Court appoints receiver for Vancouver developer over unpaid $36M loan

A B.C. Supreme Court decision says companies linked to a cancelled Vancouver condo project stopped making payments on their loan. Justice Kevin D. Loo appointed a receiver on Wednesday for four companies: 700 Bidwell Holdings Inc., 700 Bidwell Limited Partnership, 700 Bidwell Property Inc. and Westbank Holdings Ltd. The decision was published online Thursday.

Westbank describes itself as “Canada’s leading luxury residential and mixed-use real estate development company.” The receivership oversight applies to Westbank only in relation to its interest in this one project; the order does not cover the company’s overall finances. Westbank says it plans to appeal.

The decision does not name the project, but the 700 Bidwell companies have been listed as proponents of a redevelopment proposal for 1668 and 1684 Alberni St., at the corner of Bidwell Street in Vancouver. The plan was to replace two smaller condo towers with one 40-storey tower containing 128 condo units. The rezoning was approved in May 2022, but a related development permit application was cancelled in September 2025.

Loo’s decision says the developer stopped paying Bank of Montreal under the project’s credit agreement at about the time the permit application was cancelled. The companies owe the bank more than $36 million, the decision says. They had not made interest payments when due since at least September 2025 and did not repay the outstanding debt after the bank’s Jan. 26, 2026, demand. Since that demand, accrued interest has added more than $914,850, plus costs.

The bank applied to have a receiver appointed under a right in the loan agreement. The companies opposed the application, arguing the bank had not shown it faced financial risk or would have difficulty working with the debtors. They said foreclosure would be preferable to a receivership. Loo agreed with many of their submissions but ultimately sided with the bank, noting that the receivership clause in the agreement weighed heavily in the bank’s favour.

**A complicated potential sale**

The judge said a potential sale of the property may not be straightforward. The existing buildings are divided into strata units but are currently operated as rentals, according to the decision. The City of Vancouver’s rezoning referral report describes 1668 Alberni St. as a 13-storey strata building with 11 residential units. It describes the building at 1684 Alberni St. as 14 storeys tall with 12 strata units.

Loo noted that the court had no evidence of the property’s current market value. BC Assessment lists 11 addresses at 1668 Alberni St.; the penthouse is assessed at more than $2.7 million and the other units at between $1.2 million and $1.4 million. Assessments at 1684 Alberni St. range from $1.9 million to $2.2 million. Adding those figures suggests the properties in their current state, excluding redevelopment potential, are worth about $37.5 million.

The decision says rents collected from current tenants have not been paid to Bank of Montreal as required. In explaining the receivership, Loo wrote that the debt was not being paid. The companies acknowledged they had made no proposals to pay it, despite earlier promises. They also acknowledged that the bank had given them opportunities to resolve the defaults, but they had been unable or unwilling to do so. Interest is accruing at about $5,150 per day, and more than $300,000 had accrued since the petition was filed on Aug. 12, 2026.

**Westbank’s response**

Loo granted the receivership order effective immediately but barred the receiver from selling the properties before Feb. 13, 2027. This gives Westbank and the other companies a four-month redemption period to refinance and pay off the debt, if possible.

The judge also ruled that the order should apply to Westbank in the limited way the bank sought. Westbank opposed being included, arguing that a receivership order involving the company could be highly prejudicial. The decision summarizes its argument that placing any Westbank asset in receivership could trigger a default under security documents for other projects. The court had no evidence supporting that claim.

When CTV News asked for comment, Westbank replied by email: “There is no basis for this filing and we will be submitting an appeal. We have no further comment.” Its response did not explain why the development application was cancelled or why the 700 Bidwell companies stopped paying their debts.