The Burnaby Lake Village master-planned project has officially exited creditor protection, according to filings in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, resolving a conflict between the two local developers that partnered on the project.
Burnaby Lake Village is set for the 19-acre property at 6800 Lougheed Highway in Burnaby, directly adjacent to the Millennium Line SkyTrain's Sperling-Burnaby Lake Station, where Peterson and Create Properties were planning nearly 6,000 new homes across 14 mixed-use buildings between the heights of 12 and 25 storeys.
The partners — who owned the property through 1112849 BC Ltd. and Sperling Limited Partnership — had received final approval for their master plan rezoning application and Phase One of the project was advancing through the approval process by the time the project was placed under creditor protection on November 28, 2024.
The lender on the project was a syndicate comprised of RBC, TD Bank, BMO, and Scotiabank, who sought to place the project into creditor protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) after internal conflicts between the two developers resulted in Sperling Limited Partnership defaulting on their $210,000,000 loan agreement with the syndicate, as first reported by STOREYS on November 29. The amount owed as of November 21 was $207,601,972.89 plus interest.
READ: Peterson & Create Properties At Odds, Facing $207M Debt On Burnaby Lake Village
In a press release at that time, Peterson said that it had the ability and intention to repay the debt owed to the RBC-led syndicate, but that Create Properties refused to provide consent for Sperling Limited Partnership to do so or to seek a loan extension. That appears to have been the final straw that forced the lenders to step in and take action.
After the partnership was formed in 2018, conflicts between the two partners began emerging around Fall 2023, including disagreements about how to move forward with the project and its budget. The partners eventually sought out mediation, then arbitration, the latter of which was stalled because the two sides could not agree on the terms of the arbitration process.
Timeline Snapshot
- Nov 28, 2024 – Project placed under creditor protection
- Feb 6, 2025 – Peterson completes buyout
- June 23, 2025 – Peterson enters new credit agreement
- July 3, 2025 – Project exits creditor protection
The partnership defaulted on their loan in September and Peterson subsequently called a meeting to approve a plan to issue additional units in the partnership, in order to raise capital. This led to more conflicts with Create Properties, who believed Peterson was trying to dilute Create's stake and push them out.
Both sides acknowledged that they would no longer be able to work together and that the partnership should be dissolved.
READ: Inside The Ongoing Battle Between Peterson & Create Properties Over Burnaby Lake Village
Shortly after the project was placed under creditor protection, the court-appointed Monitor began planning a formal sales process. Before the sales process was approved by the Supreme Court, however, Peterson and Create Properties reached an agreement that would see Peterson buy out Create's stake in the project.
According to court documents dated from before the buyout, Peterson's equity in the project amounted to $35,292,000, while Create Properties' equity amounted to $33,908,000, which translated to a 51% and 49% ownership split.
Court documents do not provide details about the buyout, except that the transaction was completed on February 6 and that Peterson now owns 100% of Sperling Limited Partnership. Reached for comment, both Peterson and Create Properties declined to share financial details about the buyout.
Since the buyout, Peterson has also secured refinancing. According to court documents, Peterson entered into a new credit agreement on June 23 with the existing lender syndicate for a new land loan facility with a two-year term in the amount of $207 million that will payout and replace the existing loan with the lenders. The new loan agreement also includes a $19 million pre-development loan facility and a $13 million letter of credit facility.
The Monitor notes that one of the conditions of the new loan agreement is the termination of the creditor protection proceedings, which was granted by the Supreme Court on July 3.
Create Properties
Although Peterson and Create Properties are now no longer partners, they remain neighbours, as Create Properties owns the 14-acre site next door at 7000 Lougheed Highway, after acquiring the site for $151 million in 2021. They have advanced their own master-planned project called Burnaby Lake Heights, which is set to include over 3,500 homes across 12 buildings.
Create's partner on the project, which has not been previously reported, is Cenyard Properties, according to Cenyard's website and the Land Owner Transparency Registry.
A rendering of Create Properties' Burnaby Lake Heights (left) and the 6800 Lougheed Highway site now solely-owned by Peterson (right). / Create Properties
The Burnaby Lake Heights project has advanced about as far as the Burnaby Lake Village project has: the master plan rezoning application has been granted final approval from the City of Burnaby and Phase One is currently making its way through the approvals process.
Create Properties has launched a project website for the first building, Forest Walk One, but it's unclear when the project will proceed.
In April, Create Properties also received a notice from the landlord of their head office that they have defaulted on their lease agreement and failed to pay the sum of $25,782.40, according to an image of the notice that was shared with STOREYS. Create Properties' head office was located at 1580-505 Burrard Street in Vancouver and the landlord is Hudson Pacific Properties, who said in the notice that they were terminating the lease and asked Create Properties to vacate the premises and turn in their keys.
The company remains operational, but at least three staff members that held leadership positions have left the company this year.
