23/07/2019 – Jurisdiction British Columbia
Part 69 published on 01/03/2020
Court confirms validity of roof-top lease
Prior to registration of the strata corporation, the Developer granted a lease of “a significant proportion of the common area on the rooftop” of the proposed strata property. The lessee under the lease was an affiliate of the Developer. The lease allowed the lessee to install, maintain and operate roof-top telecommunications equipment. The term of the lease was “from the date the lease was signed until the date the strata corporation was dissolved or wound up”. The lessee was required to make a single up-front rent payment of $10.
The lease (or the potential lease) was disclosed in all disclosure statements provided by the Developer to purchasers of units in the strata corporation.
After the creation of the strata corporation, the roof-top lessee purported to grant a license to another firm to construct and operate a rooftop radio tower within the leased rooftop area. This required approval from the City of Delta. The City refused to provide approval without consent from the strata corporation, which the strata corporation refused to provide.
The lessee applied for an order forcing the strata corporation to provide the necessary consent. The Court held that the roof-top lease was binding and effective, and granted the order.
Marshall Mountain Telecom Ltd v The Owners, Strata Plan EPS 4044