Priced to sell Pan Am style
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...l-pan-am-style
An abandoned high school across from Ivor Wynne Stadium is now up for grabs for a cool $8.8 million.
The former Scott Park Secondary School was off-loaded by the public school board in 2004 for $650,000 and the empty building sustained hundreds of thousands in damage last summer thanks to vandals with fire hoses.
That didn’t deter Vancouver developer Jamil Kara from listing the 180,000-square-foot building at close to $9 million.
“With the development happening across the street, there has to be some use for this building, whether it be parking, a new CFL Hall of Fame, a new school, something,” said Kara, whose real estate ad emphasizes the pending $150-million rebuild of Ivor Wynne in advance of the 2015 Pan Am Games. “Once they’re halfway through construction across the street, I might even move my price higher.”
Kara is known locally for turning The Spectator’s former downtown printing plant into condo-lofts and more recently partnering with Harry Stinson on the renewal of historic Hotel Niagara in Niagara Falls, N.Y.
He admitted he had Pan Am on his mind when he scooped up the Scott Park property through a power of sale process for about $1.2 million in December.
Kara said he’s scheduled to talk with Pan Am officials about the property, although he’s not allowed to disclose the reason.
He has also pitched the property to the Tiger-Cats, both for parking and as office space. “They may not want to pay $9 million for parking,” he said. “I think they’re interested, but only at the right number.”
Tiger-Cats president Scott Mitchell said he couldn’t comment on the particular property, but noted the club will work “hand-in-hand” with the city on any decision affecting the stadium neighbourhood, including potential new parking.
Kara has written to the city about possible property uses, but hasn’t received a response.
The city is working on a Pan Am precinct plan that is meant to reinvigorate the neighbourhood around the rebuilt Ivor Wynne, and ward Councillor Bernie Morelli is hoping part of the plan will include a new seniors and community centre.
He wouldn’t say if the former Scott Park school factors into his dreams for the centre, however.
Councillor Lloyd Ferguson, who co-chairs the Pan Am precinct committee with Morelli, said he doubts Pan Am planners would be interested in the property at any price.
“Where that (property) becomes interesting is in developing the precinct, but in that context I think it’s just too premature to speculate about it,” he said, noting a terms of reference for a neighbourhood planning committee has only just been approved.
Whether the city or anyone else will pay $9 million for the old school is another matter.
Commercial real estate expert David Blanchard said the price per square foot would be reasonable — “if you have a use for the building.”
A previous owner tried to use the building as a private school, while local developer Don Maga mused publicly last summer about turning it into a medical centre.
Blanchard said the institutional nature of the building, combined with its location and the need to remove asbestos, may limit its redevelopment uses. “I’d wish them good luck with that,” he said.
Kara doesn’t think his price is out of line.
He estimates the asbestos cleanup costs at about $300,000 and said he’s spent more than $600,000 cleaning up the vandalism damage and installing a security fence. The building’s assessed value is around $9 million, he added.
He won’t cry if a bidding war fails to materialize.
“I can sit and wait, no problem,” he said. “If I can’t sell it, I’ll do something with it myself.”
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