Lamb predicting another Alberta boom

Lamb predicting another Alberta boom

Brad Lamb has big plans for Calgary and Edmonton; predicting a land-value boom to rival Toronto, he says Lamb Development Corp. is planning “five or six more high-rises in Edmonton alone over the next 20 years.” Furthermore, the Toronto-based developer claims Alberta’s economic downturn has been “irrelevant” to the delayed build of Edmonton’s Jasper House, a 38-storey luxury condo development.

Globe and Mail

Edmonton’s historic MacDonald Lofts awaits its future

The A. MacDonald Building — also known as the MacDonald Lofts — should be one of Edmonton’s most beloved heritage assets. We’ve spent enough — almost $2 million in public dollars over the last 16 years — to restore the four-storey, red-brick warehouse as a historic site. Now, the building is officially part of Ice District.

Edmonton Journal – Edmonton Journal

SmartREIT teams up with SmartStop on self-storage

Smart Real Estate Investment Trust has entered a 50/50 joint venture partnership with SmartStop Asset Management, LLC to build and co-own rental self-storage facilities in Canada. SmartREIT (SRU.UN-T)) had been looking at various uses for vacant land associated with its properties.

Property Biz Canada – Property Biz Canada

Toronto’s iconic 205 Yonge St. property up for bids

The neo-classical former Bank of Toronto property, which has sat empty for more than a decade in its namesake city at 205 Yonge St., is on the auction block. “It just got on to the market and we’ve received a ton of emails from agents that are reaching out to us,” said Core Consultants Realty Inc. managing director Shawn Abramovitz.

Property Biz Canada

Quebec fights back against business exodus

Quebec is boosting tax incentives for executives and businesses to stay in Canada’s second most-populous province after the loss of Rona Inc. and other prominent companies. Premier Philippe Couillard is lowering levies on stock-option gains and transfers of family-owned businesses as part of policies aimed at keeping head offices in Quebec and nurturing more homegrown multinationals. 

Bloomberg

Caisse chief laughs, and Quebec laughs with him

It is still too early for Michael Sabia to have the last laugh. But that he has made it this far – with his mandate as Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec chief just renewed until 2021 – should certainly warrant a contented grin from the man the skeptics had deemed unfit to serve. 

Globe and Mail (Subscription required) – Canada Newswire

Ivanhoe, Piramal to invest in India development

Ivanhoé Cambridge, a real estate subsidiary of CDPQ (Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec) and Piramal Enterprises Limited have announced a strategic partnership to provide long-term equity capital to blue-chip residential developers across the five major metro cities in India. Ivanhoé Cambridge is allocating an initial $328 million Cdn for this purpose. 

Canada Newswire – Benefits Canada – IPE Real Estate – Western Investor

PIRET acquires Houston distribution centre

Pure Industrial Real Estate Trust (AAR.UN-T) announced it has entered into an unconditional agreement to acquire a core asset in Houston and a commitment with two Canadian chartered banks for a $150 million unsecured credit facility. The Cedar Port Distribution Centre, consisting of two newly constructed buildings comprising a total of 996,482 square feet, had a purchase price of approximately $83.2 million.

Marketwired – Property Biz Canada

Anbang defends takeover of B.C. retirement-home chain

Anbang, the massive Chinese conglomerate that has purchased a foothold in Canada’s health-care system, finally broke its silence Thursday to defend its takeover of family-owned Retirement Concepts of Vancouver, arguing the deal was approved after great scrutiny at multiple levels of government. 

Globe and Mail – Globe and Mail – Globe and Mail

Elgin Street’s rapidly changing face

If you think Ottawa’s Elgin Street just ain’t what it used to be, you’re not imagining things. More than a dozen businesses on the commercial thoroughfare have either closed or rebranded themselves in the past two years. Three themes recurred in many conversations: rising rent, the upcoming renovation, the need to establish a business improvement area.

Ottawa Business Journal

Ottawa’s Farm Boy eyes GTA market

As Ottawa grocery chain Farm Boy celebrates 35 years in business, it’s looking further afield in search of growth. “We want to get the brand out to the GTA,” says Jeff York, the company’s co-CEO. The company already has a southern Ontario presence with stores in cities such as Kitchener, Brantford and Whitby.

Ottawa Business Journal

How Costco Canada breaks retail rules to win

Not far from a table stacked high with men’s blue jeans at one of Canada’s busiest Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST-Q) stores is a standalone display for the InstaShiatsu, a cordless neck and back massager that bears all the hallmarks of a juicy impulse buy. Priced at $134.99, the InstaShiatsu gives off a quirky, as-seen-on-TV vibe.

Financial Post – Financial Post

Sugarfina seeks Canada-wide expansion

Luxury candy brand Sugarfina is looking to expand beyond Nordstrom doors in Canada and Vancouver may be home to the country’s first freestanding location. The L.A.-based retailer opened its first shop in Canada inside Nordstrom Pacific Centre. Sugarfina currently operates in all five of Nordstrom’s Canadian outlets. The brand already has 27 small standalone boutiques in the U.S.

Western Investor

Harry Rosen tailoring itself to evolving industry

A jet-lagged Larry Rosen slinks into his seat, overcome with relief as his assistant hands him a venti latte with an extra shot of espresso. He got off a plane only two hours ago. His day, so far, has involved a power outage in his hotel room, breaking his luggage and a tiff with customs over the value of a purse purchased for his wife.

Maclean’s

New exit sign way of the future

It may be Canada’s second-most iconic red sign, next to the stop sign, but it’s on its way out in B.C. The red exit sign that spells EXIT in bold sans-serif font is being replaced by a green-and-white pictogram that depicts a human figure fleeing toward an open door.

Vancouver Sun

Real Estate Companies

Loan earmarked for Brookfield NYC asset

Brookfield Property Partners (BPY.UN-T) has received a $550 million senior loan to refinance 200 Liberty St., a 1.7 million-square-foot, class-A office building located in New York City. The 200 Liberty building has 40 stories with the first two floors serving as retail space, occupying 52,000 square feet of the building.

CP Executive

Kohl’s, Macy’s turn landlords to unlock value

Department store operators Kohl’s Corp (KSS-N) and rival Macy’s Inc (M-N) are betting on a potential money-spinner – carving out prime space within their sprawling stores and leasing them to other retailers. The move underscores the pressing need for the two chains to better monetize their real estate assets.

Reuters

REOC Financial Reports

Latest reports:

* Chartwell Retirement Residences, (CSH.UN-T), Marketwired 

* Leon’s Furniture Limited, (LNF-T), Canada Newswire 

* Morguard Corporation, (MRC-T), Canada Newswire  

* Temple Hotels, (TPH-T), Canada Newswire 

* Tricon Capital Group, (TCN-T ), Canada Newswire

REIT Financial Reports

Latest reports:

* Allied Properties REIT, (AP.UN-T), Marketwired   

* Crombie REIT, (CRR.UN-T), Canada Newswire 

* Dream Global REIT, (DRG.UN-T), Marketwired 

* Dream Industrial REIT, (DIR.UN-T), Marketwired 

* Dream Office REIT, (D.UN-T), Marketwired   

* InterRent REIT, (IIP.UN-T), Marketwired  

* Plaza Retail REIT, (PLZ.UN-T), Canada Newswire  

* Slate Retail REIT,  (SRT.U-T), Marketwired

Real Estate Investment Trusts

The Milestone move: Release the good news early

In journalism it’s referred to as burying the lead. In the world of corporate takeovers, there is a similar phenomenon which we could perhaps call the Milestone  (MST.UN-T) move — the practice of putting the positive news out early in the day and ensuring everybody is aware — and putting out the negative news late at night.

Financial Post – Canada Newswire

U.S. REITs expected to keep selling properties

U.S. publicly traded REITs are projecting to remain net sellers again this year with current disposition plans announced by 39 major REITs calling for the sale of more than $15 billion in properties. REITs said they plan to plow most of the proceeds from those sales into their development pipelines, funding the construction of new properties or redeveloping existing ones.

CoStar Group

Could Cominar cut dividend payout soon?

Cominar Real Estate Investment Trust (CUF.UN-T) has been paying a hefty $0.1225 monthly dividend for the past 30 months with a current annual yield of 10 per cent. This great yield has become unsustainable. Could it be cut any time now?

Motley Fool

Is RioCan right for your retirement portfolio?

RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust‘s (REI.UN-T) unit price has come under pressure in recent months as investors fret about the potential impact of rising interest rates in the U.S. REITs tend to carry a lot of debt, so the sector can be at risk if rates rise quickly or by significant amounts.

Motley Fool

Retail

J.C. Penney to shut 130-140 stores

Department store operator J.C. Penney Co Inc (JCP-N) said on Friday it would close about 130-140 stores over the next few months, and reported a bigger-than-expected drop in same-store sales for the holiday quarter. The company said it would also initiate a voluntary early retirement program for about 6,000 eligible employees and close two distribution facilities.

Reuters – CoStar Group – MarketWatch

Whole Foods shrinking store count

After becoming the darlings of shopping center developers and fast-tracking expansion plans, national organic and specialty grocers such as Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM-Q) and several regional grocery chains have recently announced plans to trim store counts and scale back growth plans in another sign of the increasingly competitive U.S. grocery store sector.

CoStar Group

Loblaw’s taking the click-and-collect route

Loblaw Cos. (L-T) will observe from the sidelines, for now, when it comes to home delivery of online groceries, Galen Weston said Thursday. Loblaw competes with Amazon and Walmart online for sales of food, health and beauty items through its “click-and-collect” model, where customers order and pay online and pick up items outside selected Loblaw stores.

Financial Post – Winnipeg Free Press

Edmonton Walmarts now allow pickup of online grocery shopping

Six Edmonton Walmart (WMT-N) stores have joined the competition. The giant retail chain is now allowing customers in Edmonton to select products through the the firm’s website up to three weeks in advance, drive to the pickup store and have the order loaded into their vehicle at a designated parking spot.

Edmonton Journal – Canada Newswire

HBC posts lower quarterly sales

Hudson’s Bay Co (HBC-T) Thursday reported lower sales in the fourth quarter, hurt by weaker results at its European, Saks OFF 5th and Gilt operations. The owner of luxury retail chain Saks Fifth Avenue said its consolidated comparable sales fell 1.2 per cent on a constant currency basis during the fourth quarter ended Jan. 28.

Reuters – Vancouver Sun – Huffington Post Canada

Restaurants and Eateries

JOEY Restaurants announces new Ottawa location

A trendy Calgary-based restaurant is hoping to carry the success it’s seeing at Lansdowne Park to the corner of Nicholas Street and Rideau Street. The busy street corner, which has played host to a few different restaurants in recent years, will be the new home of JOEY Restaurants in Ottawa. The operators are planning to open this spring.

Ottawa Citizen

Renovation and Restoration

Calgary’s Delta South hotel getting a facelift

Mark Rheaume began his career in hospitality as a bellman at the hotel now known as Delta Hotels by Marriott Calgary South. Rheaume is now overseeing the renovation of all rooms in the Tower building. The $6-million project will see rooms stripped to the studs. A further $7 million will be spent to upgrade public amenities and spaces.

Calgary Herald

Infrastructure

Port Mann Bridge losses mounting

The Port Mann Bridge is expected to lose another $90 million next year, failing to hit its original break-even projection and casting doubt on the viability of building another tolled bridge to replace the George Massey tunnel. New budget figures released this week estimate the Port Mann/Highway 1 expansion project will lose $262 million over the next three years.

Vancouver Sun

Human Resources

S2 Architecture recruits new lead for studio

Whether it’s a renovation, restoration or new development, work in the construction industry starts with the creative teams at architectural or interior design firms. Demand for their services is a good indicator of a resurgence in this market, with one firm, S2 Architecture, counting 160 active files in Calgary and Edmonton. A new addition in the Calgary office is Madeleine Schmidts, who has joined S2 as an associate principal.

Calgary Herald

Other

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