---
title: "Deer Lake's Hart House restaurant fights for its City of Burnaby lease after 38 years"
description: "The City of Burnaby opened the Hart House lease to competitive bidding for the first time, and the current operators have launched a petition that gathered over 2,000 signatures in seven days."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/bc/burnaby-2026/news/hart-house-deer-lake-lease-petition-november-2026"
last_updated: "2026-11-13T16:46:06.354Z"
---

A Burnaby restaurant in a heritage 1912 mansion at Deer Lake may lose its lease after the City of Burnaby opened the renewal to competitive bidding for the first time, Noms Magazine reported on November 12. The current operators of Hart House submitted an application alongside others, and manager Sonja Muller has launched a petition that gathered over 2,000 signatures within seven days.

The City owns the building at Deer Lake Avenue. Hart House has operated there since September 1988, 38 years at the same address. The lease expires in December 2027. City staff will bring a recommendation to Burnaby City Council at a future date, Noms Magazine reports. Any new agreement is expected to start between mid-2028 and early 2029.

## What the petition says

Muller initiated the Change.org petition on November 3. Noms Magazine quotes her writing that the situation "threatens more than four dozen livelihoods" and that the team understands the city must review its leases. The petition had gathered over 2,000 signatures within a week.

## What is known about the building

The mansion was built in 1912 and holds a heritage designation, Noms Magazine reports. It was built for Frederick Hart and Alice Hart. Hart House was founded there in September 1988 by Paul Smolen and Peter Scott. Smolen later took sole ownership, and after his death in 2019 his wife Carol has managed the operation.

The property must continue as a restaurant and wedding venue regardless of which operator takes the lease, so the building's use will not change, Noms Magazine reports.

## What residents can do

Existing reservations at Hart House remain unaffected through 2027. When the lease decision comes before Burnaby City Council, residents can speak at the public meeting or write to council. The new council was sworn in on November 12. The [Burnaby promise tracker](/bc/burnaby-2026/tracker) records what each councillor committed to on business and spending decisions during the 2026 campaign.

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