Commercial Real Estate News Toronto – January 2009

Toronto’s Mayor Miller puts faith in new agencies – With unusually hard times expected in 2009, Mayor David Miller is hoping two agencies created last year will help Canada’s largest city weather a grim economic downturn. The new municipal corporations – Build Toronto and Invest Toronto – could make a significant difference, provided they live up to their potential. Build Toronto is essentially a real estate enterprise aimed at wringing value from the city’s massive, but underutilized, land holdings.
Toronto Star, Jan 05, 2009

Help office towers go green – A big push for energy conservation in Canada’s current and future office towers and other commercial buildings has been recommended. National experts called for energy efficiency standards, financial incentives and public scrutiny to curb fuel use and carbon emissions in the more than 440,000 commercial buildings in Canada. Round table chair Robert Page blamed “inertia” in industry, focus on upfront capital costs rather than energy savings.
Canada.com, Jan 13, 2009

Toronto council executive backs subway extension – A multibillion-dollar plan to extend another of Toronto’s subway lines north into York Region was approved by Mayor David Miller and his executive committee yesterday, but with all the enthusiasm of a bus driver headed out for a midnight shift. The mayor did say that he supports the 6.8-kilometre, six-station extension of the Yonge line as important for “city-building” in the Toronto region.
Globe and Mail, Jan 06, 2009

Proposal for prime Toronto site spurs controversy – As Toronto looks at selling some of its real estate portfolio, one of the hottest pieces sits at the heart of the city － Yonge and Eglinton. At the southwest corner is the old abandoned TTC bus terminal, which could easily be turned into an office and residential tower. Local councillors don’t want to see a repeat of the bitter 2002 battle over the two Minto condominiums nearby. Councillor Michael Walker is vowing to kick up a big fight if there is any attempt to build soaring towers.
Toronto Star, Jan 08, 2009

The commercial property downturn, then and now – Anyone who remembers the commercial property market in the early 1990s likely does so whispering a fervent prayer that this recession does not come anywhere near the meltdown that struck all forms of real estate then. Now, as landlords and developers brace for another rough ride in the looming recession, the early nineties crash serves as a reference point on how bad – or not – things may become this time.
Globe and Mail, Jan 20, 2009

Commercial office market set to weather downturn – Bucking the bad news trend, Canada’s commercial office market recorded strong numbers the past few years and remains well positioned for the next 12 to 18 months as the country heads into a recession, according to industry executives. A new report from Colliers International cautions there may be two exceptions – Calgary and Toronto. Jamie Ziegel, senior managing director of capital markets for Cushman & Wakefield LePage Ltd. in Toronto, said this recession will be different from the last one.
Business Edge, Jan 23, 2009

It’s back to the future for Brookfield – Bruce Flatt has demonstrated an uncanny knack for knowing which way the wind will blow. For the past few years the landscape in which the CEO of Brookfield Asset Management Inc. operates has been too smooth and too crowded for the sort of sophisticated, countercyclical tactics at which the company excels: Restructuring troubled or bargain assets. Now Mr. Flatt senses it’s a perfect time for Brookfield to put its corporate strategy and war chest of nearly $4-billion (U.S.) to work.
Globe and Mail, Jan 26, 2009

Toronto seeks federal funds to revitalize Union Station – Amid signs of life for its long-awaited facelift, Union Station is seen as a strong contender for infrastructure dollars expected to flow from tomorrow’s federal budget. Mayor David Miller describes the station’s renewal, planned over the next seven years, as one “that makes perfect sense to expedite.” The mayor has asked Mr. Flaherty to put $75-million toward the estimated $615-million renewal, which already assumes funding from the city, the province and an as-yet-unnamed private investor.
Globe and Mail, Jan 26, 2009

Editorial: Toronto Mayor should slash development fees – Over the last several weeks, Toronto Mayor David Miller has kept a very high profile as he advocates for infrastructure funding in the upcoming federal budget. The mayor is being appropriately proactive by seeking external funding solutions to the financial challenges facing his city. In the midst of all this positive focus on job creation and economic development, there’s something that doesn’t quite add up, and that’s the threat of much higher development charges in Toronto.
Toronto Star, Jan 26, 2009

Toronto may fast track new north-south subway relief line – In a surprise move, Toronto council voted to study the possibility of fast-tracking the construction of a new downtown relief subway line — perhaps even putting it ahead of extending the Yonge line north into York region. Toronto has long had reservations about pushing the already crowded Yonge subway into Richmond Hill and had already attached a slew of conditions to the city’s support of the project, which would have doubled the price from $2.5-billion to about $5-billion.
National Post, Jan 29, 2009 Toronto Star, Jan 29, 2009