Olympic Village condo owners file lawsuit
CBC News
Posted: Mar 16, 2011 5:43 PM PT
Last Updated: Mar 16, 2011 7:31 PM PT
Related
Related Links
A group of condominium owners at the former Vancouver Olympic Village is suing the City of Vancouver, claiming their units are poorly built and badly designed.
A total of 62 owners involved in the lawsuit said their condos at the development — renamed The Village on False Creek — have a variety of complaints, including a lack of heat for four months. Others claim they can't fit standard sized beds into their bedrooms and the units have leaky windows and ceilings.
"They want out because they bought into something that was advertised and sold to them as world-class luxury," said the group's lawyer, Bryan Baynham. "What they ended up with is something far less, something that is really no better quality than rental units — and then all sorts of things aren't working."
A group of owners at Vancouver's former Olympic Village claim they were sold shoddy units and want their money back. CBC Baynham said that as the owner of the land and the lender, the City of Vancouver has an obligation to step in and fix these problems or give the owners their money back.
A video made by Baynham's law firm shows water dripping from a ceiling into overhead lights.
"This is not my fault," said the unidentified owner. "All I did — I just paid $1.3 million for this unit."
Price drop allegedly a factor
Another said the units do not reflect the plans they saw when they purchased.
"It's not what we bought," said Mary Fines. "We've been basically been lied to."
Lawyer George MacIntosh, representing companies assigned to sell the Village on False Creek condos, said he just received the legal documents Wednesday and has yet to study the case.
But MacIntosh said he suspects the recent price reductions on unsold condos may have something to do with the civil suit.
The development offered discounts averaging 30 per cent in a new marketing campaign that was launched last month.
With files from the CBC's Kirk WilliamsShare Tools
Latest British Columbia News Headlines
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- Police are looking for a light-coloured Chrysler with damage to the driver's front side after a pedestrian was hit in Surrey, B.C., early Sunday morning. more »
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- A Vancouver man who climbed the world's highest mountain is back home and talking about the adventure. more »
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- A sushi restaurant in Fort Langley, B.C., was damaged in a fire early Sunday morning. more »
Top News Headlines
- Canadian Pacific strikers face back-to-work legislation
- Labour Minister Lisa Raitt is prepared to end the Canadian Pacific Railway strike if necessary, after both CP and the union rejected a proposal for voluntary arbitration by the government-appointed negotiator on Sunday. Raitt says she is "extremely disappointed." more »
- Syrian regime denies role in Houla massacre
- The UN Security Council condemned the Syrian regime at an emergency meeting Sunday, holding president Bashar al-Assad's military responsible for the massacre of more than 100 people, dozens of whom were children younger than 10 years old. more »
- Ryder Hesjedal wins prestigious Giro d'Italia
- Victoria native Ryder Hesjedal has become the first Canadian to win one of the cycling world's three Grand Tour events, wrapping up the 2012 Giro d'Italia with an excellent performance in the final stage in Milan. more »
- Neighbour may have helped find missing kids in Mexico
- Two Winnipeg children who had been missing for nearly four years were found in Mexico after a man raised concerns about his neighbour, according to a private investigator. more »
- B.C. NDP calls for unity in fighting coast guard closure
- Surrey RCMP seek hit-run driver
- B.C. man who scaled Everest returns home
- Fort Langley restaurant damaged in fire
- Passengers' families sue for fatal B.C. plane crash
- B.C. Coast Guard Auxiliary gets new name
- Tsunami motorcycle heading to Harley museum
- Psych ward escapes worry neighbours
- Gang forum honours Surrey 6 victim

