Large development lands near Union Bay listed for sale
by Kendall HansonJune 6, 2025 7:33 pm
Lands that are slated for a large development in Union Bay are now up for sale.
The property owner went into receivership earlier this year, which throws a curveball into a sewer extension project because the property’s developer was supposed to help pay for it.
The for sale sign went up this week.
It marks the end of a protracted wait with few results for the community.
“It’s not a surprise. We’ve seen this on and on for years. Different plans and different promises, and the community has just been so tired of it,” said Kathy Calder, a Union Bay resident.
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A mortgage company recalled its $13.5 million loan to the group, comprising several companies and people who owned this large 275-hectare or 677-acre parcel of land.
More than two and a half decades ago, the Union Bay property was slated for the largest development of its kind outside of Victoria. In 2018, Kensington Union Bay Properties announced it was finally going ahead and would give new life to the community, returning it to its more populated coal mining days.
It was to include more than 3,000 homes, two hotels, a marina, among other amenities. A big deal for a community of a couple of thousand people.
Kathy Calder has lived in the community for 10 years and says the ongoing lack of development has been a real loss for the community.
“Our taxes continue to go up, and we haven’t got any benefits yet. There are no new stores, there’s no plan for a pool. We’ve got nothing going for us,” said Calder.
The area’s regional district’s director says the property will be attractive to the right buyer.
“It’s a pretty big opportunity in terms of having that kind of pre-zoned land for sure. It’s pretty rare on Vancouver Island to have that amount of density that’s available,” said Daniel Arbour, a Comox Valley Regional District area director.
Arbour says there are some positives. The developer had already given some land to the regional district for a new fire hall and 100 acres for a new park.
But the receivership and sale have thrown a wrench into the plans for a new sewer extension to the area that the developer had promised to pay tens of millions towards. Governments, First Nations and citizens had also agreed to help fund it.
“I know that there are some concerns about potential costs if we lose Union Bay Estates, but we’ll make sure the project is affordable; Otherwise, we won’t proceed,” said Arbour.
Calder hopes the property’s next buyer will be more reliable and that lessons from this two-decade saga will be learned.
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