TORONTO – The real estate investment arm of one of the country’s largest pension funds is worried about the value of its assets if a B.C. billionaire is able to buy 25 Hudson’s Bay leases at its properties.
In court documents filed over the weekend, Oxford Properties Group argues Ruby Liu would diminish the value and stability of its real estate portfolio and by extension, adversely affect the long-term interests of millions of OMERS pension plan beneficiaries.
Liu is looking to take over about two dozen Bay leases and use the spaces to build a new department store she will name after herself and fill with entertainment, dining and recreation spaces.
Landlords, including Oxford, are fighting Liu, saying her plans are underfunded, have unrealistic timelines and are bound to fail. Liu is confident she can win the property owners over if a court allows her purchase of the leases to go through.
The leases include three Oxford properties — Southcentre Mall in Calgary, Hillcrest Shopping Centre in Richmond Hill, Ont., and Upper Canada Mall in Newmarket, Ont.
Oxford is the real estate division of Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, which administers the pensions of more than 600,000 plan members. Oxford has more than $79 million in assets under management and hundreds of properties on four continents.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 11, 2025.
