In a vote this past summer, Laurentian University’s board of governors approved moving forward with a settlement in a longstanding property dispute with a Sudbury couple.
This as Laurentian continues to be under creditor protection under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (or CCAA) since declaring insolvency in February 2021, and subsequently undergoing restructuring.
Laurentian hopes to finally exit CCAA proceedings next month after reaching a debt plan with its creditors.
The board unanimously passed a motion Aug. 15 dealing with a property encroachment issue at 2115 South Bay Road.
The following motion was passed in camera at a special meeting of Laurentian’s board of governors: “That the Board of Governors authorize the University to accept and act upon the Proposed Settlement and Recommendation outlined and presented by the University’s Interim General Counsel in her Memorandum of July 18, 2022, as presented at its meeting of August 15, 2022; Carried by unanimous consent.”
As it was dealt with in camera, Sudbury.com doesn’t have any information about discussions of the subject at the meeting other than the motion that was passed by the board.
The motion was published this week as part of the package for the Oct. 21 Laurentian board of governors meeting.
The property owners, Dominique Ansell and James Crispo, have been trying to have the issue resolved for years, and even have a website called Laurentian.org dedicated to the property matter, as well as news related to Laurentian’s insolvency.
The website said after purchasing their home in 2016, the couple learned some of their backyard encroached on Laurentian property.
Laurentian then asked them to make a reasonable offer to purchase the encroached lands, and the couple did so, but their offer was rejected, said the website. The couple said they then proposed a property exchange, but this was rejected as well.
In 2019, Laurentian sued the couple over the issue, and they responded with a counterclaim.
Ansell and Crispo recently listed their two-bedroom property for sale for the high price of $9.35 million. The ad contains the following tongue-in-cheek statement: “Since 2016, the Laurentian University Board of Governors has taken a special interest in this picturesque 1.2-acre property. Don’t miss out on this once in a lifetime investment opportunity!”
Sudbury.com reached out to Ansell and Crispo this week, and received the following brief email from Crispo: “Thank you for your email. The property matter is no longer an issue, and we are unable to comment on particulars of this litigation. As Laurentian University alumni, we support the university and look forward to the opportunity to work with the university community in the future.”
Heidi Ulrichsen is Sudbury.com’s associate content editor. She also covers education and the arts scene.
