Davie St businesses kicked out

With the Shell station at the northwest corner of Burrard and Davie Sts now closed, the other tenant businesses on the site have been given until Sep 30 to shut down.

The corner is owned by Prima Properties, according to documents at the BC Land Titles office in New Westminster. Prima, whose registered offices are on the North Shore, bought the property from Botham Holdings in 2004.

For Sam Bains at Quiznos, the end of his lease means the end of a business in which he has invested a significant amount of money over the past five years.

“I have nowhere to go,” he laments. “Money, money, money buys the world.” Bains says he asked the landlord what plans there were for the site and was told, “It’s none of your business.” But, he says, if he were the landlord he’d be redeveloping the property.

Next door at Prince Dry Cleaner, Young Kim, who’s held the location for 11 years, is preparing to move to a new store. Kim says he’s been told new buildings are going up on the property.

But city planner Michael Gordon recently told Xtra West that he hasn’t received any development permit applications for the site.

When Prima bought the property three years ago, then-Davie Village Business Improvement Association president Randy Atkinson urged the company to consult with community members before proceeding with any redevelopment plans.

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