BARRIE: Ruling gets Allandale Station project back on track

Barrie is preparing to move ahead with the Allandale Station project.

Ruling gets Allandale Station project back on track

Stan Howe

Barrie is preparing to move ahead with the Allandale Station project.

The Correct Group Inc. (CGI) registered the certificate of pending legislation last year in a bid to stop the city from developing the station and negotiating a land exchange with an adjacent landowner.

On June 28, Ontario Superior Court of Justice Susan Healey granted Barrie's motion to have the certificate removed from the site.

Such a certificate puts involved parties on notice that litigation is pending, city spokesperson Rebecca James-Reid said.

"Although the underlying lawsuit continues, the … decision is clearly a positive step and supports the position the city has taken," she said.  

City staff will now develop a strategy for the station lands and report back to council.

CGI also launched a $28-million civil suit in December. It has since been expanded to include claims against city officials and employees and highlights contamination on the site.

"CGI is disappointed the court did not find in its favour, as it would have been one step closer to building a beautiful project on the site," the company said in a prepared statement.

The firm is now deciding if it will appeal the decision or simply pursue damages.

The developer claims the city reneged on a preliminary agreement to sell the land to CGI for commercial, office and residential buildings on the land. It also claims the city failed to disclose mercury and benzene contamination, even to an appraiser, who recommended the city seek a higher price for the site.

The allegations have not been proven in court.

In her ruling, Justice Healey said the city proved CGI "does not have a reasonable claim to an interest in the Allandale Station lands."

Barrie and CGI signed a preliminary agreement in May 2009, which also included the YMCA of Simcoe Muskoka. But the YMCA pulled out in January 2010, citing a growing financial risk.

The city and CGI continued talking, but never agreed on a master site plan or a purchase price, the judge noted.

The city halted talks in December 2010.

In September 2011, the city put the site on the market and, in January 2012, city council authorized staff to negotiate exclusively with another developer.

Weeks later, CGI registered the certificate of pending legislation on the land, which halted the talks as well as those with Re/Max for a land exchange.

The city also could not proceed to call for proposals for tenants in the station, in which it invested $4.5 million to upgrade the exterior building. No interior work has been done.

Thanks Laurie Watt/Barrie Advance