Broccolini builds Toronto-and-area industrial land bank

RENX  Commercial  •  Industrial, Land  •  Ontario, Toronto / GTA

Large tracts of industrial land are few and far between in the Greater Toronto Area, but developer Broccolini has acquired several development parcels in and around the region. From an industrial development perspective, the GTA’s boundaries are expanding.

Planning the future of Scarborough Centre tall task

Residential, Commercial  •  Urban Toronto  •  RENX

Scarborough Centre is connected to the GTA via the Scarborough RT line. However, that will be replaced by an extension of the TTC’s Line 2, and the new station is accompanied by a wave of mixed-use, high-rise development.

Tri-Metro proposes 35-, 55-storey mixed-use towers

Residential, Commercial  •  Urban Toronto

Tri-Metro Investments has proposed 35- and 55-storey mixed-use towers connected by a podium at 2721 Danforth Ave. in Toronto’s East End. The RAW Design building would include 1,139 residential units – 77 studios, 611 one-bedrooms, 334 two-bedrooms and 117 three-bedrooms – in addition to retail.

The Industrial Real Estate Show › Podcast: Industrial insights from a $400M US investor

Chad Griffiths: Partner, NAI Commercial

Two 21-storey towers proposed for downtown Windsor

Residential  •  CTV

A “vertical forest” development with two 21-storey towers and dozens of trees and shrubs incorporated into the design has been proposed for downtown Windsor. The Passa Associates Architects-designed buildings on behalf of a group of Toronto-area investors would include 544 residential units.

Starbank proposes nine-storey mixed-use

Residential, Commercial  •  Urban Toronto

Starbank Development Corp. has proposed to build a nine-storey, mixed-use building at 1648 through 1670 Avenue Rd. in Toronto’s Bedford Park neighbourhood. The BDP Quadrangle-designed building would include 58 residential units (26 two-bedrooms and 32 three-bedrooms) plus commercial space on the ground level.

Canadian Tire charters ships to keep shelves stocked

Commercial  •  Toronto Star  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. (CTC-A-T) is ordering spring and summer products early and chartering its own cargo ships to import goods as it doubles down on an inventory strategy that’s buoyed the retailer through the pandemic.

Companies jumping on AI bandwagon

Commercial  •  La Presse

Montreal is a hub of artificial intelligence (AI) with the presence of Mila, the Quebec Institute of Artificial Intelligence. However, beyond lab research, more and more Canadian companies are jumping on the AI ​​adventure and trying to profit from it.

City of T.O. workers heading back to the office next week

Commercial  •  Global News  •  Toronto Star

City of Toronto workers will start heading back to the office next week. In a statement issued Wednesday, city officials said workers will begin returning to offices on Tuesday under a “hybrid model.”

Calgary restaurateurs deal with supply, convoy issues

Commercial  •  Calgary Herald

Calgary restaurants are feeling the effects of an anti-mandate protest that blocked Alberta’s most important border crossing for nearly three weeks. Palomino Smokehouse general manager Arron Crook said the already tense supply chains have been even less reliable in February.

Real estate podcasts

Residential, Commercial  • 

Jon Love, KingSett Capital: Seeing tenants as partners, Tenant Experience Network. Season 3, Episode 1

Peter Altobelli, Yardi: Highlights from Toronto Real Estate Forum 2021, CRE Podcast

Bruce Lourie, Ivey Foundation; Gretchen Bakke, author: Electricity system must be doubled, Down to Business, Episode 138

REIT fourth-quarter financial results

Residential, Commercial  • 

Dream Office REIT, (D-UN-T), Business Wire
ERES REIT, (ERE-UN-X), Globe Newswire

Tim Hortons’ U.S. growth focuses on snowbirds, retirees

Commercial  •  CNBC

Tim Hortons is slated to open its first location in Houston this summer, signalling the Canadian coffee chain’s strategy to move further south for its next phase of U.S. expansion. The Restaurant Brands International chain has more than 600 U.S. locations.

Walmart tops profit and sales estimates

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)  •  Business Wire

Walmart Inc. (WMT-N) beat profit and sales expectations on Thursday and set a strong full-year earnings forecast, showing steady consumer demand at stores even as supply-chain issues and rampant inflation pressured margins.

MTR, Link REIT, Swire offer retailers rental relief

Commercial  •  South China Morning Post  •  Bloomberg

Several of Hong Kong’s largest property landlords said they would offer their retail tenants rental relief and concessions, stepping up to help businesses that had been decimated by plunging foot traffic amid the city’s resurgent COVID-19 outbreak.

Flagship acquires Ohio MHC, marina for $8.2M

Residential  •  Canada Newswire

Flagship Communities REIT (MHC-U-T) has acquired from Empower Park a 13-acre manufactured housing resort community (MHC) in Northern Ohio for approximately US$8.2 million. The acquisition includes 100 MHC homesites with a 99% occupancy rate and a 141-boat slip marina.

National rental price up three per cent Y-O-Y: CMHC

Residential  •  CTV  •  Canada Newswire  •  La Presse

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the national average rental cost rose by three per cent last year as the vacancy rate for purpose-built rental apartments held steady. The average rent for a two-bedroom home increased to $1,167 last year.

Houses highly unaffordable in many cities: PBO

Residential  •  Globe and Mail  •  Financial Post

The average house has become highly unaffordable in several Canadian cities, according to an analysis by the Parliamentary Budget Office, which is warning “household financial vulnerability is elevated” for some who bought recently.

Toronto condo prices continue to soar

Residential  •  Toronto Star

Toronto’s condo market has now been gripped by the same fever that has enveloped the region’s single-family home market throughout the pandemic. A shortage of listings and fierce competition among buyers is boosting condominium prices on a nearly week-over-week basis.

Average B.C. home price surpasses $1M for first time

Residential  •  Western Investor

The average home price in B.C. has increased 23.5 per cent in the past year to top $1 million for the first time according to the B.C. Real Estate Association despite total sales in January falling nearly 15 per cent year-over-year.