Health, tech key to building new downtown Surrey

RENX  Residential, Commercial  •  Condominiums, Office, Apartments, Technology, Retail  •  Metro Vancouver

The most challenging part of transitioning from a low-rise suburban commercial district to a vertical and vibrant downtown is building textured, interesting streets and developments that draw both residents and workers.

Netflix to set up major production hub in Vancouver

Commercial  •  Financial Post (Sub. required)  •  Hollywood Reporter

Streaming giant Netflix is leasing seven soundstages at the Canadian Motion Picture Park studio complex. CMPP’s Burnaby-based production centre has 18 soundstages in total, encompassing over 350,000 square feet. In February 2019, Netflix announced it was leasing 250,000 square feet in Toronto.

Sonshine disappointed by lack of ongoing rent support

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  RENX

VIDEO: Ed Sonshine, CEO of RioCan REIT (REI-UN-T) , reacts to how Canada’s economic recovery was laid out in the throne speech affects the commercial real estate business.

Amazon to expand tech hubs in Vancouver, Toronto

RENX  Commercial  •  Office  •  Metro Vancouver, Toronto / GTA

Amazon (AMZN-Q) has reiterated its commitment to expansions of its office space and workforce in both Vancouver and Toronto, and says it plans to hire an additional 3,500 corporate and tech workers in those two cities.

Gateway Casinos receives $200M fed loan

Commercial  •  Burnaby Now  •  Bloomberg

A federal program aimed at giving loans to some of the largest companies in the country is rolling the dice with $200 million to Burnaby-based Gateway Casinos & Entertainment Ltd. The loan is the first from Ottawa’s large employer emergency financing facility.

Ski resorts preparing for winter as pandemic persists

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail  •  Vancouver Sun

Canadian ski resort operators planning for a season that begins in about two months are being forced to balance profits with protecting the health of their guests in view of a COVID-19 pandemic that shows few signs of ending.

Value: Weighed and Measured › Winter is coming: Our mental health matters more than ever

John Clark: AACI, FRICS | Vice President, The Regional Group of Companies Inc.

Food courts, CRE and public transit to suffer: RBC

Commercial  •  Financial Post

Expect increased friction over how to structure remote work, retailers boosting online data investment, more personalized entertainment, staycations, online education and urban centre emigration, says report author John Stackhouse, senior vice-president in the RBC CEO’s office.

Restaurants Canada seeks meal subsidy from feds

Commercial  •  Victoria Times Colonist  •  Globe and Mail  •  CBC

David Lefebvre, vice-president of Restaurants Canada, is calling on Ottawa to directly support the industry through meal subsidies. He says while the feds extended the wage subsidy and a business aid program, subsidizing customer meals would directly help restaurants survive.

Swarovski opens first Canadian Crystal Studio in T.O.

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire

Swarovski opened its first Canadian Crystal Studio retail location at CF Sherway Gardens in Toronto on Friday, marking the continuation of its global rollout of digital concept stores. The heritage retailer’s global initiative will combine brick-and-mortar retail and virtual components.

Three REITs built to ride out a second wave

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Motley Fool

Choice Properties (CHP-UN-T) derives about 56 per cent of its rental revenue from Loblaw Cos. chains. Crombie (CRR-UN-T) benefits from its relationship with supermarket operator Empire Co. Even as  lockdowns prompted several REITs to slash payouts, CT (CRT-UN-T) raised its distribution.

One Ontario takes aim at municipal permitting problem

Residential, Commercial  •  Daily Commercial News

Navigating the municipal development approval process can be a frustrating experience. The One Ontario project launched by AECO Innovation Lab in concert with the Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON) and other industry stakeholders is taking aim at the problem. 

Global developers take wait-and-see approach: Altus

Commercial  •  Globe Newswire

In the Altus Group Global Property Development Trends Report, 68 per cent of the 400 global property development executives surveyed said the risk of a cycle downturn has a significant impact on their decisions regarding new construction investments.

Costco is thriving during the pandemic

Commercial  •  Business Insider

Costco appears to have avoided the COVID-19 woes hurting other retailers: Its sales jumped by nearly $14 billion, or nearly 10%, in the year to August compared to the previous year, it said on Thursday.

Major NYC project in limbo after rezoning scuttled

Residential, Commercial  •  CP Executive  •  Toronto Star

The future of Industry City, one of New York City’s most significant projects, is in doubt after the developers responded to political pushback this week by withdrawing their plan to rezone a large swath of Brooklyn waterfront space.

Cineworld squeezed by delays, fears new curbs

Commercial  •  Reuters

Cineworld (CNNWF), the world’s second-biggest cinema operator, warned on Thursday it might need to raise more money if theatres shut again from fresh pandemic curbs after it swung to a $1.64-billion first-half loss, sending shares down 17 per cent.

CMHC wanted tighter mortgage rules for competitors

Residential  •  Financial Post

Officials in Ottawa discussed forcing private mortgage insurers to tighten eligibility rules, but ultimately balked, leaving Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. to proceed on its own, CEO Evan Siddall said. “The minister of finance could have done it,” Siddall said.

Road to housing affordability paved with more construction

Residential  •  Financial Post  •  CBC

Canadians and real estate experts agree housing has become increasingly expensive over the years, but what causes prices or rents to rise lacks consensus. However, research repeatedly shows prices rise faster in cities where supply doesn’t respond to demand increases.

Experts discuss rental housing and evictions

Residential  •  Globe and Mail

VIRTUAL EVENT: The Globe and Mail, in partnership with Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) hosted a virtual event on Sept. 16 to discuss the path forward for Canada’s rental housing market, both for the shorter and longer terms.

T.O. could auction off mystery owner’s Forest Hill lot

Residential  •  CBC

The city has been trying to collect property taxes on a pricey lot in Forest Hill for more than 20 years without success. Revenue Services director Casey Brendon called it “very likely” the property is headed for a municipal tax auction.