Blanshard Block: the Montrose Apartments and an $8.8 million offer

The Montrose Apartments, at 1114 to 1126 Blanshard Street in downtown Victoria, are three storeys of commercial space on the ground floor and 21 residential units above, per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, para. 9. The building carries a heritage status notice on its title, and one of its residential tenancies began on March 15, 1998, according to the title schedule and rent roll attached to the sale agreement in the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. C, pp. 71, 100. The other two pieces of what the listing brokerage calls "a rare three-property assembly" are a two-storey, three-unit commercial building at 780 Fort Street and a pair of adjacent single-storey commercial buildings at 1106 and 1108 Blanshard and 794 Fort, where five premises stand vacant; together the three lots cover approximately 17,342 square feet of land, per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, para. 9; App. B, p. 32.

Blanshard Block Limited Partnership bought them with a credit facility of up to $10,000,000 from Timbercreek Mortgage Servicing Inc., under a commitment letter dated October 22, 2018, intending to obtain the permits and zoning approvals for approximately 68,000 square feet of further developable space "which would include a potential hotel." Those applications, the receiver reports, "were delayed and, as at the date of the receivership, unsuccessful," per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, paras. 7–8, 10. A 2020 archaeological review among the project files calls the scheme the Wintergarden Project (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. C, p. 75). On August 25, MNP Ltd., receiver since January, will ask Justice Coval to approve the sale of all three lots to Banff Investments Ltd. for $8,800,000, per the Notice of Application, Aug. 18, 2026, p. 1; Part 1, para. 1.

A sale that did not close

Title to each lot sits with a numbered company holding as nominee and bare trustee for the partnership under declarations of bare trust dated as of November 30, 2018: 1177271 B.C. Ltd. holds 780 Fort, 1177269 B.C. Ltd. holds the Blanshard and Fort Street commercial buildings, and 1177272 B.C. Ltd. holds the Montrose (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. C, p. 42). Blanshard Block GP Inc. is the fifth debtor. All five have a registered office on Douglas Street in Victoria, and David Fullbrook was their sole director. Timbercreek's security, held by Computershare Trust Company of Canada as its agent, nominee and bare trustee, runs from a $10,000,000 mortgage and assignment of rents registered in the Victoria Land Title Office on November 30, 2018, through a general security agreement and beneficial mortgages from each nominee and the partnership, to assignments of insurance, material contracts and construction contracts, all dated November 14, 2018, per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, paras. 6, 11. The commitment letter was amended six times, most recently on February 1, 2024 (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. C, p. 48).

The defaults the receiver describes include "the non-payment of property taxes," with arrears from 2024 and 2025 still owing when it was appointed. Computershare delivered a notice of default, a demand for payment and a notice of intention to enforce security on June 25, 2024. The debtors asked for more time, on the footing that a sale of the property was imminent and would repay what was owed in full; "the sale was not completed," per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, paras. 13–15. As at December 10, 2024, the debtors owed $9,562,966 plus accruing interest, fees, costs and expenses (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, para. 12).

The receivership order recites affidavits affirmed and sworn on December 11 and December 16, 2024, and a further affidavit sworn on January 8, 2026. On January 30, 2026, Justice Coval appointed MNP Ltd. receiver, without security, of all the debtors' assets under s. 243(1) of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and s. 39 of the Law and Equity Act. The order gives the receiver and its counsel a first charge for their fees, lets the receiver borrow up to $200,000 against a borrowings charge ranking behind it, and requires the court's approval for any sale above $50,000 or, in aggregate, above $200,000, per the Receivership Order, Jan. 30, 2026, p. 1; paras. 1, 2(l), 20, 23.

Six months as landlord

The receiver has run the buildings since January through the existing property manager, Equitex Properties, collecting rent and managing the leases "including dealing with deficiencies," confirming insurance, and corresponding with the Canada Revenue Agency about priority and deemed trust claims (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, para. 16). Its interim statement for January 30 to August 11, 2026 shows receipts of $439,692, of which $311,603 was rental income and $115,465 cash at bank. Disbursements came to $335,044, the largest being $121,858 in property tax, $63,907 in repairs and maintenance, $37,226 in legal fees and disbursements, $24,626 in utilities, $22,125 in insurance and $15,076 in property management fees, leaving $104,648 in the receiver's account, per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. D, p. 104.

The rent roll attached to the sale agreement names the commercial tenants: Ditch Records and CDs Ltd. at 784 Fort Street, whose original lease is dated December 13, 2010; Bobadog Food Services Ltd. at 1106–1108 Blanshard; Italian Foods and Imports at 1114 Blanshard, under a lease that began in 2015; 9937030 Canada Inc., operating as Sarpino's Pizzeria, at 1122; and Better Choice Staffing Ltd. at 1124, on a lease dated March 18, 2026. Two of the Montrose's residential leases are dated May 2026 (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. C, pp. 97–101).

The one claim the receiver is aware of that ranks ahead of the petitioners' registered security is the City of Victoria's, for approximately $388,539 in unpaid municipal property taxes including accrued penalties and fees; all outstanding property taxes are to be adjusted for and paid from the sale proceeds on closing. The debtors had no employees, and the receiver is aware of no GST or PST owing at the date of the receivership, per the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, paras. 35–37.

Colliers, and three offers

After taking marketing proposals from Avison Young (Canada) Inc., CBRE Limited and Colliers Macaulay Nicolls Inc., the receiver signed a six-month exclusive listing agreement with Colliers on March 6, 2026 (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, paras. 16, 18). The property went to market the week of March 17. The offering memorandum pitched the existing income, the "Heritage character of the Montrose Apartments" and the "Redevelopment opportunities associated with the Wintergarden properties," per the Colliers report in the First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. B, p. 33. Marketing materials went to approximately 4,347 recipients and drew 2,272 opens and 297 clicks; the listing ran in the May 2026 issue of Western Investor and collected approximately 6,637 LinkedIn impressions; and 28 parties signed confidentiality agreements for access to the data room (First Report of the Receiver, Aug. 18, 2026, App. B, pp. 34–35).