Three years after breaking ground on a lot at the southeast corner of Saint-Joseph Boulevard and George-V Avenue in Montreal’s Lachine borough, some of the more than 150 buyers of units at SEC Flora condominiums are worried.
“They have kept us in the dark for three and a half years over what was going on,” Audrey Clover, one of the buyers, claimed.
According to her, she bought one of the more than 170 units that were supposed to be built in three 10-storey towers. Hers, she said, was supposed to be delivered in summer 2020 in tower A, closest to the intersection, but the delivery date kept getting postponed.
“Then it was pushed back to fall 2020 and then it was endless,” she chuckled.
Seven buyers with whom Global News spoke all have the same complaint — constant delays.
In one email to buyers sent in January, the promoter gives reasons for the delays.
“Due to the numerous price increases caused by the current situation, mainly the result of the scarcity of labor and materials as well as the costs of transporting materials from overseas, the financial agreement established between Flora and Romspen is no longer working,” read the email.
But according to buyers, information about delays was scarce, inadequate and they often had trouble reaching the developer.
The person behind the project was Paolo Catania.
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In 2018, Catania was acquitted in a fraud and conspiracy case in the Faubourg Contrecoeur land deal. A year later almost 1,000 tax fraud charges against him were stayed because legal proceedings took too long.
Global News reached out to Catania via email but has yet to receive a response.
Now, with the Flora project, buyers are wondering what’s happening.
“These are people’s retirement plans,” pointed out one buyer who asked not to be identified by Global News in an online story out of fear for his job. “These are people (who are) first-time owners, these are people that want to start families. It’s not right to keep people in the dark.
Rompsen Investment corporation, which financed the project, says it will be going to court next week seeking to have a receiver appointed to recover more than $21 million.
As for buyers getting back the more than $6 million they’ve collectively paid, a lawyer representing insurance company Aviva tells Global News in an email, “Aviva will abide by its obligations to refund all valid claims.
“As this matter is now before the courts we are unable to comment further.”
Some clients wonder how long that will take, and highlight another concern — that condo prices have soared in three years and many of them have been priced out of the market, leaving some without any options.
“I’ve lost all trust, I’ve lost hope,” said Clover outside the place where she was expecting to live.
“Time is going by, interest rates are increasing; now is not a good time to be making decisions.”
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