Landlords sue hotel for not being “luxurious” enough

Property owners are looking to contract a new hotel management company

Landlords sue hotel for not being “luxurious” enough

Hospitality

By Lyle Adriano

The landlords of Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver are suing the business, claiming that the hotel fails to live up to its high standards.

In October, commercial landlord Cadillac Fairview – together with VANPC LP and VANPC GP Ltd – filed a suit against Four Seasons Hotels Ltd, claiming a breach of lease.

The notice of civil claim was filed in BC Supreme Court on October 20.

According to the court document, the original lease was signed in 1976 between Four Seasons Hotels and the plaintiffs’ predecessor Pacific Centre Ltd. It was renewed in 1998 for a term that ends in 2020. The plaintiffs later became the current landlords of the hotel in February 2017.

In June 2015, previous landlord Pacific Centre Leaseholds “discovered that Four Seasons Hotels had breached and was in default of the lease since Four Seasons Hotels had failed to furnish and equip the hotel in accordance with the standard of a typical first-class luxury hotel,” the civil document said.

The plaintiffs want a judge to rule that the hotel is in default of its lease terms. This verdict would allow them to contract a new hotel management company.

Business in Vancouver reported that, as of December 12, Four Seasons has not filed a statement of defense. However, the company’s director of public relations in Vancouver, Kate Colley, said in a recent email that “the matter is being handled through the appropriate legal channels” and that Four Seasons “will not be providing comment.”

“If I were in the landlords’ position, I would want to look at whatever is coming up on Trip-Advisor on the property,” recommended Rod Harris, an adjunct professor at Royal Roads University’s tourism and hospitality management programs.

Although rating agencies can serve as a good basis for how “luxurious” customers find certain hotels, there does not seem to be a general consensus over Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver and how it stacks up against the competition.

Forbes Travel Guide ranked the Four Seasons Hotel Vancouver and the Rosewood Hotel Georgia as Vancouver’s only five-star hotels, but the American Automobile Association ranks the Shangri-La Hotel Vancouver as the city’s only five-diamond property.

“Peer reviews can be particularly helpful in helping individuals better plan their travel experiences but I would argue that they also have to be taken with a grain of salt,” Harris explained to Business in Vancouver. “There is no perfectly objective system in place.”


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