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Full Version: Sechelt Development - Seawatch at the Shores
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I am going to look at individual developments and offer as much information as I can about them. I am gathering this info from a variety of sources (developer website, RE agent listing, etc.) and I am also creating a spread sheet for each project with list dates, asking prices, sales date and sale price when available. I will try to follow these projects when I can and update the info here when there has been significant change.

I will begin with Seawatch at the Shores - located on West Porpoise Bay. I introduced you to the project and its geotechnical issues in the last post of my thread ‘Slip, sliding away.’ Initially the developer, Concordia Homes, planned a two phase development; however, it seems Concordia has had a change of heart and put all its lands outside of Phase I on the market last year. It is selling this land through Holywell Properties and the agency ad is below along with a Google Earth image of the property. As well, Concordia is selling two 4.90 acre blocks (Lots 20 & 21) on the east side of Crowston Rd.

[Image: attachment.php?aid=113]

[Image: attachment.php?aid=114]

Concordia began developing phase I at least as far back as 2006 and seems determined to forge ahead albeit slowly. It sold two homes back in 2010 as well as a few more this year. In the image below, I have included the most recent agent ad, as well as a map showing the current listings locations. I actually had to go to another Realtor website for those two separate listings images because Holywell’s website is terrible. Also, with the six lots Holywell listed this month on MLS it describes the homes as having only 1 bed and 1 bath which makes no sense given their square footage so I corrected that info in the table below (my guess may not be exact but it’s more realistic).

[Image: attachment.php?aid=115]

Using the map above and beginning at the top and moving counter-clockwise, the lots are #7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, and 24. The home at Lot 24 sold Feb 21, 2013 for $572,000 after 103 days on market. It is back on the market for $680,000. Its 2013 Assessment is $553,000 so the Asking Price Premium is +23%.

[Image: attachment.php?aid=116]

Note: In the table, "L" = Listed, "S" = Sold
Seawatch at the Shores - May 16, 2013 Update

This is a major update for the 'Seawatch at the Shores' - the developer, Concordia Seawatch Ltd., has blinked. I am including a four-page document prepared by Vancouver law firm, Baker & Baker, which represents the District of Sechelt (DOS). That document lays out point-by-point the responsibilities and costs Concordia will assume to proceed with its development and it is staggering.

First, here is the Coast Reporter news article announcing the agreement:

Quote:Concordia to pay for Sinkhole fix
Seawatch development
May 13, 2013
Christine Wood/Staff Writer

Developers have agreed to fix the sinkhole found at the Seawatch development and alert future homebuyers to geotechnical hazards in the area, according to documents released at the May 1 Sechelt council meeting. Nearly 200 pages of reports, studies and findings related to the Seawatch sinkhole were released from in-camera, as well as legal documents showing Concordia Seawatch Ltd. will pay the District $75,000 to help alleviate some of the costs incurred to date. Sechelt has been paying for geotechnical studies, short-term fixes and legal bills regarding the sinkhole and who should fix it since it was first discovered in June of 2012.

Mayor John Henderson said he doesn’t know how much Sechelt has spent on the issue but noted $75,000 isn’t “even 50 per cent” of what has been paid out. “But this is the kind of thing, when you get a natural disaster like this and you have to react to it, there’s not much choice but to go out and do both whatever we can to help the residents and take care of the District,” Henderson said. “So it’s a cost of, I don’t know if it’s right to say a cost of doing business, but it’s certainly a cost we are obliged to pay, just like the foreshore on Trail Bay. When something like that happens you get on and fix it, and you have to figure out where you’re going to pay for it. Fortunately we’ve got the resources to have done that.”

Concordia’s remediation of the sinkhole will take place in the summer during the “dry season,” documents state. While Henderson said there is no reason for people living in the area to be concerned, he couldn’t guarantee the safety of the site. “A guarantee isn’t a word that I think anybody can provide. What we know is that of course there’s been an extraordinary amount of technical work done, there will be more done by professionals and that hopefully will both identify and solve the current problem and make sure that it doesn’t happen again,” Henderson said.

Documents show that both the District and Concordia “acknowledge that additional geotechnical events may occur at the subdivision.”
To view the entire report released May 1, including detailed geotechnical testing of the site, download the 2013-05-01 RC Amended Agenda.pdf from http://www.sechelt.ca/CityHall/AgendasMinutes.aspx.

I downloaded that monster DOS Amended Agenda file and the Baker & Baker document begins on page 91. Here is each page in thumbnail form - click the thumbnail to open in a new window:

[attachment=157]

[attachment=158]

[attachment=159]

[attachment=160]

I can't image how Concordia will finance this; no doubt, it is relying on the sell of the Phase 2 lands and those two other lots both which I mention in the post above which as of today are still on the market. However, given the state of RE on the Sunshine Coast will they sell and when? If they do not sell, what happens then? I wouldn't be surprised if Concordia is already preparing its bankruptcy application; so, if I were the DOS, I wouldn't be 'counting the chickens before they're hatched.' The DOS is already in budget difficulties despite the rosy picture Mayor Henderson paints (see this Vancouver Sun May 6, 2013 news article) and if it has to assume responsibility for this site I can see only one option - buy out the current homeowners and mothball the development. Actually, I think that is what should be done now with this site given what I presented in my 'Slip, sliding Away' thread.
September 10, 2013 Update

It’s time for an end of summer update to see if there is anything new to report at Seawatch at the Shores.

To recap, last fall the District of Sechelt threatened to sue the developer and he threatened to counter-sue. However, as I reported above, the developer blinked first and agreed to meet DOS demands.

Then, in mid-June, 2013, two home owners (I think there are a total of 4 in the development) threatened to sue the developer for his failure to remedy the lower spring and upper level sinkhole. To let him know how po’d they were, they added their own sign to the sinkhole barricade informing all potential buyers how long they been waiting for Concordia to remedy the problem.

[Image: attachment.php?aid=395]
(Crappy pic snagged from the Coast Reporter website.
Looks like the reporter couldn’t bother to get out of the car…LOL.)

Then at the end of August, Concordia and the DOS jointly announced the sinkhole should be fixed by September 21st (the end of summer deadline imposed on Concordia by the DOS). They both said work has been underway on the lower spring that is at the root of the problem regarding the sinkhole.

Now, as for property sells. Since my first post in this thread, the owner at 6665 North Gale Ave listed for $605,900 and has since dropped the price to $598,500. This brings to 2 the number of owner resale listings.

As for the developer listings, nothing has changed - no sales and no price drops.

As well, the vacant lands listed - Block A, Lot 20 and Lot 21 on Crowston Rd - remain unsold and there have been no price drops.

Here is the updated spreadsheet - new info is highlighted in blue:

OL = Owner List
L = Developer List

[Image: attachment.php?aid=396]

In sum, “Nothing new here folks…carry on.”
Friday, Feb 25, 2015:

A new sinkhole has just opened up in the Seawatch subdivision. Here's what the District of Sechelt posted on its website a few hours ago...

Quote:The District of Sechelt is responding to the recent Seawatch sinkhole issue with the advice of expert geotechnical engineers who have dealt with these problems in other communities.

The District is now conducting an assessment of the affected area in regard to the geotechnical issues that have arisen and that may be at risk of arising in the future, and is monitoring the situation, with the resources that are reasonably available to the District. As a precautionary measure, a portion of Gale Avenue North is closed to vehicular traffic and the recent sinkhole is cordoned off. The Mayor and Council will report further as information becomes available to the District.

The sinkhole is so recent I can't find mention of it anywhere else (Coast Reporter, The Local, 91.7 Coast FM). It will be interesting to learn exactly where this new sinkhole is located. Since a portion of Gale Ave North has been closed, it's not in the previous locale. Well, bad news for house sales.

(As a refresher, here is my April 2, 2013 post in the 'Slip, sliding away...' thread where I go into detail about the geological problems affecting the 'Seawatch at the Shores' subdivision. Of interest is the July, 2012 Thurber Engineering Report - that's a direct link and you will get a pop-up dialog box.)
:as of today the owners of the home by the sink hole and moved out and its empty and now being dealt with by the owners and developers....watched closely by dos

sink hole most likely caused by ground water issues.....hopefully people can sell their homes and get out......but who will buy? pretty risky stuff
I know it's a couple months later, but I wanted to link to the newspaper articles about the latest sinkhole. There HAD been a picture of the house affected, but that photo seems to have come down.

Article 1

Article 2