SNC-Lavalin to sell Montreal headquarters

SNC-Lavalin to sell Montreal headquarters

SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. is looking to reduce its Montreal real estate footprint by selling its global headquarters and consolidating into fewer buildings. The engineering and construction company saidit is looking to sell the 21-floor downtown building and adjacent land and then lease back office space as part of its drive to cut costs.

Montreal Gazette – SNC Lavalin news release

Cadillac Fairview unveils investment in CF Masonville Place

Cadillac Fairview (CF) is proud to unveil the results of its $77-million investment at CF Masonville Place. The year-long project represents a comprehensive revitalization of the 31-year-old shopping centre. The expansion area comprises 127,000 square feet of redeveloped retail space spanning two levels, occupying the former Sears location.

Canada Newswire

PROREIT closing in on deals

PRO Real Estate Investment Trust (PROREIT – PRV.UN-T) has completed a $29-million equity offering and is using some of that money to acquire 11 Canadian commercial properties for $58.3 million. “There are five vendors and separate transactions involved,” said PROREIT president and chief executive officer James W. Beckerleg, who won’t yet reveal the vendors or property details.

Property Biz Canada

Party fundraisers allegedly involved in massive real estate fraud

Key fundraisers for the Quebec Provincial Liberal Party may have pocketed large sums of money through a series of real estate transactions, allegedly splitting that money with the former head of the provincial Crown corporation charged with managing those buildings. The months-long probe by Enquête may be the biggest case of real estate fraud involving government buildings in Quebec, and perhaps even Canadian, history.

CBC – Montreal Gazette

RioCan nixes acquisition strategy, goes all-in on development

After spending more than $1-billion on acquisitions in 12 months, RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust (REI.UN-T) is tapping out – at least for now.  “It’s a very, very scarce acquisition market out there,” chief executive officer Ed Sonshine explained on a quarterly conference call Thursday. “Anything that we would like to own isn’t for sale.”

Globe and Mail – Property Biz Canada

Timbercreek Asset Management expands global team

Timbercreek Asset Management has made two new senior hires who will help execute on strategies to build and grow the firm both domestically and abroad.  Recently named one of Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies in the 28^th annual PROFIT 500 list, Timbercreek continues to build momentum towards global expansion with the addition of Brad Trotter as Managing Director, U.S. & European Debt and Cam Goodnough as Managing Director, Corporate Development. 

Timbercreek News Release – Globe and Mail

TOBY winner profile: Toronto-Dominion Centre

The 23rd floor of the TD Bank Tower in the Toronto-Dominion Centre became the first WELL Gold-certified space in the world in May, and the 4.3-million-square-foot complex added another honour to its growing list of awards early this fall. The downtown Toronto Toronto-Dominion Centre received The Outstanding Building of the Year (TOBY) Award for buildings larger than a million square feet from Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of Canada on Sept. 22 as part of its BOMEX 2016 conference and exhibition.

Property Biz Canada

Canadian CRE cap rates fall even further: CBRE

After falling below 6% for the first time on record in Q2 2016, the average national cap rate for Canadian commercial real estate assets fell even further in Q3 2016 to 5.86%.  This once again breaks the record for a historic low cap rate and continues the steady decline of rates since 2009.

CBRE Canada

Mississauga dreams big with Inspiration Lakeview

The City of Mississauga is poised to give official plan approval to a transformative 245-acre vision for lands abutting Lake Ontario that could become home to 20,000 new residents, create thousands of new jobs in the innovation sector and showcase the very latest in sustainable urban living technologies and practices.

Daily Commercial News

Development grows its Aviation Crossing project

“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead” is the attitude of Atlas Development president Michael Evans as construction starts on another building at his Aviation Crossing development on McKnight Blvd N.E. Timing is all important, but so is confidence in the location, the master plan and tenants already interested in being part of the next phase.

Calgary Herald

Moore Suites offers extended stays to Calgary clients

Nova Scotia entrepreneur Tim Moore launched Premier Executive Suites in Halifax in 1999, growing it to 1,800 units in 18 locations across Canada by the time he sold out in 2010. His brother, Calgary businessman Terry Moore, was instrumental in establishing Premier in Calgary with Olympian Diane Jones Konihowski as president.

Calgary Herald

PPP an option to finance Toronto’s Rail Deck Park

A public-private partnership could be just one option for funding the construction, operation and maintenance of Toronto’s Rail Deck Park, says the man who designed New York City’s High Line Park. “What we are seeing is there’s a real need for public open space and the need is more urgent than cities can act,” said Adam Ganser, vice president of planning and design for Friends of the High Line.

CBC

Waterfront Toronto report pegs Port Lands project cost

Waterfront Toronto has released an extensive due diligence report on the proposed Port Lands Flood Protection Project that revises the estimated cost by $50 million with a total cost of at $1.25 billion. The proposed project aims to naturalize the mouth of the Don River, provide flood protection to the area and unlock economic development potential. 

Daily Commercial News

Mall of America continues its quest to be biggest

Plans for America’s latest megamall, near Miami, include indoor skiing and ice skating. The giant complex also would have dancing fountains, a performing arts centre and a submarine ride. And, of course, millions of square feet of space for stores. When the Mall of America opened in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington nearly a quarter-century ago, it was unique — bigger and more spectacular than any other shopping destination in the United States.

Toronto Star

Shanghai building’s ‘out of place’ cake decoration removed

A Shanghai building decked out like a large pink layered cake appears to have got on the wrong side of authorities after officials ordered the decoration to be taken down just one day after it was put up. The “cake” decoration was pasted on the exterior of the eight-storey riverside building in Shanghai’s Huangpu district, using lengths of pink and white paper running around its walls.

Business in Vancouver

Featured Column

The healing circle comes to Ontario’s Assessment Review Board

It’s possible that the single largest source of conflict between taxpayers and government is assessment for property taxes. Challenging a property assessment that you consider unfair has traditionally been a confrontational process, but it doesn’t have to be. Nor should it.

Read more

Market Trends and Research

B.C. takes first step in earthquake warning system

Earthquake technology saves lives. Japan has it, the U.S is working on it, and now B.C. is beginning the process to get it in place — a province-wide earthquake early warning system.  The province of B.C. has issued a formal request for expressions of interest on an earthquake early warning and seismic monitoring program.

CBC

Six rules for the open-office environment

There is a movement afoot in workplaces across Canada to shift to the open-office floor plan. This, despite numerous scholarly and mainstream articles that catalogue all the reasons the bullpen is a bad idea: noise, distractions, increased conflict and stress, lack of privacy, and increased employee turnover being some of the more common.

Globe and Mail

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Cominar REIT accelerates its debt reduction

Cominar Real Estate Investment Trust (CUF.UN-T) announced its results for the third quarter of fiscal 2016 including an offering of units for $200 million and the re-instatement of distribution reinvestment plan.

Canada Newswire

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Retail

B.C. government conditionally approves Loblaw wine licences

The B.C. government has given Loblaw Companies Ltd. (L-T) approval in principle to put B.C. wine on the shelves of six of its stores, the government announced November 3. Final approval will not be granted until Loblaw stick handles zoning requirements and passes final inspections. The Toronto-based grocery chain outbid the Overwaitea Food Group (OFG) for the six licences.

Business in Vancouver

Holiday shopping feels the Uber effect

Canadian consumers are in no mood to wait in long lineups when they shop this holiday season, according to the results of an annual shopping survey. Forty-one per cent of shoppers surveyed said they will abandon making a purchase in a store if the lineup to pay is too long according to the Accenture Canada Holiday Shopping survey, released Thursday.

Toronto Star

Big changes afoot at Victoria’s Secret

Victoria’s Secret still rules the lingerie business, but there are signs that all is not well in the bra and panties empire. The mall stalwart has made several changes in recent months: In April, it trimmed 200 corporate jobs and announced a reorganization of the business. It has shut down its catalogue apparel business and stopped selling swimwear.

Toronto Star

Cineplex looks to boost revenues with pricey ticket

Canada’s largest movie exhibitor is launching a pricey new ticket option today, an immersive moviegoing experience called 4DX.  Cineplex (CGX-T) is screening Marvel’s “Doctor Strange” in the new format, which includes motion seats and an array of environmental effects — including rain, wind, lightning, snow, scents and bubbles — to correspond with appropriate sequences.

The Chronicle Herald

New Development

Affordable housing to be part of Hamilton west harbour

The city will clearly signal to developers that it wants at least 5 per cent of the housing built in the massive redevelopment on Pier 8 on Hamilton’s waterfront to be affordable.  The affordable component would most likely look like for-sale condos that would be affordable to a household earning an average income in Hamilton, city staff said.

CBC

Developer fighting to demolish ramshackle house

An old red brick house on O’Connor Street is falling to pieces and the owner is shocked the city wants to save it. City council’s built-heritage subcommittee has voted to refuse an application from Gemstone Developments to raze the decrepit house at 234 O’Connor St., just north of Somerset Street West, because members of the panel believe the building is salvageable.

Ottawa Citizen

Infrastructure

Metrolinx files notice of intent to cancel Bombardier LRT contract

Metrolinx, the Crown agency that manages public transit in Ontario, confirmed Thursday it has formally notified its intent to cancel its $770-million contract with Bombardier Inc. to supply light rail vehicles in Toronto. Metrolinx has expressed concerns about delays in the production of 182 light rail vehicles, which the agency ordered in 2010 to serve provincially funded light rail lines.

Calgary Herald – Toronto Star

Canada joins global argument on infrastructure investment

What to do with $100 trillion (U.S.) in AUM? That’s the global assets-under-management figure deployed by economist Joseph Stiglitz and others earlier this year in an IMF working paper on infrastructure financing. The number bears citing as Canadians ready for further disclosure on the federal government’s hopes to harness private sector investment in infrastructure as an economic curative.

Toronto Star

Other

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