Granville Island marina sues yacht companies over $177K in unpaid moorage fees
Maritime Market alleges Blackfish Marine illegally subleased 25 berths to a maintenance firm that pocketed fees from boat owners.
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The operators of Granville Island's marina have sued for fraud, alleging a yacht dealer and a maintenance firm illegally profited from unauthorized dock use worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Maritime Market and Marina Ltd. filed the lawsuit June 17 with the B.C. Supreme Court. The company operates the marina and leases moorage and commercial space to independent businesses.
According to the suit, luxury yacht dealer Blackfish Marine Group Inc. failed to pay over $177,000 in moorage fees and $8,900 in commercial rent. Instead of paying, the suit alleges, Blackfish illegally subleased its 25 berths to yacht maintenance firm VTS Marine Yacht Service Inc., headed by Vivekanandan Selvamoorthy. VTS then leased those berths to third-party boat owners, pocketing the fees for the 2026-27 season, the petition claims.
When Maritime Market demanded insurance and paperwork for the vessels, it received documents for only six of the 25 berths — and only one showed proof of annual moorage payment. The company alleges 16 people with boats at the marina later provided previously undisclosed moorage agreements all signed by Selvamoorthy. Nearly all of those individuals said they paid VTS annual moorage fees, with some claiming they also paid "finder's fees" directly to Selvamoorthy.
In an interview, Selvamoorthy rejected the claims as "insane," saying he's ready to pay but needs assurance he won't be removed. He denied collecting finder's fees and said the moorage agreement claims were "a lie." Selvamoorthy said he had been in negotiations to take over Blackfish's operations since December 2025 but that talks stalled once new management arrived at Maritime Market.
