Owner of Coquitlam Halloween haunted house faces two lawsuits worth more than $645,000

The owner of a haunted-house attraction in Coquitlam that expanded last year to include 100 actors is facing two lawsuits for unpaid loans totalling more than $645,000.

The company, which began in the old Giggle Dam Dinner Theatre space during COVID-19, moved to the old Sears’ building at Coquitlam Centre and expanded in time for Halloween last year, according to a company news release last year. It billed itself as a “Scream Park” that offered immersive experiences such as haunted house tours and escape rooms in which patrons helped rescue actors playing a nurse or a doctor.

“Now in its third year of operation, VHN has expanded its operations by growing 15 times its original size, investing in and custom-developing theme park technology (and) new guest experiences, and (it) has become the largest Halloween haunted-house attraction in the Lower Mainland,” the company said in the release last Oct. 22.

The release said the opening of the $5-million 100,000 square foot facility had been late because of permitting delays but it was open for eight “all-new thrilling attractions” offering wearable technology to help the company deliver “unforgettable guest experiences.”