October 22, 2008

RICHARD GILBERT

A pile of charred rubble is all that remains of the Quattro development in Surrey, but the developer has vowed to rebuild.

Quattro developer determined to rebuild after devastating fire

RICHARD GILBERT

staff writer

The owner of a condominium complex under construction in Surrey, B.C., which was levelled by a fire early this month, has called in structural engineers to assess the damage and develop a reconstruction plan.

The $625-million Quattro condominium project in North Whalley is the largest residential and commercial project in Surrey B.C.

Fire destroyed 116 housing units earlier this month in the four-storey Quattro 2 building, which was scheduled for completion in about 10 months.

It is part of the massive redevelopment project, which is being constructed in six phases and includes 11,000 residential units.

The Quattro 1 building, which had about 12 units damaged by water and heat, was scheduled to open next month.

In response Charan Sethi, owner of the Tien Sher Development Group Inc. has been meeting with trades and consultants to develop a plan for the reconstruction of the two buildings.

“We had meetings with trades and consultants and it has been a very good experience,” said Sethi.

“They have been telling us what do you need and we will do it for you. We have had a fantastic response and we are moving forward as fast as we can.”

According to Sethi the main issue right now is to get the consultants to assess the extent of the damage.

“The building and structural engineers will go through Building 1 to check for moisture and smoke damage, which is being done as we speak (Oct. 20),” said Sethi.

“We will know what needs to be done by the end of the week. The damaged units are being dismantled, brought back down to the studs and put back together again.”

The crane on the site, which suffered damage when flames shot into the sky and set the operators box on fire, was dismantled.

Machinery will be brought onto the site and debris removal will begin.

“All of the burnt material will be removed from the slab on Building 2,” said Sethi.

“This will take 10-12 days. Once this is done structural engineers will assess the foundation. We will have a better idea once they get through, because we can’t get to the slab which is under burnt material and concrete.”

The development group held a press conference on Oct. 19 to inform purchasers and the media about what is being done to move the project forward.

“We are going to build this project the way it was planned and meet deadlines despite this major setback,” said Sethi, during the press conference. “Our banker has been very supportive and is not going to close the door on the project.”

The main financial institution providing funding for the Quattro Development is the Canadian Western Bank (CWB).

“The fundamentals of our sound business partnership will not change due to a few bumps along the road,” said Greg Sprung, senior vice president in a press release. “We intend to work with the developer in assisting with the repairs and rebuild, as well as finance future phases of the project.”

Quattro is fully insured and the cost of rebuilding Quattro 2 and renovating Quattro 1 will not be passed on to the buyers.

Sethi said the renovation of the first building is moving forward nicely and he is developing a timeline for its completion. As far as Quattro 2 is concerned, Sethi is unable to develop timelines or organize trades until the debris is removed and the engineering consultants finish their work.

The excavation work for Quattro 3 was not affected by the fire and is moving forward as planned.

Print | Email | Comment