Vancouver Kilborn Building To Be Sold In Foreclosure Proceedings Over $93M Debt

As the dismantling of the assets held by Coromandel Properties continues to unfold, the latest property to be put up for sale is the Kilborn Building in Vancouver, according to filings in the Supreme Court of British Columbia and a sales brochure obtained by STOREYS.

The seven-storey office building sits at 1380 Burrard Street, at the intersection with Pacific Street, near the eastern end of the Burrard Street Bridge.

The Kilborn Building was originally constructed in 1982, according to BC Assessment records, and was most-recently valued at $62,121,000.

According to Coromandel Properties' petition to the court seeking creditor protection under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act in February 2023, Coromandel acquired the property in July 2016 for approximately $80.8M and the property received an appraisal of $112.1M in January 2022.

The Kilborn Building is currently 97% leased, according to the sales brochure. The anchor tenant is Lululemon, who occupies more than 93% of the building. The other tenant is Bicycle Sports Pacific, a retailer on the ground floor. The building is currently managed by BGO (formerly known as BentallGreenOak).

Debt and Disposition

The foreclosure proceedings were initiated by Peterson Group — the Vancouver-based real estate developer that also acts as a lender to other developers. The property is legally owned by 1380 Burrard Street GP Inc. and beneficially owned by Pacific Burrard Holdings Limited Partnership.

At the centre of the foreclosure proceedings is a $90M mortgage and assignment of rents held by Peterson Group that was registered on September 20, 2022.

After Coromandel Properties filed for creditor protection in February 2023 and then exited creditor protection in March 2023, creditors associated with the various properties Coromandel owned lined up to initiate foreclosures in order to recover what they were owed. Peterson Group initiated the foreclosure proceedings on the Kilborn Building in July 2023, claiming that Coromandel defaulted on interest payments, after previously making a demand for payment on February 10, 2023 — a few days after Coromandel filed for creditor protection.

Coromandel and Peterson then reached a forbearance agreement on March 10 that gave Coromandel until September 10 to pay off the debt. As part of the forbearance agreement, Coromandel was obligated to pay $300,000 on the first day of each month. Coromandel failed to make the payment due June 1 and also failed to pay property taxes as the forbearance agreement required. Amidst that period, as reported by STOREYS at the time, Peterson Group also bought Coromandel Properties out of three projects the two were co-developing, the money from which Coromandel used to pay Peterson.

In August, the Supreme Court then granted Peterson's application for an order nisi, which confirmed the debt at $92,637,612.51, as well as an order for conduct of sale allowing them to sell the property.

The Property

The property appears to have been officially listed for sale just recently, however, with a sales brochure being sent out to industry professionals this week. The listing team consists of Jim Szabo and Vincent Minichiello of CBRE Vancouver and does not list an asking price.

Following Coromandel's acquisition of the property in July 2016, it initiated redevelopment plans to the point of sharing those plans with the City of Vancouver, but did not progress the project to the stage where an application was submitted.

"Over the years, the Petitioners have engaged in numerous discussions with the City and completed an elaborate plan for the project a few years ago," Coromandel's petition to the court seeking creditor protection in February 2023 notes. "The City of Vancouver has been generally receptive to the plan. However, the process has stalled due to the Petitioners' lack of funds."

Few details of what the redevelopment would entail were provided, except that it would've been a "high density tower." The petition does note, however, the nearby One Burrard Place — by Reliance Properties — as an example of the kind of development that can be achieved for the site.

Site facts and an image from the sales brochure for 1380 Burrard Street.(CBRE)

The sales brochure notes the development potential of the site as allowing for up to 270,000 sq. ft and a density of 9.18 FSR — compared to the current zoning that allows for just 5.0 FSR.

Any redevelopment in the future would likely change the use of the site to residential, such as The Pacific, a 39-storey condo building that was developed by Grosvenor, which sits next door.

"The site is located in an area of substantial residential growth, with several high-rise condo and rental towers planned or under construction within a few blocks of the property," says CBRE. "1380 Burrard Street presents the opportunity to be part of this burgeoning urban residential hub, while contributing to the city's growth and development to provide much-needed residential supply in a supply-constrained market."

The brochure also notes that the property has an existing net operating income of $3.9M and a stablilized (potential) net operating income of $4.2M, and that the weighted average lease to expiry is 3.18 years.

Any sale of the property will require final approval from the Supreme Court of British Columbia.