Burned Quattro condos to be rebuilt

A well-attended Whalley civic pep rally rose yesterday from the ashes of the arson-damaged Quattro development in Surrey.

Mayor Dianne Watts, MLA Bruce Ralston, developer Charan Sethi and Sethi's banker addressed an anxious crowd of more than 200 onlookers, expressing confidence that Quattro will be finished and Whalley will thrive.

"Whalley will rebuild," said Ralston, MLA for Surrey-Whalley.

"Whalley will be strong. It will be the heart of a great city in the future." Ralston also commented on the surprise guest at the podium -- Greg Sprung of Canadian Western Bank.

"I don't think I've ever heard a banker speak at a public event before," said Ralston.

An arson fire gutted Phase 2 of the development in a spectacular blaze Oct. 1.

But the public forum's main goal was to ease the minds of Quattro buyers, and Sprung told the crowd what they came to hear in an era of tough economic times with other developers pulling up stakes.

"We've been involved with this project from the very beginning," Sprung assured the crowd.

"We intend to stay with it until the end." Watts conceded that times are tough but insisted Surrey is on the way up.

"People are a bit nervous, and the fears go up, but there are significant opportunities," she said. "Already, we have half of the project being rebuilt.

"This community is really, truly amazing." Sethi -- whose firm, Tien Sher Group of Companies, intends to build a total of 480 units plus commercial space -- handed out gift baskets to neighbours who'd helped his workers when the fire erupted.

Calling the fire a "setback," Sethi said workers were back on the job the following day, and he urged owners who've bought into the project to be patient as their move-in dates are pushed back.

"My dream is the same," said Sethi. "I won't let you down.

"That's why we brought our bankers here." He added that Phase 2 will be fully assessed next week, with hopes of rebuilding soon.

"We are going to assess the damage by next Wednesday or Thursday, and then we'll move on to the next steps," he said.

One of those who's tired of waiting is Ison Dsouza, a Vancouver finance worker who was enticed by Quattro's glossy ads and the promise of "Yaletown in Surrey." "I have a two-year-old son, and there are addicts and fights here," said Dsouza, 40, who asked Sethi for his money back but was told all he can do is sell his investment.

"I've tried to sell. I've talked to two realtors," said Dsouza.

"I've had no luck -- there are no buyers." Surrey assistant fire chief Joe DeLuca said the complete incineration of Phase 2 destroyed any evidence for fire investigators.

"The whole building burned to the ground in about 20 minutes," said DeLuca.

"There's nothing left for fire investigators, so we've turned the investigation over to police." DeLuca predicted that all developers will step up security at large development sites.

"I think what's going to happen to developments of this kind is that they will be extra vigilant," he said.

"That structure was at its most vulnerable phase." iaustin@theprovince.com