Montrose, Omicron set to begin huge B.C. industrial park

LCRE partners on Burnaby’s The Amazing Brentwood

Burnaby, B.C.’s The Amazing Brentwood, among the largest mixed-use projects underway in North America, has a new strategic development partner. Shape Properties and co-owner Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan have brought on L Catterton Real Estate (LCRE), the real estate investment and development arm of L Catterton, the world’s largest consumer-focused private equity platform.

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Winnipeg office market quietly thriving

With so much positive activity happening on the office front in Toronto and Vancouver, and generally less positive news coming out of Calgary and Edmonton, it can be easy to overlook what’s happening in cities like Winnipeg. However, Cushman & Wakefield’s new global office forecast reveals that Manitoba’s capital ranks surprisingly high in certain categories on a worldwide scale.

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PSPC rolling out Smart Buildings technology nationally

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) will implement its Smart Buildings initiative to lower energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions in up to 100 buildings over the next three years. “As part of PSPC’s pilot project, the Smart Buildings technology has been installed in 13 PSPC buildings in the National Capital Region (NCR), including Connaught Building, R.H. Coats Building, Main Statistics Canada Building and the Health Protection Building,” said spokesman Mario Morneau.

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Montrose, Omicron set to begin huge B.C. industrial park

A Vancouver developer is ready to begin construction on a massive industrial business park on the site of a landfill in Richmond. The developers, Montrose Property Holdings and their construction partners, Omicron, say the Richmond Industrial Centre will be one of the largest industrial parks in Metro Vancouver.

Vancouver Sun

B.C. undergoing biggest hotel boom in years

The 52-storey Civic Hotel in central Surrey is the tallest, but far from the only, hotel under construction in the province as B.C. experiences the biggest hotel development boom in years. The Civic Hotel is one of Marriott International’s (MAR-Q) Autograph Collection of 50 luxury boutique hotels worldwide and only its second Autograph hotel in Canada. 

Business In Vancouver – Property Biz Canada

Winnipeg office market quietly thriving

With so much positive activity happening on the office front in Toronto and Vancouver, and generally less positive news coming out of Calgary and Edmonton, it can be easy to overlook what’s happening in cities like Winnipeg. However, Cushman & Wakefield’s new global office forecast reveals Manitoba’s capital ranks surprisingly high in certain categories on a worldwide scale.

Property Biz Canada – Property Biz Canada – Property Biz Canada – Property Biz Canada

GTA residential land deals lead to record Q2 sales: Altus

The commercial real estate and land investment market in the Greater Toronto Area continues to boom, with 736 transactions valued at a record $6 billion during Q2 of 2017, according to a quarterly survey by Altus Group. Leading the way during the quarter were residential land transactions, with 25 per cent of the total transactions – including a record amount of what Altus terms “medium density transactions”.

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Craft breweries: The next big thing

What do craft breweries and frozen yogurt have in common? Both industries enjoyed strong entry into our Saskatchewan market and made an impact in the commercial real estate landscape. The question is will craft breweries melt as quickly as the frozen yogurt competition did?

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Toronto rents near Brooklyn-level prices

Trying to find an apartment in Toronto is a lot like online dating, only more demoralizing. Ask Kin Lau. Normally, landlords would be swiping right on him. He’s got a perfect credit score and a good job. But last week he drove 40 minutes to check out a one-bedroom — only to discover another suitor had snapped it up first.

Toronto Star

PSPC rolling out Smart Buildings technology nationally

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) will implement its Smart Buildings initiative to lower energy costs and greenhouse gas emissions in up to 100 buildings over the next three years. “As part of PSPC’s pilot project, the Smart Buildings technology has been installed in 13 PSPC buildings in the National Capital Region (NCR) . . . ,” said spokesman Mario Morneau.

Property Biz Canada

Chinese firm building Kingston plant to feed baby boom

Feihe International, Inc. is investing an unprecedented $225 million in Kingston, Ont., because as China’s one-child policy phases out, it’s going to need a lot of baby formula. The first concrete trucks are already pouring at the future site of a 300,000-square-foot infant formula plant. When the state-of-the-art facility opens in 2019, it will employ more than 200 in manufacturing and research.

CBC

REALPAC established definition for AFFO

REIT investors are likely familiar with another acronym, AFFO. The problem, however, has been there was no precise definition for AFFO. That is, until now. The Real Property Association of Canada (REALPAC) stepped into this void, not long after the Ontario Securities Commission expressed concern in 2015 on how some unnamed REITs were describing and calculating AFFO.

Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

New 23-storey mixed-use tower proposed for North Van.

A 223-foot tower, rivalling the height of the Onni development under construction, may edge into the skyline on Central Lonsdale following City of North Vancouver council’s decision to send the massive development project to public hearing this fall. The 23-storey, 166-unit high-rise – complete with commercial podium – would be located at 1441 St. Georges Ave.

Business In Vancouver

Starlight buys Nashville apartment complex

Starlight U.S. Multi-Family (No. 5) Core Fund (STUS.A-X) announced it has acquired Copperfield Apartments, a 288-suite, class-A, garden-style, apartment community constructed in 2015 and located in Nashville. Copperfield, the fund’s first acquisition in the Nashville market, had a purchase price of approximately US$48.0 million. 

Canada Newswire – Property Biz Canada

New Safeway store to fill Target gap in Saskatoon

The hole left at the west end of Saskatoon’s Lawson Heights Mall when Target Canada Co. shuttered its stores in early 2015 is being redeveloped and is expected to reopen as a new Safeway grocery store early next year. Representatives of Safeway’s parent company, Sobeys Inc., announced the plans  on Friday. Morguard Investments Ltd., owns the mall.

Saskatoon StarPhoenix

Shopify beats estimates as revenue jumps 75 per cent

Canada’s leading emerging software success story Shopify Inc. (SHOP-T) continues to surpass expectations. The Ottawa-based provider of software to help retailers run their businesses said Tuesday it generated $151.7-million US in revenue in its second quarter, up 75 per cent over the same period a year ago, and posted an adjusted net loss of $1.1-million, or one cent per share.

Globe and Mail – Ottawa Business Journal – Ottawa Citizen – Motley Fool

More than 300 buildings destroyed; wildfires expected to grow

Wildfires have destroyed more than 300 buildings across British Columbia as smoke creates visibility problems for crews expecting to fight more fires in the coming days, officials say. The lost structures include 71 homes, 116 outbuildings such as sheds and barns, and three commercial buildings, said Robert Turner with Emergency Management BC. Another 115 destroyed buildings have yet to be identified.

Globe and Mail – CBC – CBC – CBC

Restaurant Brands signs deal to take Tim Hortons to Spain

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (QSR-T) says it has signed a deal with a joint-venture partner to take Tim Hortons to Spain. The company also owns Burger King and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen. Restaurant Brands says it earned a Q2 profit attributable to common shareholders of $89.5 million US or 37 cents per diluted share for the three months ended June 30. 

Globe and Mail – Reuters

RMZ taps CPPIB, Qatar for $1 billion

RMZ, one of India’s largest office space developers, is in talks with Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and existing shareholder Qatar Investment Authority to raise about $1 billion to expand its asset portfolio through acquisitions. The aggressive capital-raising program is key to the Bengaluru-headquartered group’s plans to increase its office rental business to 60 million square feet.

Economic Times

Public art has its place – if we do it correctly

It’s easy to be against the City of Ottawa’s decision to spend $7.3 million on art to dress up its 13 new LRT stations.Why spend money on art when we could spend it on road repair? The short answer is we need to do more to beautify our often-drab city.

Ottawa Citizen

U.S. CRE loan volume up 20 per cent year-over-year

Second-quarter commercial and multi-family mortgage loan originations were 20% higher than during the same period last year and up 28 per cent over Q1 2017, the Mortgage Bankers Association said Tuesday. The results of MBA’s latest Quarterly Survey of Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Bankers Originations compared favourably with Q2 results over the past few years.

GlobeSt.com – GlobeSt.com

Market Trends and Research

Canadian CRE investment attracting healthy demand: Morguard

Despite the strengthening economy driving a rise in interest rates and less accommodative monetary policy, investors in Canadian commercial real estate can expect more of the same strong performance, according to a new report issued by Morguard Corporation (MRC-T).

Canada Newswire

Real Estate Companies

Home Capital sets date for vote on Buffett’s second tranche

Home Capital Group Inc. (HCG-T) shareholders will decide whether the alternative mortgage lender’s biggest investor and marquee backer Warren Buffett should be allowed to buy a bigger piece of the pie in a special meeting set for Sept. 12, according to a regulatory filing. 

Financial Post

Cineplex reports $1.4-million second-quarter profit

Cineplex Inc. (CGX-T) says it earned $1.4-million in its latest quarter, down from a year ago, even as its revenue improved. The movie theatre company says the profit amounted to two cents per diluted share for the quarter ended June 30 compared with a profit of $7.2-million or 12 cents per diluted share a year ago. 

Globe and Mail

REIT Financial Reports

Latest financial results:

* Morguard North American Residential REIT, (MRG.UN-T), Canada Newswire 

* Slate Retail REIT, (SRT.U-T), Marketwired 

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Are NorthWest and Cominar’s high-dividend yields safe?

NorthWest Healthcare Properties REIT  (NWH.UN-T) and Cominar REIT (CUF.UN-T) offer yields of ~7.5% and ~10.9%, respectively, By asset type, NorthWest generates roughly half of its net operating income from medical office buildings and half from hospitals. Cominar, Canada’s largest diversified REIT, generates rent from office, retail, and industrial and mixed-use properties, and its recent portfolio occupancy was 92.3%. 

Motley Fool

Retail

Edmonton mall adding stores with Alberta focus

Londonderry Mall is adding eight stores this month with a made-in-Alberta focus as part of a campaign encouraging customers to shop Canadian. Most of the small outlets, expected to open between Aug. 12-24, are owned by people from the Edmonton area, although one is based in Grande Prairie and another is from Calgary, mall marketing director Nancy Jarnevic said Tuesday.

Edmonton Journal

Walmart Canada cancels online grocery pickup fee

Walmart Canada (WMT-N) is cancelling a fee it charges shoppers who order groceries online for pickup in stores. The retail giant had charged customers $2.97 for the service when it launched it in July 2015 in Ottawa.The online grocery pickup service later expanded to the Greater Toronto Area, Calgary and Edmonton.

CTV – Canada Newswire – Globe and Mail

Amazon on warehouse hiring spree

VIDEO: Amazon is holding a giant job fair and plans to offer thousands of jobs at nearly a dozen U.S. warehouses.

Globe and Mail

Sports Venues

Regina’s Brandt Centre getting a facelift

Regina city council approved just over $1 million for upgrades to the Brandt Centre on Monday evening — improvements ahead of the 2018 Memorial Cup. The money will be earmarked for upgrades to glass, boards, lighting and dressing rooms located within the building. Council also approved $250,000 to fund Memorial Cup operations.

CBC

Renovation and Restoration

Window project takes CN Tower view to new heights

The LookOut level at Toronto’s iconic CN Tower will be getting a complete overhaul, which started with a unique window replacement project enhancing the view from above. The first phase of the project, located at 1,136 feet, involved the installation of two new floor-to-ceiling panoramic window walls that offer a new perspective for visitors.

Daily Commercial News

Infrastructure

BC Hydro to become sole owner of Waneta Dam

BC Hydro has announced plans to purchase the remaining two-thirds share of Waneta Dam in Trail for $1.2 billion, making it the sole owner of the 63-year old facility. The purchase supplants a deal struck by seller Teck Resources and Fortis Inc. in May after Hydro, which already has one-third ownership interest in the 490-megawatt hydroelectric dam, matched Fortis’ offer.

Vancouver Sun – Victoria Times Colonist

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