the originally planned 12 storeys.

The mixed-use luxury residential and retail building planned for the current site of Leela Thai Restaurant and other businesses was approved for a development permit at a height of 12 storeys, but the project did not receive a building permit for 12 storeys, which allowed council’s re-examination of the project.

Voting against the amendment were Couns. Helen Fathers and Anthony Manning.

RELATED: Lady Alexandra developer takes City of White Rock to court

RELATED: City of White Rock responds to Lady Alexandra court petition

The petition to the court seeks, among other items, a declaration that G.S.R. Capital Group is entitled to proceed with a 12-storey development at 1310 Johnston Rd.; that an order be made to the city to quash a number of Official Community Plan and zoning bylaws, including bylaw 2289, which serves as a guideline for building heights on the 1300-block of Johnston Road; and that the city pay costs to the developer.

Among other items, the petition filed by G.S.R. alleges that the city breached an obligation of procedural fairness.

“That is clearly not the case,” the city’s response says.

In its response to the petition, the city cites section 463 of the Local Government Act, which allows a municipal government to withhold a building permit for 30 days if it passes a resolution identifying a conflict between a development proposed in the application for a building permit and an official community plan that is “under preparation.”

The allegations have not yet been tested by the court.



About the Author: Aaron Hinks

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