‘Big story’ emerging in Montreal office subleasing

RENX  Commercial  •  Office, Human Resources  •  Greater Montreal

A wave of sublease office space is coming to the Montreal market, presenting “incredible opportunities” to tenants who remain bullish on offices during the COVID-19 pandemic. The trend was a key topic at the virtual Montreal Real Estate Forum.

The life of Couche-Tard CEO anything but boring

Commercial  •  La Presse

It is not relaxing to be chief executive officer of Couche-Tard (ATD-B-T). In a presentation to the Canadian Club of Montreal, Brian Hannasch unveiled the list of topics that have kept him busy in recent months including burnt-down convenience stores.

Downtown Toronto’s PATH a ‘ghost town’

Commercial  •  CP 24

Eli Shimonov’s lunch spot reopened after the first COVID-19 shutdown in July, but without the usual hordes of office workers making their way through Toronto’s underground pedestrian network each day, business is “very, very, very, very slow.”

Developers seek 12 new Calgary neighbourhoods

Residential  •  Global News

A consortium of Calgary developers – including Trico Homes – is seeking city council’s approval to build 11 new communities on the outer edges of the city — a request that has Ward 7 councillor Druh Farrell sounding the alarm.

Marlin Spring earns No. 1 spot on 2020 Growth List

Commercial  •  Canadian Business  •  Canada Newswire  •  Canada Newswire

Most developers are tripping over themselves: building the bigger, better, more glamorous skyscraper, with at least three in play in Toronto heading up past 90 storeys in the next few years. Not Benjamin Bakst, CEO of Marlin Spring Investments.

SmartCentres plans mixed-use intensification project

Residential, Commercial  •  Urban Toronto  •  Motley Fool

SmartCentres REIT is proposing to turn a 54,000-square-foot site at 2501 Victoria Park – currently home to a low-rise plaza and parking lot – into a new mid-rise residential building with retail at grade from its new residential sub-brand, SmartLiving.

The Saskatchewan Edge › Movies for commercial real estate nerds

Kelly Macsymic: Business Manager, Stuart Commercial Inc., Sales Associate, ICR Commercial Real Estate

Fiat Chrysler to invest up to $1.5B in Windsor plant

Commercial  •  Financial Post

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV agreed to invest as much as $1.5 billion in one of its two assembly plants in Windsor as part of a tentative agreement reached with more than 9,000 local autoworkers.

Via Bloor rising tall above Bloor and Parliament

Residential  •  Urban Toronto

Now rising tall from a wedge-shaped site at Bloor and Parliament, Tridel’s Via Bloor development is bringing 38- and 46-storey condominium towers to Toronto’s St James Town neighbourhood. The architectsAlliance-designed complex has been under construction since early 2018.

First Canadian avid hotel breaks ground in Vaughan

Commercial  •  PR Newswire

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) announced the groundbreaking for its first Canadian avid hotel in Vaughan. Expected to open by spring 2022, the new hotel will offer 119 rooms across six floors just minutes from Toronto Pearson International Airport.

Cannabis retailer Stash & Co. opens Ottawa HQ

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire

Stash & Co., one of Ottawa’s original cannabis retailers, is opening a high-tech, multilevel, regional store and headquarters. The 3,500-square-foot facility uses pneumatic tube technology to transport product from the fulfillment centre upstairs to the retail space downstairs.

Podcasts from the real estate world

Residential, Commercial  • 

Peggy Howard, Ivanhoe Cambridge: a.k.a. ‘Papa Whiskey’, Highview Partners People Who Perform: Episode 24
Brian Rosen, Colliers Canada: Pivoting as a leader, Canadian Real Estate Forums
Beau Jarvis, Wesgroup Properties: West Coast development, CRE Library: Episode 40

CF acquires London’s White City Place for $1.6B

Commercial  •  Global Legal Chronicle  •  QuotedData

Cadillac Fairview, the real estate arm of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, has bought White City Place in West London from AIMCo, Stanhope and Mitsui Fudosan for approximately Cdn$400 million. Adding the asset’s existing debt increased the transaction value to $1.6 billion.

CP Rail acquires Detroit River rail tunnel from OMERS

Commercial  •  Winnipeg Free Press

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. will acquire full ownership of a cross-border railway tunnel under the Detroit River through a US$312-million deal with OMERS Infrastructure. CP Rail currently owns 16.5 per cent stake in the Detroit River Tunnel Partnership.

JPMorgan sticks with plan to build giant NYC HQ

Commercial  •  Reuters

JPMorgan Chase & Co is forging ahead with plans to build a mammoth new headquarters in New York, CEO Jamie Dimon said on Tuesday. The $3 billion building is slated to open at 270 Park Ave. in 2024 and will house about 14,000 employees.

Americold to close on $1.7B acquisition of Agro

Commercial  •  CP Executive

Americold Realty Trust (COLD-N) continues to expand its cold-storage footprint around the globe with the planned acquisition of Agro Merchants Group for $1.74 billion from an investors group led by funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management LP.

Skydev JVs on proposed supportive housing project

Residential  •  Guelph Mercury

A new permanent supportive housing project for 30 people is coming to Guelph-Wellington, thanks to a partnership between non-profit landlord Kindle Communities, the Guelph Community Health Centre (Guelph CHC) and Skydev, a subsidiary of the Skyline Group of Companies.

Average house price up 17% in past year

Residential  •  CBC  •  Canada Newswire  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

The average price of a home sold on the Canadian Real Estate Association‘s MLS service went for $604,000 in September, an all-time record and an increase of more than 17 per cent in the past year.

West Island’s top-tier waterfront in hot demand

Residential  •  Montreal Gazette  •  RENX

In the West Island, luxury properties are selling faster than ever before, and prices are reaching new heights thanks to an outbreak of bidding wars. Centris data reveals sales over $1 million have increased by almost 60 per cent year-over-year.

Coastal towns lead B.C. home price increases

Residential  •  Western Investor

Smaller centres on the Sunshine Coast and Vancouver Island are shattering records for home sales and price increases. In Powell River. September sales soared 152 per cent year-over-year and average prices increased 30 per cent, says the Powell River Real Estate Board.