{"id":564374,"date":"2026-03-27T13:08:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T13:08:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/564374\/"},"modified":"2026-03-27T13:08:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T13:08:08","slug":"legal-battle-keeps-vancouvers-kingsgate-mall-site-tied-to-1970s-as-broadway-redevelops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/564374\/","title":{"rendered":"Legal battle keeps Vancouver\u2019s Kingsgate Mall site tied to 1970s as Broadway redevelops"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Kingsgate Mall, at East Broadway and Kingsway, in Vancouver.Kerry Gold\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

Kingsgate Mall is a tired old 1970s shopping centre at the heart of Vancouver\u2019s push for density. The three-acre site looks all the more outdated as the city grows around it.<\/p>\n

Its faded charms, bereft of big-chain retail and glitz, have made it a beloved east side institution that feels more like a community centre than a shopping mall. But it\u2019s also an oddity; a key chunk of underdeveloped land adjacent to the Broadway subway line currently under construction.<\/p>\n

The paralysis is due to a long-standing feud between the landlord, the Vancouver School Board, and the lessee, one of B.C.\u2019s biggest developers, Beedie Development Group. The VSB has been through several legal rounds with the developer in an effort to raise their rent, based on arguments over the market value of the land. The board argues the rent for 2017 to 2027 is far below market value. In 2022, it won an arbitration ruling setting the rent at $9.6-million per year for that period. A B.C. Supreme Court judge didn\u2019t agree, and in a 2024 ruling said Beedie owed just $1.65-million a year in rent. The VSB took the case to the B.C. Court of Appeal this month, and Beedie won again. <\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

The beloved east side institution feels more like a community centre than a shopping mall.Kerry Gold\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

Company president Ryan Beedie was elated and relieved by the decision, he said in an interview last week, alongside managing partner Rob Fiorvento.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf someone doesn\u2019t look at it [closely], they could go, \u2018Well, they should just pay more rent,\u2019\u201d said Mr. Beedie. \u201cNo. We have a lease that outlines what the rent is. And how can we pay $9-million a year in rent? We\u2019re generating $3.5-million.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Beedie says they have no way of making more from the property.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t redevelop it. The lease says it has to be a shopping centre.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Beedie said it\u2019s been \u201cstressful,\u201d and the relationship with the school board \u201cis fractured.\u201d He estimates his company has spent more than $2-million in legal fees over the last seven or so years. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey could have cut a deal with us and avoided this decision. And they would have been far better off than they are now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The win means that Beedie will likely renew the lease when it comes up for another 10 years, beginning in November, 2027. And because the rent is based on market value, which has declined, Mr. Beedie said he expects the rent to drop further.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is almost a certainty that we will be exercising our fourth option and we expect to have the ability to maintain our leasehold interest for the next 45 years. The rent during the next renewal period will very likely be less than what we are paying now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

The three-acre site looks all the more outdated as the city grows around it.Kerry Gold\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

Mr. Beedie said his company has a right of first refusal if the VSB decides to sell the property. <\/p>\n

Mr. Beedie said he has long wanted to build residential towers on the site, and both the province\u2019s transit-oriented area legislation and the City of Vancouver\u2019s Broadway Plan support high densities near major transit hubs. He said he has presented redevelopment proposals to the school board, and offered to partner with them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like asking someone to dance, and they don\u2019t want to dance with you,\u201d said Mr. Beedie. <\/p>\n

Mr. Beedie and Mr. Fiorvento expressed frustration that they haven\u2019t been able to move forward with proposals, especially following a period of market highs. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been spending all this time in litigation and watching the value deteriorate substantially,\u201d said Mr. Fiorvento.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were some discussions at one time about even housing the VSB offices in there,\u201d he added. \u201cIt couldn\u2019t get to a decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

The contentious issue of market value and rent goes back to before Beedie Development Group owned it. Mount Pleasant elementary school used to stand at the corner of East Broadway and Kingsway, but in the early 1970s, the school board decided to demolish the school and lease the land for 99 years, starting with a 25-year term and followed by 10-year lease renewals. <\/p>\n

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Kingsgate Mall is a key chunk of underdeveloped land adjacent to the Broadway subway line currently under construction.Kerry Gold\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

In 1999, the school board went to arbitration with the original lessee to argue the rent. A panel concluded that it should be based on the low-density shopping mall that is permitted according to the zoning, not the higher density that is permitted, subject to approvals from the city, which could take a much longer time. <\/p>\n

Rent is based on 8.25 per cent of the market value, or a percentage of the revenues from the mall, said Mr. Fiorvento, who said the deal favoured the landlord. <\/p>\n

By 2005, BDG had taken over the lease. In 2017, the developer was paying $750,000 a year when it came up for renewal, according to court documents. They went to arbitration in 2021, and BDG argued for a lease of $1,212,750 a year, based on a market value of $14.7-million and its use as a shopping mall. The VSB argued for a basic rent of $11.475-million, based on city-approved higher density, arguing it would then be worth $135-million. That time, the panel sided with the school board and put the value of the property at $116.5-million, which would result in a rent of $9.6-million.<\/p>\n

Beedie successfully challenged the decision and rent was set at $1.65-million, based on the current permitted use. <\/p>\n

Mr. Beedie doesn\u2019t know yet if the VSB will pursue further legal action. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe school board has not been a prisoner to this lease,\u201d he said. \u201cThey could have gone and rezoned the property. \u2026 The value goes up, the rent becomes unaffordable, and people like us aren\u2019t exercising their options and they can take it back. They\u2019ve done nothing to fully enhance or capitalize on the inherent value of their freehold interest.\u201d <\/p>\n

The VSB was asked about Beedie Development\u2019s offer to settle, redevelopment options, and if they plan to continue to pursue legal action.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe board pursued this matter in the interest of the public and the education system it serves,\u201d VSB spokesperson Jiana Chow responded. \u201cWhile the board respects the court\u2019s decision, it is taking the time necessary to review the findings carefully. <\/p>\n

\u201cThroughout this matter, the board acted collectively (through its established decision\u2011making processes, including majority vote) and in good faith, guided by legal advice and its fiduciary obligation to steward VSB assets responsibly. The board engaged in good faith discussions, repeatedly sought the detailed information required to assess potential resolutions through its collective governance process and carefully considered all proposals put forward by the tenant.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the court did not rule in the board\u2019s favour, pursuing legal clarity on the interpretation of a long\u2011term ground lease was a governance decision made by the board in the public interest. The board is working with legal counsel to fully consider the court\u2019s ruling.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Kingsgate Mall, at East Broadway and Kingsway, in Vancouver.Kerry Gold\/The Globe and Mail…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":564375,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194298],"tags":[174081,49,48,2922,968,55,174082],"class_list":["post-564374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-vancouver","tag-b-c-real-estate","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-noastack","tag-real-estate","tag-vancouver","tag-vancouver-real-estate"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/564374","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=564374"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/564374\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/564375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=564374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=564374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=564374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}