A high-profile stretch of land in Oak Bay commanding panoramic views of Haro Strait is once again on the market, for a staggering $52.5 million.
The development site, on two lots — 1069 and 1101 Beach Dr. — was listed for sale six days ago, just one month after there were reports a development application for the site had been submitted to Oak Bay’s planning department.
At the time, a brochure produced by Sotheby’s suggested the development could have as many as 568 housing units spread over three towers.
The District of Oak Bay said it has not received a complete application for the site.
“Staff have responded to the applicant with what information is required for that application to be complete and opened by the district,” spokeswoman Hayley Goodgrove said.
According to Sotheby’s Logan Wilson, the decision to list the properties for sale was made due to what would have been an extensive and expensive process to get a development permit and rezoning from Oak Bay, with no guarantees it would have been successful.
“Additionally, we recently received several unsolicited offers from potential buyers interested in the property for various uses,” he said.
“The market for unique properties in desirable areas remains strong, and interest has been consistently high. Additionally, since the properties are now bare land, it opens up opportunities for foreign buyers.”
The new sales listing for the 5.17-acre oceanfront property, produced by Sotheby’s International Realty, suggests it represents “unprecedented buildable surface area” with 1,000 feet of shoreline and private beach access.
The site, directly across Beach Drive from the Victoria Golf Club and two doors down from the Oak Bay Beach Hotel, is situated in a municipality that Sotheby’s suggests is “under immense pressure from the provincial government to increase local housing supply.”
After the district failed to meet provincially set housing targets, the province directed Oak Bay to speed up changes to its housing-approval processes in hopes of getting more housing built faster.
Two years ago, Oak Bay was included in a list of 10 municipalities that would be required to hit targets on new home construction.
The district managed to deliver only 16 of its 56 net-new units target in the first year.
The sales brochure for the Beach Drive site suggests it is ready for development, noting the land has been cleared and surveyed, and reports are available covering off geotechnical, environmental, traffic and servicing aspects of the property.
“These parcels are primed for development, be it a high-density mixed-use community, a creative new subdivision, or an opulent personal estate,” it said.
The lots used to boast family homes before they were demolished in 2024. Neither property was heritage-designated or on the community heritage register.
The home at 1069 Beach Dr., purchased by a numbered B.C. company in the spring of 2024 for $11 million, was at one point owned by members of the Ross family of Butchart Gardens fame.
The home at 1101 Beach Dr. was purchased by the same numbered company in December 2023 for $9 million.
Hans Broere, president of A.C. Dandy Electrical Products Ltd. of Alberta, is listed as a director of the numbered company in B.C. Registry records.
The stone house at 1069 Beach Dr. was built in 1912 for David M. Rogers, president of The Uplands Ltd. development company and head of the Rogers and Co. real estate firm. The architect was Jas Finmore.
The house, with almost 280 feet of waterfront, has changed hands a number of times. At one point, Jennie, the daughter of Jenny and Robert Butchart — who later became Princess Chikhmatoff when she married Andre Chirinsky-Chikhmatoff — lived there.
The princess’s only child, Ian Ross, inherited Butchart Gardens, followed by his daughter Robin-Lee Clarke, who currently manages the internationally known attraction. The Ross family owned 1069 Beach Dr. for many years, maintaining its manicured gardens.
The two-storey house had five bedrooms and four bathrooms and measured 10,845 square feet, including the basement, on 2.9 acres, according to B.C. Assessment.
Completed in 1914, the house at 1101 Beach Dr., called Anketell Lodge, had seven bedrooms and seven bathrooms and was 10,063 square feet on 2.24 acres.
The home was designed and built as a retirement home by William Wallace Blair, an architect originally from Winnipeg.
