The date for bids on the Atmosphere project in Richmond passed July 5 with sources mum on interest.
Atmosphere, a stalled mixed-use development at Alderbridge Way and No. 3 Road opposite Lansdowne Centre, is the key asset held by Alderbridge Way LP, which sought protection from creditors April 1 as it wrestled with $346 million in liabilities.
B.C. Supreme Court approved a proposal April 25 that included an option to convert a portion of the amount owed the limited partners of Alderbridge Way into equity, thereby strengthening the developer’s balance sheet and allowing it to repay its primary creditor, Romspen Investment Corp. of Toronto.
Cushman & Wakefield was appointed to lead a solicitation process that could see the property sold or allow for Alderbridge to be restructured.
A brochure for the property describes it as “one of the largest, high-exposure properties along No. 3 Road” and notes that “site excavation and other work-in-place completed, enabling significant time and cost savings in the overall project timeline.” It notes “exceptional market receptivity” to the project, such that “strong end-unit sales … can be assumed.”
The buildable square footage exceeds a million square feet, with 822 residential units averaging 750 square feet and approximately 200,000 square feet of office and retail space.
Alderbridge Way issued a statement following the court’s approval expressing optimism for the future.
“We can now advance a plan to continue building the project or pursue a transaction involving another developer. The initial bid process goes to May 18th and continues thereafter to advance qualified proposals towards a final transaction expected to close in July,” the statement read.
However, the court-appointed monitor, Bowra Group, with the consent of Romspen, subsequently extended the final date for bids to July 5.
Cushman & Wakefield vice-chairman Kevin Meikle, who serves as the brokerage’s managing director, capital markets, is overseeing the solicitation process with Edgar Buksevics. Meikle did not comment on the degree of interest in the property.
While the offering is unpriced, the advanced state of the project in the approvals process and the court-ordered solicitation process that needs to respect the interests of creditors, means that any transaction will come in higher than the price Alderbridge paid in 2017.
It acquired the property through a numbered subsidiary in 2017 for $113 million from UEM Sunrise (Canada) Alderbridge Ltd., which had paid $70.2 million for the property in 2014.
A deadline for a final agreement has been set for July 15. The outside closing date is August 9.
