A lawsuit has been filed in B.C. Supreme Court that seeks to halt the District of North Vancouver’s rezoning proposal for supportive housing on Keith Road.
In a civil claim filed on Dec. 20, Graham Alexander asserts that he’s party to a profit-sharing "arrangement" for a list of properties including the lots directly adjacent to the proposed supportive development at 1200 Keith Road East. Proceeding with the rezoning without considering his interests would be unlawful, Alexander alleges.
But most of the facts and relief sought in the civil claim have been denied by the district and by the second defendant, who owns most of the properties in question (some have been sold).
In the suit, Alexander claims that the district’s rezoning plan includes the use of a laneway beside the adjacent properties. Naming North Vancouver District as a defendant, the proposed development intends to use the laneway for traffic flow from north to south, “effectively blocking any east to west access future flow for the occupants and owners of the plaintiff’s properties,” Alexander said.
The civil claim seeks an injunction to stop the district from proceeding with the rezoning application or any development that uses the laneway that restricts or hinders access to the adjacent properties, at 1290, 1294 and 1298 Keith Road East, as well as 785 Mountain Hwy.
Not mentioned in the civil claim is that the east-west lane doesn’t currently exist. Today, there is an existing lane allowance with the properties directly east of the proposed housing site, which would intersect with the project’s proposed road access and parking area.
In the claim, Alexander also seeks to have his interest registered on the titles of the listed properties, which are currently under the name of Kyle Washington, who is named as the second defendant in the civil claim. Alexander asserts that the properties were assigned for $1 to Washington under his holding companies, and that the two agreed to a profit-sharing arrangement, should the properties be sold or developed.
In its response to the civil claim, the District of North Vancouver acknowledges Alexander’s initial acquisition of the properties in 2018. But the district denies that the rezoning application includes the use of the “adjacent laneway,” that the rezoning doesn’t consider the impact on the adjoining properties and that the future road access would block future east-west traffic flow.
“Unless otherwise specifically stated herein, District of North Vancouver (the 'defendant') denies all of the facts alleged in the notice of civil claim and puts the plaintiffs … to the strict proof thereof,” reads the response.
In Washington’s response, he denies all of the facts in the document, stating that Alexander has no standing to advance any of the claims. His response adds that the civil claim is “unnecessary, scandalous, frivolous and/or vexatious.”
Alexander – a property developer – recently spoke during a public hearing for the affordable housing proposal on Keith Road, where he told council of his own idea for developing the land.
None of the above claims have been tested in court.
