Kevin Antonides

The plaintiffs, a commercial landlord and property owner, brought an action against a tenant and its guarantor for damages arising from the breach and repudiation of a ten-year commercial lease.

The tenant had abandoned the premises and delivered a notice of termination, claiming the lease was frustrated by COVID-19 restrictions and that the landlord failed to timely complete agreed-upon improvements.

The court found that the lease commenced on March 1, 2020, its start date was not conditional on the completion of landlord improvements, and the tenant had repudiated the contract.

Consequently, the court dismissed the tenant's counterclaim for misrepresentation and rescission, and awarded the plaintiffs damages for lost rent, mitigation costs, and the diminution of the property's market value.

The Claimant sought compensation for injurious affection under the Expropriations Act after the Ministry of Transportation closed one of two driveway accesses to its mixed-use property during highway improvement works.

The Respondent argued the closed access and the commercial use of the property were illegal, precluding compensation.

The Tribunal found that the access and commercial use were legal, having been implicitly approved and in existence for decades.

Applying the test from Antrim, the Tribunal determined the closure caused a substantial and unreasonable interference with the Claimant's use of the property.

The Tribunal preferred the Claimant's 'Cost to Cure' appraisal approach and awarded $149,160 to construct an internal loop driveway, plus $27,500 for disturbance damages related to the land required for the new driveway.

The Claimant sought compensation for injurious affection after the Ministry of Transportation closed one of two accesses to its mixed-use property during highway improvements.

The Ministry argued the closed access and the commercial use of the property were illegal, precluding compensation.

The Tribunal found that the access and commercial use were legal and grandfathered.

Applying the test for injurious affection where no land is taken, the Tribunal awarded the Claimant $149,160 based on a 'cost to cure' approach to construct an internal loop driveway, plus $27,500 for disturbance damages.

The appellant appealed the property assessments of 11 tenanted office condominium units for the 2013, 2014, and 2015 taxation years.

The appellant argued that tenanted properties have a lower value than owner-occupied properties and should be valued using the Net Income approach.

MPAC argued that the Direct Sales Comparison approach should be used.

The Assessment Review Board found that encumbrances such as leases are to be ignored for assessment purposes and preferred MPAC's Direct Sales Comparison approach due to the better quality of comparable properties.

The Board determined the current values and found no further equity adjustments were necessary.