AHIP CEO stays on track in hotel investment venture

AHIP CEO stays on track in hotel investment venture

Railways are part of the narrative thread of the West. Rob O’Neill, president and CEO of American Hotel Income Properties REIT (AHIP) (HOT.UN-T), was steeped in the lore of the rails from an early age, hawking papers to passengers travelling from Vancouver to Prince George and serving up sandwiches as part of his father’s business, O’Neill Railway Catering Ltd. 

Business In Vancouver – Property Biz Canada

Investors embrace North Vancouver’s Marine Drive

The future seemed within sight when the District of North Vancouver adopted its new official community plan (OCP) in 2012 with a pledge to densify existing neighbourhoods and create several town and village centres. Those were selling points for Cathryn Coe, owner of Marine Drive Naturopathic Clinic, who purchased a 1,530-square-foot retail unit for her clinic that spring.

Business In Vancouver

Morassutti on cap rates, foreign investment, Donald Trump

As Canada’s economy gained strength through the first half of the year, national capitalization rates compressed across all sectors except hotels. That may be coming to an end, however, according to Paul Morassutti, executive managing director of CBRE Canada, which just issued its “Q2 2017 Canadian Cap Rates & Investment Insights” report.

Property Biz Canada – Property Biz Canada

The Wilkinson Project: East Port’s new green building

The Wilkinson Project, a Dartmouth, N.S., warehouse that’s part of the Canada Green Building Council’s zero carbon building pilot program, has signed its first tenant ahead of its anticipated spring 2018 opening. 

Property Biz Canada

Tsawwassen FN suspends marketing of industrial lands

Tsawwassen First Nation (TFN) often crops up in discussions of the shortage of developable industrial land in Metro Vancouver. But an overhaul of TFN Economic Development Corp. following a review this spring has led to the temporary suspension of marketing efforts for the 300 acres slated for port-related industrial development.

Business In Vancouver

Port of Prince Rupert unveils expanded terminal

The expansion project at the Port of Prince Rupert wrapped up Tuesday with the unveiling of the upgraded Fairview Container Terminal, a hub that analysts say has emerged as one of Canadian National Railway’s most prized corridors for future growth. The $200-million investment by Dubai-owned DP World has turned the Prince Rupert facility into Canada’s second-largest container terminal.

Vancouver Sun – CBC – CTV

Edmonton’s CRE investment tops $1B so far in 2017

Edmonton’s market is staging a recovery from the economic slump that plagued Alberta over the last two years according to a mid-2017 analysis of commercial real estate investment just released by Barclay Street Real Estate. Real estate investment in office, retail, industrial, multi-residential and ICI (industrial, commercial and investment) and residential land investment from January to June totalled $1,081,185,654, compared to $712,824,783 for the same period in 2016.

Property Biz Canada

Edmonton EXPO Centre merging with Shaw Conference Centre

City council approved the consolidation of the Edmonton EXPO Centre with the Shaw Conference Centre Tuesday. A private report to council recommended the Edmonton Economic Development Corporation (EEDC) take control of the Expo Centre from Northlands and merge its trade show operations with the downtown venue.

CBC – Edmonton Journal – Global News

Work resumes at B.C.’s ‘gateway’ to West Shore

The massive hole left by a failed development project is being drained to make room for what the mayor of Colwood, B.C., hopes will be the re-establishing of the West Shore’s gateway. The Onni Group recently started work at a 12.5-acre development site that at one point was to become Capital City Centre. The plans call for 471 residential units and commercial space.

Victoria Times Colonist

Slate Retail purchases Orlando’s Good Homes Plaza

Slate Retail REIT (SRT.U-T), an owner and operator of U.S. grocery-anchored real estate, announced it has entered into a binding agreement to acquire Good Homes Plaza  for US$23.8 million ($144 per square foot). The property is 88% occupied, is Publix-anchored and located in the Orlando Metropolitan Statistical Area. Closing is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2017. 

Marketwired

Walmart takes on Amazon by adding third-party sellers

Walmart Canada (WMT-N) announced Tuesday it is expanding the number of items for sale online by allowing other companies to sell on its e-commerce platform, moving into territory long held by rival Amazon. “Our customer is looking for that one-stop shop,” said Rick Neuman, executive vice-president, technology and e-commerce, Walmart Canada. 

Toronto Star – Globe and Mail – Canada Newswire

	Tropical storm Harvey’s impact on real estate
	The following section of the RENX newsletter is dedicated to news about tropical storm Harvey in the U.S. and its impact on real estate.

 

Harvey paralyzes a fifth of U.S. fuel output

Flooding from Tropical storm Harvey has shut nearly a fifth of U.S. oil-refining capacity, triggering worries about a gasoline supply crunch as the slow-moving tempest lumbers through the heart of America’s petrochemicals industry. At least 3.6 million barrels per day of refining capacity are offline in Texas and Louisiana, or nearly 20 per cent of total U.S. capacity.

Reuters – Reuters – Reuters – Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

AHIP’s Texas, Louisiana hotels operating as usual

American Hotel Income Properties REIT (HOT.UN-T) and its hotel manager, ONE Lodging Management, Inc. have completed inspections of AHIP’s three Oak Tree Inn hotels located in Hearne, Texas and Livonia, La., and all are operating as usual and serving existing customers as well as relief agencies as they are able to accommodate them. 

Marketwired

Starlight’s initial review reveals no material damage

Starlight U.S. Multi-Family (No. 5) Core Fund (STUS.A-X) announced following an initial review of each of its multi-family Texas properties, that none of the fund’s properties in Houston, Dallas, Austin or San Antonio have incurred any material damage to date. The fund’s initial reports also confirm its tenants remain safe without injury. 

Canada Newswire

Whole Foods unlikely to spur Canadian price wars

Cheaper avocados at Whole Foods Market might get fans of the organic grocery chain salivating over savings, but retail analysts say it probably won’t launch price wars at most Canadian supermarkets. The country’s biggest grocers are unlikely to play along with deep cuts by Whole Foods’ new owner Amazon (AMZN-Q) in the produce aisles of its 13 locations across Canada. 

CBC – Reuters – Financial Post – Reuters

Lessons learned from Fort Mac help with B.C. recovery

Alberta is sharing lessons learned during the Fort McMurray wildfire to help with B.C.’s disaster recovery in the wake of a ferocious wildfire season. Both the provincial government and the Red Cross have shared information with B.C. officials about the successes and failures experienced while fighting and rebuilding after last May’s devastating fire.

CBC

Domino’s takes driverless pizza delivery for a spin

No ring of the doorbell, just a text. Domino’s (DPZ-N) and Ford are teaming up to see if customers will warm to the idea of pizza delivered by driverless cars. Starting today, some pizzas in Domino’s hometown of Ann Arbor, Mich. will arrive in a Ford Fusion outfitted with radars and a camera for autonomous testing.

Toronto Star – Bloomberg – Reuters

AI will erode job security, say experts

In The Jetsons’ world, technology has rid humanity of nuisances like housework and commuting. Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation make life easier for the family, but is it realistic patriarch George Jetson remains gainfully employed as a “digital index operator” at his space-age desk job?

Business In Vancouver

Real Estate Companies

Home Capital hires new CFO from Canaccord Genuity

Home Capital Group Inc. (HCG-T) is continuing to rebuild its executive ranks with the hiring of a new chief financial officer who has extensive experience in Canada’s financial services industry. The Toronto-based company said Tuesday Brad Kotush, a former CFO at Canaccord Genuity Group Inc., will join the alternative mortgage company as of Sept. 1. 

CTV

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Colony NorthStar entities to merge as finance REIT

Colony NorthStar Inc. (CLNS-N), itself the result of a three-way merger that closed in January, now will figure in another such combination. The company will contribute a select portfolio of assets and liabilities to a tri-party agreement that also involves a pair of public, non-traded REITs; NorthStar Real Estate Income Trust Inc., and NorthStar Real Estate Income II Inc.

GlobeSt.com

H&R REIT deserves some love

H&R (HR.UN-T) is the Rodney Dangerfield of Canadian REITs. It “don’t get no respect,” says Desjardins Capital Markets analyst Michael Markidis. Despite its solid balance sheet, well-diversified property portfolio and improving performance, H&R’s units are trading at roughly the same level as they did four years ago. H&R, which now yields 6.5 per cent, may present an attractive opportunity, analysts say. 

Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

Property values need to fall for U.S. REITs to become attractive

Profitable enterprises can be poor investments if you pay too much for them. That’s exactly what is happening now with publicly traded REITs. This development was forecasted in an article I wrote last February. With assistance from investment firm Research Affiliates, the article concluded REITs would produce returns between zero and two per cent annualized on an inflation-adjusted basis over the next decade.

MarketWatch

Retail

Best Buy reports best quarter in seven years

Best Buy (BBY-N) reported its biggest comparable sales increase in nearly seven years on Tuesday, showing the electronics retailer’s efforts to reinvent its stores to showcase specific brands are helping it protect its turf from the likes of Amazon.com (AMZN-Q). The retailer said comparable sales rose 5.4 per cent in its second fiscal quarter, helped by demand for wearable devices, appliances and smart home systems. 

Fortune – Toronto Star – Globe and Mail

B.C.’s top 10 retail companies

LIST: B.C.’s biggest retail companies by revenue in fiscal 2016

BCBusiness

New Development

Amazon planning warehouse on former Ohio shopping mall site

E-commerce giant Amazon plans to build a massive warehouse outside Cleveland on the site of a closed shopping mall. The Plain Dealer reports Amazon finalized a lease deal Aug. 24 to build an 855,000-square-foot warehouse in North Randall, a village of just over 1,000. The newspaper reports Amazon will create more than 2,000 full-time jobs. Construction costs are estimated at $177 million.

Daily Commercial News

Renovation and Restoration

Ambitious expansion set for Edmonton’s Telus World of Science

The Margaret Ziedler Star Theatre is about to become one of the best of its kind in the world. The theatre in Edmonton’s Telus World of Science plans to replace its aging projectors and screen with the latest state-of-the-art 10K technology. It’s all part of a $40-million expansion project officially unveiled Tuesday by science centre president and CEO Alan Nursall.

CBC – Edmonton Journal

Concerns raised about potential asbestos exposure at Edmonton hotel

A renovation project at a northwest Edmonton hotel has drawn safety concerns from some employees due to the handling of asbestos removal. The employees say construction work continued at the New West Hotel despite a stop-work order issued by Occupational Health and Safety. The hotel, located at 15025 111th Avenue, has been a fixture in northwest Edmonton since opening in 1954.

CBC

Infrastructure

Site C dam project a minefield: N.L. regulator

A hydroelectric venture in central Labrador should serve as a cautionary tale for B.C.’s own ambitions to build a multibillion-dollar dam, the former head of Newfoundland and Labrador’s public utilities regulator says. David Vardy published a letter Tuesday addressed to the B.C. Utilities Commission containing more than a dozen recommendations based on lessons learned from Muskrat Falls.

Victoria Times Colonist

Other

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