Grosvenor assembles 7.9-acre site in Brentwood Town Centre

RENX  Residential, Commercial  •  Land  •  Metro Vancouver

Grosvenor Americas has acquired the final piece for its Burnaby land assembly in Brentwood, where it plans to create a mixed-use development. It gives Grosvenor a 7.9-acre site near SkyTrain’s Brentwood Town Centre station and The Amazing Brentwood development.

Yorkdale, CF Pacific Centre top shopping centres study

RENX  Commercial  •  Retail  •  National

Shopping centres are evolving into “living centres” as owners and managers create ‘live, work, play and shop’ environments to attract customers, says the Canadian Shopping Centre Study 2019. “They’re building small villages,” said Retail Council of Canada president/CEO Diane Brisebois.

600,000-sq.-ft. film studio coming to Langley

Commercial  •  Western Investor

Martini Film Studios (MFS) plans to build a 600,000-square-foot studio facility in Langley, one of the largest industrial projects in the region, according to Avison Young. The facility would cover 25 acres, making it Canada’s largest film and television production centre.

30% of federal buildings in poor or critical condition

Commercial  •  Ottawa Citizen

More than a quarter of all federally owned, leased or licensed buildings in the Ottawa-Gatineau area, including many landmark downtown buildings, are in critical or poor condition, according to the government’s own assessment.

What’s next for Calgary’s West Village?

Residential, Commercial  •  CBC

CalgaryNext, The Calgary Flames’ proposal for a mega-arena/stadium, was pitched as a catalyst to clean up and revitalize downtown’s west side. The idea was ultimately rejected, but questions remain about this neglected piece of the city: West Village

Counting up Toronto’s tallest buildings of the 2010s

Residential, Commercial  •  Urban Toronto

The 2010s marked an unprecedented decade of growth for Toronto, with substantial changes to the city’s built form. Several important events such as the recent Raptors’ run to the NBA championship showed the world a taller, denser, more vital Toronto.

The Saskatchewan Edge › Is open office the best concept for your business?

Kelly Macsymic: Business Manager, Stuart Commercial Inc., Sales Associate, ICR Commercial Real Estate

Proposed ski resort turned over to First Nation

Commercial  •  Global News  •  CBC  •  Vancouver Sun

After decades of controversy that reached all the way to the Supreme Court, the Jumbo Glacier in British Columbia’s central Purcell Mountains is to be handed over to the Ktunaxa First Nation to manage as an Indigenous Protected Area.

MEC to sublease head office

Commercial  •  Business In Vancouver  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

Vancouver-based outdoor equipment retailer MEC announced today it plans to sublease its 112,000-square-foot head office on Great Northern Way, which it built for $28 million and moved into in late 2014. The company is scouting the market for a smaller headquarters.

GO Expansion plans facing uncertainty

Commercial  •  Toronto Star

The timing and scope of a major planned expansion of GO Transit rail service appears to be in doubt, after the companies tasked with executing the project raised serious concerns about how the province was contracting out the work.

‘Our commercial streets are bleeding’: Mtl. hearings

Commercial  •  CBC

When Susan Usher first set down roots in Montreal’s Mile End some three decades ago, the streets were calm, rental housing was abundant, and buildings, many fallen into disrepair, were cheap. However, she fell in love with the neighbourhood’s charm.

Delma Group changes name, stock ticker symbol

Commercial  •  Globe Newswire

The Delma Group Inc. (DLMA-CN) announced it has changed its name to Emergia Inc. and its ticker symbol to EMER. The company expects the common shares will begin trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange on or about Jan. 21, 2020.

U.S. office growth to moderate in 2020: CBRE

Commercial  •  CP Executive

Although market fundamentals will remain steady, growth in office-using employment is anticipated to moderate at 0.3 per cent, down from 1.5 per cent between 2018 and 2019, according to CBRE’s 2020 outlook for the sector.

Hong Kong’s Central district rents to plunge up to 40%

Commercial  •  South China Morning Post  •  South China Morning Post

Office rents in Hong Kong’s Central district, the world’s most expensive commercial property market for a fourth straight year in 2019, might plunge by up to 40 per cent by 2022, according to  London-based real estate investment manager Nuveen Real Estate.

Colliers International expands to Austin, Texas

Commercial  •  Globe Newswire

Leading global commercial real estate services and investment management firm Colliers International Group Inc. (CIGI-T) announced the acquisition of Colliers International Austin, LLC, which was previously an affiliate operation.

Valesco buys Brussels’ Finance Tower for $1.74B

Commercial  •  Reuters  •  IPE Real Assets

London-based investor Valesco Group said it had bought Brussels skyscraper the Finance Tower for $1.74 billion Cdn in an off-market deal with Dutch investors Breevast and ZBG. Valesco called the deal the second-largest single-asset deal of its kind in Europe.

GTA rental construction at highest level since the 1970s

Residential  •  Toronto Star

Purpose-built apartment construction hit the highest levels since the 1970s in the last quarter of 2019, suggesting there is some relief in sight for Toronto’s vacancy-challenged tenants, says Urbanation president Shaun Hildebrand.

How Toronto tenants are coping with a rental crisis

Residential  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

Toronto tenants are increasingly hunkering down as the city copes with a rental housing crisis that’s seen the price of new listings skyrocket. The turnover rate for GTA apartments was 9.5 per cent last year, down from 15.9 per cent in 2016.

B.C. condo rental policies working: Report

Residential  •  Globe and Mail

B.C. and Vancouver city policies aimed at forcing investment owners of condos to rent out their apartments appear to be having an impact, say those looking at the latest national rental numbers.

Rents will continue to rise in 2020: Rentals.ca

Residential  •  Canada Newswire  •  RENX

Rents will continue to climb in 2020 in major metropolitan areas in Canada, but while the increases won’t be as much as the last few years, finding the right rental will continue to be a challenge, according to housing experts.