UPDATE: The hearing scheduled to get underway Thursday was delayed. During a brief court appearance, dates discussed for returning the matter to court included July 23 and 24, or Aug. 25-26.
The petition from the developers of the proposed Lady Alexandra building filed against the City of White Rock is being heard at B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver.
The proceedings were scheduled to begin on Thursday and continue today (July 19).
Calgary-based firm G.S.R. Capital filed the petition after councillors approved contentious OCP and zoning amendments for 1310 Johnston Rd.
READ MORE: Lady Alexandra developers and City of White Rock to meet in court
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.
Voting against the amendment were Couns. Helen Fathers and Anthony Manning.
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.
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.”
