Calgary gets deal for new Flames arena; will pay half

Commercial  •  CBC  •  Calgary Herald  •  Calgary Herald

Calgary has struck a deal to pay for half the cost of building a new $550-million home for the Flames, a decision that comes as the city struggles to balance its budget in the midst of an economic downturn.

WeWork lease a ‘release valve’ in Vancouver’s B6: BGO

RENX  Commercial  •  Office  •  Metro Vancouver

The developers of one of Vancouver’s largest office tower projects, BentallGreenOak‘s B6, see the shared office space model as a “release valve” for tenants in a tight downtown market. So WeWork is a good fit as the first major tenant.

Ariva Resorts plans $100M Okanagan development

Residential  •  Canada Newswire  •  KelownaNow

Ariva Resorts, a private Kelowna-based development company, will build a multi-million-dollar, innovative 200-home gated community on prime land five minutes from downtown Kelowna. Barry Johnson, Ariva Resorts founder, says it targets active baby boomers, downsizing from traditional homes.

Mixed-use evolves as we learn from successes, failures

RENX  Residential  •  Apartments  •  National

The boom in new multi-family housing continues to attract developers and investors to transform the urban and suburban landscape. New high-rise developments are adding density, pedestrian-friendly streetscapes, and diverse, vibrant, mixed-use neighbourhoods, attracting tenants and generating income for investors.

Lethbridge industrial sector going strong

Commercial  •  Lethbridge Herald

The Lethbridge industrial real estate market saw good returns through Q1, and those are only going to get better in the next year when the fourth, fully serviced subdivision opens in Sherring Industrial Park, says Avison Young associate Vinko Smiljanec.

Manitoba’s arctic port back in business

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  CBC

Canada’s arctic port is set to resume its first grain shipments since 2015 after a group backed by investor Prem Watsa stepped in last year to buy the facility and a related rail line linking Churchill with the rest of Manitoba.

Sponsored by Yardi CRM is key to more conversions and renewals in apartment markets

Successful customer relationship management is essential to turn leads into leases and improve resident retention at your properties. But you can’t personally help every customer. So, what can you do … ?

Knotel latest workspace provider coming to Canada

Commercial  •  BetaKit

New-York based proptech company Knotel, which provides flexible office spaces for enterprise companies, will be opening new locations in Toronto. The locations represent Knotel’s first expansion into Canada.

NorthWest acquires German MOB, hospital

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire

NorthWest Healthcare Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (NWH-UN-T) announced today it has either closed or entered into definitive agreements to acquire a German medical office building and a rehabilitation hospital for a combined purchase price of approximately $61.5 million.

Ottawa’s heritage buildings are making a comeback

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail  •  Ottawa Citizen

The demand for commercial space in Ottawa has turned the nation’s capital into a hotbed for heritage building renovation. “There is a lot more buy-in from the private sector in rehabilitating heritage properties,” says Heritage Ottawa’s Leslie Maitland.

No decision on 24 Sussex expected before election

Commercial  •  CBC  •  Globe and Mail

Nearly four years after Justin Trudeau opted not to move into the prime minister’s official residence over concerns about its crumbling state, the building in Ottawa remains vacant — except for staff using the kitchen to prepare meals for Trudeau and his family.

Caisse lashes out at SNC as stock tanks

Commercial  •  Financial Post  •  CBC

SNC-Lavalin Group (SNC-T) drew a rare lecture on Monday from its largest shareholder, the pension fund Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, as its stock dipped near the lowest level in a year on more expected losses and writedowns.

Catalyst seeks to boost HBC stake; opposes privatization

Commercial  •  CBC  •  Reuters  •  Financial Post

Toronto-based private equity firm Catalyst Capital Group Inc. has launched a bid for shares in Hudson’s Bay Co. (HBC-T) as it escalates its opposition to a contentious $1-billion privatization offer from the department store chain’s executive chairman Richard Baker.

Popeyes to open more than 1,500 restaurants in China

Commercial  •  Canada Newswire  •  Globe and Mail

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Inc. (QSR-T) announced a new agreement to develop and open more than 1,500 Popeyes restaurants in the People’s Republic of China over the next 10 years. Popeyes operates over 3,100 locations in more than 25 countries, including the U.S. and Canada.

Chinese investment in the U.S. has plunged 90%

Commercial  •  Business Insider

Chinese foreign direct investment into the United States has plummeted since Donald Trump took office, with real estate, autos, tech and agriculture — industries which have all benefited from China’s boom — set to lose out.

Calgary-based AltaGas sells power assets for $940M

Commercial  •  Bloomberg  •  CBC  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

AltaGas Ltd. (ALA-T) says it is selling its portfolio of U.S. distributed electricity assets held by subsidiaries WGL Energy Systems, Inc. and WGSW, Inc., to TerraForm Power, Inc., an affiliate of Brookfield Asset Management (BAM-A-T), for $940 million.

Toronto homeowner mobility declines due to slow construction

Residential  •  Toronto Star  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

Homeowners in Canada’s six largest cities moved less frequently in 2016 than in 2006, with Toronto showing the biggest decline in mobility because of a slowdown in new home construction says a Centre for Urban Research and Land Development report.

Opinion: We don’t need ‘smart’ cities — we need sensible ones

Residential, Commercial  •  Toronto Star  •  Toronto Star  •  Toronto Star

The “smart city” concept is among the most oversold ideas of modern times. Google Inc.’s controversial Sidewalk Labs proposal for the Quayside smart city on Toronto’s waterfront is merely one of hundreds of smart-city concepts worldwide.

Tory wants planned parking lot to be affordable housing

Residential  •  CBC

Mayor John Tory is asking the Toronto Parking Authority to abandon a plan to build a parking lot on near Eglinton Avenue West and Caledonia Road and consider building affordable housing instead.

Toronto house prices are on the rise — again

Residential  •  Toronto Star