Stoney Creek developer commits to finishing Jamesville Lofts project

Marbelle Estates Inc. recently resumed work at the unfinished downtown condo, whose fate became uncertain last year after its previous owner went bankrupt

A Stoney Creek company is breathing new life into a long-stalled downtown condo development that went belly up last year.

Marbelle Estates Inc. says it has recently resumed work on the socalled Jamesville Lofts, an unfinished condo project at 15 Cannon St. W. that became a question mark in January 2022 after its previous builder went bankrupt.

The tenuous development being back in play comes about four months after Marbelle emerged as the winner of a months-long, courtordered bidding war to take hold of the attractive parcel of land.

Marbelle spokesperson Kyle Palbot said Friday crews have already refitted and stabilized concrete in and around the building, as well as built an elevator shaft and stairs.

The local construction and environmental services company intends to follow through on the original owner’s vision of a sleek, sixstorey building with 40 units, Palbot said. He added the only change in plans is to make a good portion of units affordable and accessible for those with disabilities.

Construction at the property just west of James Street North had all but halted after previous builder Areacor Inc. broke ground in August 2019.

Scuttled by repeated cost overruns and loan rejection, the Etobicoke-based company was placed in receivership early last year after owing about $9.9 million to more than two-dozen creditors.

Documents contained in an Oct. 3 approval and vesting order said Marbelle would assume all of Areacor’s assets and parts of its mortgage debt as part of the sale, the price of which was sealed under a court order.

While Areacor entered into agreements of purchase and sale for 29 of the 40 residential units it planned to build, those were nulled as part of the new sale agreement with Marbelle. Previous investors are still in the midst of a “deposit refund protocol” with Aviva Insurance.

Bankruptcy records showed Areacor left the property as a skeleton structure with serious foundational concerns, an issue Marbelle continues to probe, Palbot said.

Palbot said the Stoney Creekbased company is awaiting a final batch of engineering reports to ensure the structural integrity of the building is sound. A finish date for construction hasn’t been set.