
RioCan REIT asks court to put joint venture with Hudson's Bay into receivership: docs
People cycle past the Hudson's Bay department store in downtown Montreal on Monday, March 17, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi
TORONTO — RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust is pushing to put a joint venture it owned with Hudson's Bay into receivership.
A court filing from the real estate firm asks the Ontario Superior Court to appoint FTI Consulting Canada Inc. receiver of the companies that span the venture.
The filing says RioCan is pursuing a receivership because it thinks that is the best way to protect the venture's stakeholders and maximize value.
Receivers are empowered by courts to take control of a company's assets, oversee their liquidation and repay creditors.
The Hudson's Bay-RioCan venture was formed in 2015 and is made up of 12 properties the department store chain leases from the partnership.
Alvarez & Marsal, a monitor appointed by the court to guide the Bay through creditor protection, says in its own filing that a process to find buyers for Bay leases did not nab any bids for the joint venture or its properties.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025.
Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CTV News
34 minutes ago
- CTV News
Tensions high in Village of Anmore as controversial development heads to public hearing
On Monday, mayor and council in the Village of Anmore will hold a public hearing on a large-scale, multi-family development that could more than double the population of the tiny enclave on the shores of Indian Arm over the next 20 years. The development called Anmore South would add 1,750 units of housing– comprised of condo buildings, townhomes and duplexes – on a large plot of forested land in the centre of the village that is owned by Icona Properties. 'Right now, Anmore is all single-family homes with a couple of duplexes, but basically single-family homes and one corner store, so not really commercial,' said Greg Moore, the former mayor of Port Coquitlam, who is now CEO of Icona Properties. 'This helps to bring jobs and create that complete community for the Village of Anmore.' There is fierce opposition to the project, evidenced by signs on public spaces all over Anmore calling on mayor and council to scrap the development. 'It's too dense for a rural area,' said longtime Anmore resident Leslie Hannigan. 'The reason we moved here is because it's quiet. We aren't part of the urban containment boundary, so we're not in those rules of having to make everything really, really dense.' She argues the village's infrastructure is not meant for a large population, and bristles at the suggestion homeowners in Anmore are NIMBYs opposed to any new development. 'We could have done a really nice thing within our rural designation with townhomes, with cluster homes for seniors, there's laneway homes. There's all kinds of things without having to be this thick, dense area that developers seem to be pushing into all these municipalities,' Hannigan said. Anmore Mayor John McEwen says some in his community are opposed to any kind of change to the largely single-family home village, where the average assessed value is a little over $2,500,000. 'So, (it's) tough for young families to get in when you have such a high assessment,' said McEwen. 'And it's starting to show in our elementary school. Enrolment is a little over 100, where it used to be well over 200.' The mayor says the debate over adding condos and townhomes in Anmore has gotten nasty, with many signs targeting mayor and council, and online discourse that he calls disturbing. 'The word that has troubled me the most to my core is when I hear, 'We don't want that type of people here.' And that really, really bothers me,' said McEwen. 'I look at a diverse municipality that I want, I want it to be welcome to everybody.' Hannigan says she has never heard comments like that among Anmore residents. 'We welcome everyone,' she said. 'Nobody says we don't want these people in here. It's all about preserve the trees, keep us rural, small homes that are connected. I mean, this is again just a frustrating spin when they say that we're NIMBYs and we don't want this. That's wrong.' If mayor and council vote in favour of Anmore South on Monday, the developer still has to get Metro Vancouver to change the village's rural zoning designation in order to start construction on the project. 'If everything went yes votes all the way along the path, we probably wouldn't see a shovel in the ground for at least two years. And then at that point, it's going to be another 20 years as this community comes together,' said Moore. 'So there is lots of opportunity to continue to engage the community.' Right now, it's a community divided: remain a small village, or open the door to big-city density.


National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Transportation Minister Chrystia Freeland 'dismayed' about BC Ferries' contract with Chinese shipyard
VICTORIA — Federal Transport Minister Chrystia Freeland says she is 'dismayed' that BC Ferries has contracted a Chinese state-owned shipyard to build four new vessels in the current geopolitical context that includes 'unjustified' tariffs on Canada. Article content Freeland says in a letter sent to provincial Transportation Minister Mike Farnworth that she expects BC Ferries to inform her about all measures that it plans to take to 'mitigate any security risks,' including cybersecurity problems that might arise from the decision. Article content Article content BC Ferries announced earlier this month that it has contracted China Merchants Industry Weihai Shipyards to build four new major vessels following a five-year-long procurement process that did not include a Canadian bid. Article content Article content Freeland adds she is 'surprised' that BC Ferries does not have a mandate for an 'appropriate level' of Canadian content in the procurement given the value of the contract, although the dollar figure hasn't been made public. Article content BC Ferries says in a statement that the Chinese bid was 'the strongest bid by a significant margin' and that security is a 'top priority,' adding that all sensitive systems will be sourced separately and independently certified before the vessels enter service. Article content


CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Chrystia Freeland slams BC Ferries' decision to build ships in China
Minister of Transport and Internal Trade Chrystia Freeland responds to a question during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, June 12, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick Controversy over BC Ferries' decision to award a contract to a Chinese state-owned shipyard to build four new vessels has reached Ottawa. Federal Transportation Minister Chrystia Freeland had some strong words for her B.C. counterpart Mike Farnworth in a letter dated June 16 and obtained by CTV News Friday. Read more: Eby won't stop BC Ferries from building new ships in China, but says it's 'not ideal' 'It is with great consternation and disappointment that I learned of BC Ferries' recent announcement it has selected China Merchants Industry Weihai Shipyards,' the letter begins. Freeland pointed out China's tariffs on Canadian agriculture products—which include a 100 per cent levy on canola oil, meal and peas and 25 per cent on fish and pork—calling them unjustified. She also highlighted concerns regarding threats to cybersecurity from the country. 'I am dismayed that BC Ferries would select a Chinese state-owned shipyard to build new ferries in the current geopolitical context,' she wrote. Read more: BC Ferries union upset Chinese company was hired to build new vessels She asked to be informed of what measures BC Ferries is taking to address potential security threats. 'I would like your assurance that BC Ferries conducted a robust risk assessment, and I expect them to engage with the relevant provincial and federal security agencies and departments to mitigate any security risk,' the letter reads. When BC Ferries announced the deal on June 10, it said it would have its own team of experts on site during construction 'to provide oversight and quality assurance.' Read more: Business leader says BC Ferries' hiring of Chinese shipyard is 'informed decision' 'We are confident that CMI Weihai will be able to meet our high expectations for safety and quality, while delivering tremendous value for our customers and on-time delivery of the four vessels,' the company said in a statement at the time. Notably, no Canadian companies placed a bid on the project. When BC Ferries opened its call for proposals last September, major B.C. shipbuilder Seaspan said in a statement it would not be able to compete with countries that pay workers less and have lower environmental and safety standards. 'Given the value of the contract and the level of taxpayer funding that has been provided to support BC Ferries' operations, I am surprised that BC Ferries does not appear to have been mandated to require an appropriate level of Canadian content in the procurement or the involvement of the Canadian marine industry,' Freeland wrote. Read more: Minister flags concern over BC Ferries' deal with Chinese state-owned shipyard She listed some of the funding the federal government has given the province and BC Ferries over the years, including $308 million during the COVID-19 pandemic—and asked Farnworth to 'verify and confirm with utmost certainty that no federal funding will be diverted to support the acquisition of these new ferries.' B.C. leaders, namely Farnworth and Premier David Eby, have—using much softer language—expressed disapproval of BC Ferries' decision, but said they won't step in to kill the contract, despite calls from opposition critics and unions to do so.