Sale of TO’s Trump Tower near

Sale of TO’s Trump Tower near

Trump International Hotel & Tower Toronto is close to being sold, a lawyer for its owner said Friday. Symon Zucker, who represents Talon International Development Inc. said the 65-storey hotel and condominium building in the city’s financial district has found a potential buyer and the sale will conclude “hopefully shortly.”

Reuters – Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

Anbang to take control of Bentall Centre: Sources

Anbang Insurance Group Co., one of China’s most active buyers of overseas real estate, is poised to gain full ownership of Vancouver’s largest office complex, according to sources. Anbang is purchasing a 33 per cent stake in the Bentall Centre from GWL Realty Advisors Inc., said the sources. Anbang earlier bought Ivanhoe Cambridge‘s 66 per cent share of the property.

Bloomberg – Financial Post

AY’s Erixon sees bright future for Canada

Just what the future holds for Canada and real estate (driverless cars, optimized logistics and smart machines – call it the fourth industrial revolution) was the subject of a presentation at the recent Land and Development Conference in Toronto by Avison Young’s managing director of investments, Amy Erixon.

Property Biz Canada

Ramada hotels coming to Eastern Canada

Wyndham Hotel Group (WYN-N) announced it will expand its existing partnership with Canalta Hotels in order to build 20 Ramada hotels in Eastern Canada over the next 15 years. The properties will be located in Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island.

Commercial Property Executive – Travelweek

Court rejects challenge to Zibi development

A court has ruled against architect Douglas Cardinal and two other opponents to the proposed Zibi development, but protesters say they are not finished yet. The Divisional Court has refused to allow an appeal by Cardinal of two decisions by the Ontario Municipal Board, removing one of the last remaining barriers to the Windmill Developments project.

Ottawa Citizen – CBC News – Ottawa Business Journal

U.S. defence firm to open engineering facility in Ottawa

American defence firm L-3 Communications Holdings (LLL-N) announced Wednesday it will open a design, engineering and support facility in Ottawa that will be home to a team of highly specialized design, software and systems engineers. The facility will operate under L-3 Communication Systems – Canada.

Ottawa Business Journal

Molson Coors ushers in a new era

North America’s oldest brewer, Molson Coors Canada Inc., (TPX.A-T) is modernizing operations and introducing new beers as it faces declining sales and aging facilities. Molson Coors recently sold its downtown Vancouver brewery for $185 million and plans to build a more efficient brewery on cheaper land. It’s considering a similar move at its flagship plant in Old Montreal.

Financial Post

Edmonton’s ICE District taking shape

VIDEO: Work continues on Rogers Place arena and the surrounding ICE District. The City of Edmonton and the Katz Group held a “topping off” ceremony Wednesday onEdmonton Tower‘s roof to mark the completion of its structural phase. The city is leasing about 65 per cent of the tower. The arena is slated to open before the 2016-17 NHL season.

Edmonton Journal – Global News

Most of burned land was at high risk: Insurance firm

Eighty-eight per cent of the land burned near Fort McMurray was at high or extreme risk from wildfire, according to a firm that analyzes risk for insurance companies. New Jersey-based Verisk Insurance Solutions is expanding its FireLine wildfire risk management service to insurance companies in Alberta and B.C. 

Edmonton Journal – Canadian Underwriter‎

Galleria Mall to make way for new development

Galleria Shopping Centre will soon be torn down and a new development built on its site. Placards depicting renderings of a development that could replace the 1970s-era mall show four triangular buildings boasting more than 2,000 commercial and residential units, wedged into half of the 12-acre land. The other half would be a park and a new community centre.

Toronto Star

B.C. government commits to transit funding

The B.C. government will invest $246 million over the next three years for transit improvements across Metro Vancouver. The federal government previously promised $370 million, leaving municipalities to come up with $124 million. Three-quarters of Metro Vancouver residents think the funding model of one-half federal, one-third provincial and one-sixth regional is fair, according to an Angus Reid survey.

BCBusiness – BCBusiness

Texas Municipal backs Brookfield infrastructure

Texas Municipal Retirement System is backing Brookfield’s third infrastructure fund with $150 million US. The commitment to the Brookfield Infrastructure Fund III, according to a board meeting document, is part of $12 billion US capital raise Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.A-T) is planning for the fund. The manager is contributing $4 billion of its own capital to the fund as a co-investment.

IPE Real Estate

Canada Goose to open first retail stores in TO, NYC

Iconic Canadian brand Canada Goose, known for its popular luxury outerwear, said Thursday it plans to open its first retail stores this autumn. The company said it will open its flagship outlets in Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre in October, and in Soho in Manhattan in November. Both stores will be about 4,000 square feet in size.

CBC News – Toronto Star – Globe and Mail

Loblaw considering sale of gas bar business

Loblaw Companies Limited (L-T) today announced it has completed a strategic review of its gas bar operations, and will engage potential buyers in considering a sale of the business. Loblaw’s gas bar network is one of the largest in Canada, consisting of 212 retail fuel sites located adjacent to grocery stores in the Loblaw network.

Canada Newswire – Globe and Mail

New York REIT, JBG to form mega-company

New York REIT Inc. (NYRT-N) said it would combine with privately held JBG Cos. to create an $8.4-billion real estate investment trust focused on New York and Washington, D.C. New York REIT will buy substantially all of JBG’s properties as well as its management business, the company said Wednesday.

Reuters – Bloomberg – The Real Deal – GlobeSt.com

Featured Column

The rush to build on spec in B.C.

Chris MacCauley has been a commercial real estate broker in Vancouver for over a decade. I sat down with him recently to chat with him about the big picture, market conditions and the future of CRE in Vancouver.

Read more

Market Trends and Research

Growth in U.S. property prices rebounds

U.S. commercial property price growth picked up in April after a slower than expected first quarter, according to the latest CoStar Commercial Repeat sale Index (CCRSI) released this week. The two major CCRSI indices rebounded during the month as investors returned to the market and resumed sales activity after a pull-back at the beginning of the year.

CoStar Group – GlobeSt.com/

RECon: Bernanke, top CEOs share Iinsights

The economy was on the mind of thousands of real estate professionals at RECon this week, and a former Federal Reserve chairman took the occasion to downplay worries about an imminent downturn. “I don’t see any reason why the odds of a recession are any bigger than usual,” Ben Bernanke told Marcus & Millichap president & CEO Hessam Nadji.

Commercial Property Executive – CoStar Group

Real Estate Companies

MCAP files preliminary prospectus for IPO

MCAN Mortgage Corporation (MKP-T) announced MCAP Corporation has filed a preliminary prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces and territories of Canada with respect to a proposed initial public offering of common shares by MCAP and a secondary offering of common shares by MCAN and another shareholder of MCAP.

Canada Newswire

First Capital Realty completes equity offering

First Capital Realty Inc. (FCR-T), one of Canada’s largest owners, developers and managers of grocery anchored, retail-focused urban properties,  has closed its previously announced bought deal public offering of 5,451,000 common shares at a price of $21.10 per share to a syndicate of underwriters co-led by TD Securities Inc. and RBC Capital Markets for gross proceeds of approximately $115 million.

Canada Newswire

Transat A.T. shuttering Toronto call centre

Transat A.T. (TRZ-T) is eliminating 78 jobs as it closes its Toronto call centre and reorganizes some of its tour activities in a bid to improve profitability. The Montreal-based company, which operates Air Transat, said 66 positions will be eliminated when the Toronto call centre closes Sept. 12.

Toronto Star

SunTrust trims 45 branches

A major multi-property lease renewal deal between SunTrust Banks Inc. (STI-N) and American Finance Trust, a non-traded net lease REIT, offers insight on how the ongoing bank branch consolidation may affect owners of bank branch retail property in coming years. Under the deal, 20 per cent of American Finance Trust’s 213 individual SunTrust bank branches will lose a tenant.

CoStar Group

REOC Financial Reports

Latest first-quarter reports:

* Delavaco Residential Properties Corp., (DVO.U-X), Canada Newswire

* Starlight U.S. Multi-Family Core Fund, (UMF.A-X), Canada Newswire     

* Starlight U.S. Multi-Family (No. 2) Core Fund, (SUD.A-X), Canada Newswire    

* Starlight U.S. Multi-Family (No. 3) Core Fund, (SUS.A-X), Canada Newswire  

* Starlight U.S. Multi-Family (No. 4) Core Fund, (SUF.A-X), Canada Newswire    

REIT Financial Reports

Latest first-quarter report:

* PROREIT, (PRV.UN-X), Marketwired

Real Estate Investment Trusts

Milestone Apartments makes commitment to fund

Milestone Apartments Real Estate Investment Trust (MST.UN-T) announced it has entered into an agreement to invest US$50 million in Milestone Real Estate Investors IV, LP, a private discretionary equity investment fund focused on value-add multi-family investments that is sponsored by an affiliate of the REIT’s external asset manager, The Milestone Group, LLC.

Canada Newswire

RioCan completes sale of U.S. retail properties

RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust (REI.UN-T) announced it has completed the sale of its U.S. portfolio of 49 retail properties located in the Northeastern U.S. and Texas at a total sale price of US$1.9 billion. “With the sale completed we can now completely focus on our Canadian operations, development and redevelopment portfolio . . .,” saiid RioCan CEO Edward Sonshine.

Marketwired

Cominar provides impressive yield

Cominar REIT (CUF.UN-T) offers an 8.5 per cent yield. Thanks to a number of acquisitions over the years, Cominar has grown into Quebec’s largest landlord. Of the company’s 566 total office, retail, and industrial properties – which cover a combined 45.3 million square feet in GLA  –approximately 79% are located in either the Montreal or Quebec City.

Motley Fool

Retail

Sears posts loss, exploring options

Sears Holdings Corp (SHLD-Q) Thursday said it would seek partnerships or other arrangements to expand its home-improvement service business and some of its best-known brands, sending its shares up six per cent. Investors were cheered even though the U.S. retailer reported a bigger quarterly loss and said its chief financial officer would step down.

Reuters

Walmart may go head-to-head with Canadian grocers

In a note to clients, Desjardins Capital Market’s Keith Howlett said Walmart’s (WMT-N) U.S. discount grocery store chain Walmart Neighborhood Market posted a seven per cent increase in sales in Q1. That success has Howlett thinking the retail giant might be looking to try the concept north of the border.

Winnipeg Free Press

Tiffany posts steepest sales drop since financial crisis

Tiffany & Co (TIF-N) reported its biggest drop in quarterly sales since the peak of the global financial crisis as a strong dollar discouraged tourists from buying its high-end jewellery and eroded revenue from markets outside the U.S.

Reuters

Restaurants and Eateries

McDonald’s French HQ searched in tax probe: Sources

French investigators searched McDonald’s (MCD-N) French headquarters last week, targeting the U.S. fast food chain in a tax probe, sources said Thursday. A preliminary inquiry reportedly had been opened early this year after former investigating magistrate and politician Eva Joly filed a lawsuit in December on behalf of an employee committee.

Reuters – Winnipeg Free Press

New Development

Dream Development unveils Saskatoon mixed-use community

Two years ago, Dream Development‘s Brighton was little more than a patchwork of empty fields. Today, work on Saskatoon’s newest planned community is underway, with the first residents expected to move in later this year. When completed, Brighton is expected to contain 6,400 homes, commercial and retail spaces and a large wetland.

Saskatoon StarPhoenix

Sports Venues

OSEG sues contractors over ‘negligent’ Lansdowne work

The Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group has filed two statements of claim against five contractors over allegations of negligent work and broken contracts redeveloping Lansdowne Park, including claims of poor sanitary drainage, insufficient lighting and designs that didn’t meet fire codes. OSEG is taking architecture firm Cannon Design to court for $4 million in damages.

CBC News

Renovation and Restoration

Former Winnipeg comic store undergoes renaissance

George Cibinel is gutting the former home of Comics America, but he’s going to pay homage to the longtime retailer of pop-culture collectibles. The partner at Cibinel Architects has bought the one-storey building on Academy Road in Winnipeg and plans to move his 15-person firm there in July.

Winnipeg Free Press

Technology

Dubai opens world’s first functioning 3D-printed office

Dubai has opened what it said was the world’s first functioning 3D-printed office building, part of a drive by the Gulf’s main tourism and business hub to develop technology that cuts costs and saves time. The printers have not been used much for building.

Reuters – Bloomberg

Other