BC Tree Fruits’ downtown Kelowna office is officially up for sale.
HM Commercial Group listed the property at 1473 Water Street on its website on Thursday (Oct. 1) at $5.2 million — nearly $2.5 million more than BC Assessment’s July 2019 assessment of $2.727 million.
BC Tree Fruits’ top brass admitted it was looking into the sale of the historic building in an interview with the Capital News last week.
“It was a very difficult decision… it is an iconic building,” said Warren Sarafinchan, Chief Executive Officer of the BC Tree Fruits Cooperative. “The cooperative is in the process of transforming our business, and it was a decision that was necessary.”
Sarafinchan also said he was ‘shocked and overwhelmed’ by the amount of interest in the building.
The property is zoned for mixed-use, which could accommodate commercial and residential development. The OCP allows for buildings up to 19 storeys on the site.
However, the building is listed on the city’s heritage registry, which could potentially limit its development.
Those looking to develop it may need to apply at a municipal level to remove the building from the registry. That being said, the city explained that a building listed on the heritage registry is not as well-protected as one with a heritage designation bylaw, which the property does not possess. Although circumstances vary, these kinds of provincial bylaws can more strictly limit the types of alterations to a property.
Offers on the building will be considered starting Oct. 9, 2020.
-With files from Phil McLachlan
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