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Taller North Van private school project triggers developer dispute

Developer says adding to Alcuin College would block future residents' views
Alcuin college web
Alcuin College's proposal for an additional floor on their Lower Lonsdale school will go to a public hearing on March 1.

The public will soon have their say on a Lower Lonsdale proposal that would see a new private school grow by one extra storey, putting two neighbouring developers at odds.

City of North Vancouver council voted in 2017 to allow Alcuin College to build a two-and-a-half-storey independent school at 63 Mahon Ave. In February 2020, the school’s leadership applied for the addition of an overheight storey that would be used as a gymnasium/multi-purpose space for students during the day and an event rental venue at night.

Because the revised proposal would add more density and another 14.9 feet in height, it has to go through a new rezoning process, requiring a new public hearing.

Council members had little to say about the merits or flaws of the proposal Monday and instead kept their questions to the process that led to the matter coming up for a vote.

The plan for a fourth storey has its supporters and detractors, including some who called in to speak to council at the start of Monday’s meeting.

Speaking for Laco Holdings, the developer of a six-storey rental building under construction immediately to the north, Casey Spreeuw urged council to reject the project.

“The [proposal] … will result in our tenants facing a massive blank concrete wall, and an outdoor deck for the event space users located only an alley-width away,” he said, noting that Laco’s project was designed to complement the smaller school project approved in 2017. “Our families will now lose any privacy and quiet enjoyment they deserve.”

The dispute between the developers has already escalated into a defamation lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court.

Walter Berukoff, the director of Laco, filed a lawsuit in October last year against Ryan Deakin, president of Havaal Real Estate Group, the firm hired by Alcuin to develop the school.

In court documents, Berukoff accuses Deakin of sending an email to the school’s leadership that was false and defamatory. Berukoff is seeking an injunction prohibiting Deakin from repeating the libel and forcing him to correct it, plus general, special and aggravated damages.

In his response to the civil claim filed last month, Deakin doesn’t deny sending the email but argues the statements he wrote were not defamatory.

The case has not been heard in court.

Council voted 6-1 in favour of sending the proposal to a public hearing, with Coun. Holly Back opposed.

Squamish Nation member Sheryl Rivers, who has been hired as a consultant by Laco, questioned council about why residents in the nation’s community of Eslhá7an immediately across Forbes Avenue, many of whom are elders, were not consulted on the proposal.

“Many concerns were shared and comments I’ve heard were about being excluded from yet another project,” she said.

According to city staff, the process has met all of the necessary steps for consultation. The public hearing has been set for March 1.