The Station Mall in Sault Ste. Marie is up for sale again, with an online listing expected to be posted later this week.
A judge ordered Station Mall into receivership in January, the culmination of a months-long court battle over an unpaid mortgage totalling more than $18 million.
CBRE Group is acting as a broker for the sale on behalf of Algoma Central Properties through Station Mall’s receiver, B. Riley Farber.
A spokesperson for CBRE confirmed by email on Tuesday that the property will be listed on its website later this week.
Markham-based SM Holdings took over the property for $30 million in 2022, but did not pay the $18 million outstanding on that mortgage when ordered to by a judge with a Jan. 16, 2025 deadline.
In a sworn affidavit, company president Yeung Mou insisted he had “made arrangements to have family money” from China sent to Canada to cover the loan.
The court-appointed receiver, B. Riley Farber Inc., is an international business advisory firm with offices in Los Angeles, Toronto and other parts of Canada.
The mortgage holder that launched the court action is Algoma Central Properties Inc., a subsidiary of Algoma Central Corporation, the company that built Station Mall in the early 1970s and owned the property for the next five decades.
As SooToday reported at the time, Algoma Central sold the mall to SM International in a deal that closed on June 30, 2022. The purchase price was $30 million: $12 million in cash and $18 million in what is known as a vendor take-back mortgage.
In November, Algoma Central made a brief mention of the overdue payment in a report to shareholders. “The loan is now in default and the company has commenced legal action to collect the principal amount on the secured mortgage,” the document reads.
SooToday retrieved the court records from Toronto, where the action was launched on July 29. In its application, Algoma Central asked a judge to appoint a receiver “to take control over Station Mall and to market it for sale.”
“The lender has lost confidence in the debtor’s ability to manage the property and does not believe that the debtor will be able to satisfy its obligations to the lender,” reads a factum filed by Algoma Central’s lawyers. “The lenders’ security is at risk of deteriorating. There is a need to stabilize and preserve the debtors’ business.”
In its responding court filings, SM International said there is no need to appoint a receiver because the mall is on solid financial ground. The company claims it has increased the number of tenants since taking over the shopping centre and has spent nearly $5 million on roof repairs, a new HVAC system, updated closed-circuit cameras and other upgrades.
“The mall is not a wasting or depreciating asset,” SM argued in its factum. “On the contrary, the respondent has spent considerable sums improving the mall, leasing space to new tenants, and thereby increasing its value.”
Since the January decision, the Station Mall has lost tenants, including the LCBO and Laura Secord.
— with files from Michael Friscolanti
