The Concorde Corp. Centre in Toronto. (Courtesy Artis REIT)

Fengate Asset Management, on behalf of the LiUNA Pension Fund of Central and Eastern Canada (LPFCEC), has announced the acquisition of the 567,619-square-foot Concorde Corporate Centre in Toronto.

The centre is being acquired from Artis REIT, which bought the complex in 2010.

Spanning 7.7 acres, the property consists of three office towers, the inter-connected 1 and 3 Concorde Gate as well as 12 Concorde Gate, all of which are designated BOMA BEST Gold. Constructed in 1988, the complex is located in an evolving office node at Don Mills and Eglinton in the City of Toronto.

“The Concorde Gate office community is well located along several transit nodes and is complimentary to the 175 Wynford acquisition in Toronto that we made earlier this year,” said Jaime McKenna, managing director and group head of real estate for Fengate, in the announcement Tuesday morning. “This has been a busy year in real estate for the Fengate team, and we look forward to working with this impressive property with a focus on continued excellence, on behalf of our investors.”

Fengate will assume asset management, property management and development opportunities for the property.

The property sold for $114 million. When it acquired the property as part of a portfolio in 2010, Artis paid $87 million.

Concorde Corp. Centre well located

“LiUNA is proud of this important investment in the Toronto region, with our pension fund investing in the continued economic growth of our country’s largest urban and business centre,” said Joseph Mancinelli, LiUNA International vice-president and regional manager for Central and Eastern Canada, in the announcement. “Concorde Corporate Centre is a high-profile, high-quality real estate investment for LiUNA that is an excellent addition to our members’ pension fund’s extensive portfolio.”

The location of the complex offers numerous transit options.

Upon completion of the Eglinton Crosstown LRT, the property will provide pedestrian access to the downtown core via. The final stop of the proposed Ontario Line, at the Ontario Science Centre, is located within one kilometre, connecting the node throughout the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

The site also offers local pedestrian access to residential neighbourhoods, amenities and greenspace, as well as vehicular access to Highway 401, the Don Valley Parkway, and Gardiner Expressway.

Artis continues asset divestments

The divestment is the latest in a two-year series of property dispositions by Artis REIT. The Winnipeg-based trust originally announced it planned to divest up to $1 billion of non-core assets, and has since added about $500 million to that total.

Up to the end of Q3 2020, Artis had disposed of about $1 billion of the assets it planned to shed, recycling some of the capital into new acquisitions, and using the rest for a variety of purposes including debt reduction and unit purchases.

Most recently Artis has been engaged in a nasty fight for control of the REIT with a group of dissident shareholders led by Sandpiper Group. That dispute will come to a head in February when unitholders will vote on a new board of trustees.

About LiUNA Pension Fund of Central and Eastern Canada

Established in 1972, LPFCEC is one of the fastest growing multi-employer pension funds across Canada, voted among the top-10 pension funds by Benefits Canada.

With a diverse investment portfolio and $8 billion in assets LPFCEC has yielded positive returns for the plan, and has created many needed institutions across North America through public-private partnerships and alternatives.

About Fengate Asset Management

Fengate is an alternative investment manager focused on real estate, infrastructure and private equity strategies.

With offices in Toronto, Oakville and Houston, Fengate has established itself as one of the most active real asset investors and developers in North America.