Inn’s old operators sued for losses
A long-time owner of the historic Naramata Inn is going after former business partners in court for nearly $3 million the operation allegedly lost over two decades.
The plaintiff in the case is a numbered company that filed its notice of claim Feb. 14 in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver. The defendants are Keith Leach and Hugh Rennie.
The numbered company, which assumed ownership of the hotel through a series of amalgamations with Abbotsford Concrete Products, wants Leach and Rennie to make good on an agreement to reimburse the owner for losses associated with operation of the hotel.
According to the notice of claim, Leach and Rennie owned the hotel through a numbered company of their own in 2001, when the plaintiff agreed to provide financial assistance for renovations “based on the defendants’ guarantee that the plaintiff would not suffer any financial loss.”
“However, by in or about December 2001, the plaintiff found it necessary to purchase the hotel in order to provide long-term financing.”
The claim alleges the defendants signed an indemnity agreement as part of the sale under which they promised to compensate the plaintiff for any losses related to the financing and operation of the hotel.
Leach was to pay two-thirds, while Rennie was to pay one-third, reflecting their ownership stakes in their numbered company.
Over the 20 years that followed, the plaintiff claims to have invested a total of $2.7 million into the hotel, including cash transfers for payroll, insurance and professional fees. After tacking on interest, the plaintiff claims to be owed $5.9 million.
The claim states the plaintiff sold the hotel in February 2020 for $1.8 million.
It’s currently owned by Naramata Hospitality Limited Partnership, which consists of celebrity chef Ned Bell and his wife Kate Colley, along with part-time Naramata residents Paul Hollands and Maria Wiesner.
The property was valued at $2.4 million as of July 1, 2022, by BC Assessment.
The 12-room Naramata Inn was built in 1908 by John Moore Robinson as his family home.