Landa Global: No ‘cookie-cutter’ Van. developments

RENX  Residential, Commercial  •  Condominiums, Retail  •  Metro Vancouver

In 2015, Kevin Cheung’s Landa Global Properties raised a few developer eyebrows with the purchase of a large property at Vancouver’s E. 20th and Main Street, where Burritt Bros. carpets and Bean Around the World coffee had operated for years.

SoftBank ends WeWork tender; backs $5B bailout

Commercial  •  TechCrunch  •  Toronto Star  •  Business Wire

SoftBank Group has pulled a $3-billion tender offer for WeWork shares citing closing conditions not being met. Under the terms of the deal, WeWork founder Adam Neumann had been set to receive almost $1 billion for his shares.

Not providing rent relief could hurt retail landlords

Commercial  •  Retail Insider  •  Western Investor  •  Canada Newswire

If major Canadian landlords take a hard line on rent relief for retail tenants, they run the risk “there will be tumbleweeds blowing through that mall three months, six months from now,” says Retail Council of Canada‘s Karl Littler.

The People Space › People Space: Comings, goings at AY, SNC-Lavalin, GWLRA, Dream …

Don Wilcox: Managing Editor

Edmonton hotels open, but empty

Commercial  •  CBC

Edmonton hotel managers say bookings have fallen off a cliff in the last two months, prompting companies to lay off most employees until the COVID-19 pandemic subsides. Many hotels, which are considered an essential service, remain open.

Judge dismisses Winnipeg’s Parker land appeal

Residential  •  Winnipeg Free Press

A judge has ordered the long-beleaguered Parker lands project be brought before the City of Winnipeg’s standing policy committee “without delay.” Developer Andrew Marquess seeks to develop a 1,900-unit project on 47 acres west of Pembina Highway.

Cineplex to keep 165 theatres closed indefinitely

Commercial  •  CBC

Canada’s largest movie exhibitor, Cineplex Inc., will keep its doors closed nationwide into the foreseeable future amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Cineplex had initially set an April 2 timeline to consider reopening 165 theatres across the chain.

Telus Convention Centre to shelter up to 300 homeless

Residential, Commercial  •  CBC

Some members of the local homeless community will move to the Telus Convention Centre in downtown Calgary on Thursday as it opens as a temporary shelter amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

How to prevent spreading COVID-19 in office buildings

Commercial  •  CP Executive

For owners and property managers, having and implementing an emergency management plan is paramount, says Susan Bazak, principal of Bazak Consulting. Operators should take a three-pronged approach in their plan: containment, preparedness and mitigation.

Firm Capital updates insider acquisition activity

Commercial  •  Globe Newswire

Firm Capital Property Trust (FCD-UN-X) announced that since March 1, 2020, every member of the board of trustees including the trust’s executive officers have acquired directly and/or indirectly 159,042 trust units for approximately $0.7 million or 0.5 per cent of the total trust units.

‘Once in a decade opportunity’ to buy Ontario REITs

Commercial  •  Globe and Mail (Sub. required)

Raymond James real estate analyst Johann Rodrigues is concerned about tenants skipping rent in the coming months but believes, “The chance to buy (Ontario multifamily REITs) at double-digit NAV discounts should not be missed, in our view.”

REIT/REOC COVID-19 business updates

Commercial  • 

Automotive Properties REIT, (APR-UN-T), Canada Newswire

Melcor Developments Ltd., (MRD-T), Globe Newswire

Vail Resorts, Inc., (MTN-N), Canada Newswire

U.S. needs to rethink densely populated cities

Residential  •  Fortune

For years, the nation’s urban planning punditry has predicted the future lay with its densest, largest, and most cosmopolitan cities. Yet even before the onslaught of COVID-19, demographic and economic forces were pointing in the opposite direction.

M&M acquires Metropolitan Capital Advisors

Commercial  •  Business Wire  •  CP Executive

Marcus & Millichap, Inc. (MMI-N) announced it has acquired Metropolitan Capital Advisors (MCA), a commercial real estate finance intermediary specializing in arranging debt and equity for commercial real estate on behalf of developers, investors and owners.

Manhattan office leases plunge in March

Commercial  •  Reuters

Office leasing activity in Manhattan fell almost by half in March from the previous month as the coronavirus outbreak halted business activity in New York City, the U.S. epicenter of the pandemic, a Colliers International Group report said on Wednesday.

BlackRock, Schroders suspend U.K. real estate funds

Commercial  •  Reuters

Investment managers BlackRock and Schroders said they have suspended trading in U.K. real estate funds aimed at institutional investors, citing difficulty in getting an accurate price for their assets.

Some tenants got rent relief, others didn’t

Residential  •  Globe and Mail  •  Toronto Star

Millions of Canadians on Wednesday faced their first rent payments since COVID-19 sent a shockwave through the economy, with some tenants getting a break through deferrals or discounts, while others were met with no leniency from landlords.

Calgary’s March MLS sales lowest since 1995

Residential  •  Calgary’s Business

After a strong start to 2020, Calgary’s March MLS sales activity was 37 per cent lower than long-term averages and MLS sales were the lowest level since 1995, according to the Calgary Real Estate Board’s latest report.

Secondary-suite deadline extended for Calgarians

Residential  •  Global News  •  CBC

A two-year amnesty program for Calgarians to register their secondary suites with the City of Calgary is going to be extended for another year and a half. A lot of it has to do with the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Engel & Völkers Halifax acquires Tradewinds Realty

Residential  •  Engel & Völkers Halifax media release

Burgeoning real estate brokerage Engel & Völkers Halifax announced it now owns and operates leading local industry veteran Tradewinds Realty Inc. The brokerages will later merge this summer under the Engel & Völkers brand.