Morguard opens ‘crown jewel’: Two Ottawa Hilton hotels

RENX  Commercial  •  Hotels and Resorts  •  Ottawa

The cost of developing its two “crown jewel” Hilton-branded hotels in Ottawa ballooned to double the original $25-million budget, but Morguard Corp. (MRC-T) chairman and CEO K. Rai Sahi believes the transformation has been worth every penny.

Edmonton OKs Bonnie Doon site for major development

Residential, Commercial  •  CBC  •  Edmonton Journal

Edmonton city council has paved the way for a major mixed-use residential and retail project. Morguard (MRC-T) plans to develop a neighbourhood on the site of the current Bonnie Doon Shopping Centre between 84th and 87th Avenues at 85th Street.

Industrial boom on Edmonton’s edges: Colliers

Commercial  •  Edmonton Journal

Available land, tax savings and accessibility are spurring an industrial real estate boom on the edges of Edmonton, with the Leduc/Nisku area leading the push, shows the latest industrial development report from Colliers International.

Greybrook, Marlin Spring buy apts. in Ottawa, Gatineau

RENX  Residential  •  Apartments  •  Ottawa

Joint venture partners Greybrook Realty and Marlin Spring are adding 520 rental apartments in Ottawa and Gatineau to their portfolio. The portfolio consists of two properties, totalling 200 units in Ottawa, and 320 apartments across the border in neighbouring Gatineau, Que.

PCL wins $217.6M contract to revamp Gatineau complex

Commercial  •  Ottawa Business Journal  •  Canada Newswire

A few days after the National Capital Commission approved final designs for the revitalization of Les Terrasses de la Chaudière (LTDLC) complex in Gatineau, the federal government has awarded a massive contract for the renovations to PCL Constructor Eastern Inc.

Feds to sell back expropriated Mirabel land

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail

The Canadian government says it is planning to sell back the last remaining unused land it expropriated in 1969 for construction of the Mirabel airport. The 300 hectares of land will be offered for sale to its original owners or their descendants.

The People Space › People Space: New directors at Crombie, HOOPP seeks CEO

Don Wilcox: Managing Editor

CAPREIT acquires B.C. apartment property for $69.6M

Residential, Commercial  •  Globe Newswire  •  RENX

CAPREIT (CAR-UN-T) announced it has completed the acquisition of Willoughby Walk, a brand new, purpose-built apartment building containing 191 rental suites located in Langley, B.C. CAPREIT paid $69.6 million for the property.

Million square feet of Ladner greenhouse going to pot

Commercial  •  Delta Optimist

Emerald Health Therapeutics Inc. announced its 50 per cent joint cannabis venture with Village Farms International, called Pure Sunfarms, has exercised an option to acquire from Village Farms a second 1.1 million square feet (25 acres) of greenhouse space in East Ladner.

Hotel in Richmond, B.C., giving way for casino

Commercial  •  Delta Optimist

Architects debate changes to Exchange District look

Commercial  •  Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg’s Exchange District was named a National Historic Site in 1997 because it is a uniquely cohesive historic neighbourhood. Since the 1970s, preservationists have worked hard to maintain its cohesion by protecting heritage buildings from demolition.

Moncton-area communities offer development incentives

Residential, Commercial  •  CBC

The company behind a controversial proposal to build 10-storey towers in Riverview says its plans answer the region’s demand for more development. Ron Lord, Cordova Realty‘s vice-president of development, said the region is ready for more developments like this one.

Builders decry proposed noise bylaw changes

Residential  •  Construction Canada

Proposed amendments to the City of Toronto’s noise bylaw could restrict concrete work for the construction of high-rise buildings and housing industry stakeholders believe it will create more barriers to the sector’s ability to build the city’s affordable housing supply.

Small towns to be hit hard by automation

Commercial  •  Victoria Times Colonist

Sitting around a table with fellow Steelworkers, Steve Berniquez starts listing companies that once stood in and around Hawkesbury, a small Ontario town an hour’s drive east of Ottawa. When he mentions Canadian International Pulp and Paper, everybody nods.

Barry first woman to serve as Best Buy CEO

Commercial  •  Reuters

Best Buy Co. (BBY-N) Monday named chief financial officer Corie Barry as CEO, the first woman to lead the consumer electronics retailer in its 53-year history. Barry will become the company’s fifth CEO when she takes over from Hubert Joly.

REOC six-month financial results:

Commercial  • 

Madison Pacific Properties Inc., (MPC-T), Globe Newswire

Stress test caused $15B drop in new mortgages

Residential  •  Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

The federal government’s new mortgage stress test was responsible for a drop of as much as $15 billion in residential mortgage borrowing last year, according to a report by Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist at CIBC World Markets Inc.

Vancouver home sales down 31.6% year-over-year

Residential  •  Business In Vancouver  •  Bloomberg  •  Huffington Post

Total Greater Vancouver home sales dropped 31.6% year-over-year in March, according to new data from the British Columbia Real Estate Association. A total of 1,745 units changed hands in the month, down from 2,551 in March 2018. Year-to-date, unit sales fell 34.1 per cent.

Innisfil, Ont., first to accept Bitcoin for property tax

Residential  •  CTV

Residents of Innisfil, Ont., can now pay their tax using cryptocurrency, in a move that’s made the town the first municipality in the country that accepts Bitcoin. The town entered a one-year pilot project this month, partnering with Coinberry Pay.

Calgary’s best builders honoured by BILD

Residential  •  Calgary Herald

Calgary area’s building industry celebrated its exceptional leaders in new homes, new communities, sales and marketing Saturday at the BILD Calgary Region Awards Gala. Morrison Homes captured the Single Family Builder of the Year Large Volume for the 13th time.