4 ~— Wednesday, April 12, 1995 ~ North Shore News NVD mayor appeals to provincial government THE RESIDENTS of Seymour Village Garden Apartments gained the support of North Vancouver District Council Monday night in a fight to pre- vent the sale of their rental homes. NORTH VANCOUVER BISTRICT COUNCIL By Martin Millerchip After hearing from a siream of worried tenants. council unani- mously _ endorsed. Coun. Ernie Crist’s motion supporting their lobby of the provincial government. At issue is the practice of selling - shares or fractional interest in a rental building, rather than the actu- - al unit. Sometimes called ‘co-owner- ship” or “undivided fee simple,” an investor buys a specified share, or undivided interest, in the building - and then signs a separate agreement for the exclusive use and possession of a designated unit. An owner of a: rental building who wished to stratify would usual- “ly be required to seek district approval. ’ According to. social planner Mask Bostwick the district's current policy is such that it would not approve the conversion of rental stock to strata units “unless or until the vacuncy rate is 4% for 13 con- secutive months.” _ .“"The vacancy rate hasn’t. been above 4% in North Vancouver since I was a little boy,” Bostwick told the , News. But the conversion of rental apartment buildings into fractional interests has been upheld in B.C. Supreme Court. and currently bypasses the municipal approval process. .. “Residents of Seymour: Village “want immediate provincial action to close what they see as a loophole in the law. “The sale of Seymour Village Garden Apartments through frac- tional interest circumvents provincial requirements of the Condominium and Real Estate Acts and bypasses municipal controls, effectively leaving both govern- ments powerless to prevent the ram- pant and serious loss of affordable rental housing,” Richard Jordsvar told council. “The most upsetting element in this is the degree to which this type of scheme goes against the grain of our law-making system and our ability to do proper city planning,” added Katherine Morfopoulos. She continued: “With one fell swoop this scheme has caused tremendous upset to the orderly working of many citizens’ lives and it makes something of a mockery of the government powers in these areas.” Jordsvar said he fears that homes some renters have occupied for as long as 20 years could be for sale this Easter weekend. “It leaves us with no choice but to make an extremely risky invest- ment to stay, or relocate and uproot our families to another community and school system with no assur- ance that this scenario won't face us again,” said Jordsvar. He and Morfopoulos hope that the province will, backdate to January | any amendment to the Real Estate Act. They hope this will prevent other Lower Mainland apartment com- plexes from converting to fractional interests, Morfopoulos asked council to insist that “the provincial govern- ment act with uncharacteristic speed on this issue.” “It is an issue they are well aware of and have been promising to ‘ change some day. | “Somebody. pulled a dangerous | joker out of their sleeve, it’s time for ; the government to lay down an ace,” concluded Morfopoulos.. - ; i : Twenty - — 19°72! Motor. Homes in showroom condition must be sold! These units have been pampered since new and start atjust $29 900. the. Vehicles pulled from road SEVEN COMMERCIAL vehi- cles were towed olf the road on April 4 during a morning traffic check at Capilano Road and Welch Avenue. The vehicles were taken off the road because they had prob- Jems such as bald tires, a cracked windshield or altered suspen- sions, according to Const. Al Steinhauser, of the North Vancouver RCMP traffic section. - The vehicles were deemed not roadworthy by police. About 100 vehicles. primarily commercial trucks, were stopped. Council agreed that: ® staff be requested to prepare a resolution for the UBCM (Union ‘of B.C. Municipalities) convention and Wi that a letter be sent to the provin- cial government in support of the request of the tenants of Seymour Village Garden Apartments. Council then agreed with Coun. Janice Harris’ suggestion that Mayor Murray Dykeman make per- sonal contact with the province. To press time the district was awaiting response from provincial minister of housing, recreation and consumer services Joan Smallwood to Dykeman’s request for “immediate action to prevent a conversion of the Seymour Village = ° Garden Apartments and any other similar rental complexes.” “Visa and Mastercard accepted at no cost to 0 you!” West'Van ‘HOMEOWNERS =—S North Van 1445 Marine Drive. conperninnun —_-#10-1199 Lynn Valley Ra. 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