Building Office Space – Video Feature with EBS Construction Management

I had a blast filming this with Mike Dragnea. Check out his other episodes here: http://building-space.squarespace.com

Building Space Episode 5 from mdragnea on Vimeo.

Financial Core Patio Guide – Toronto

BlogTO put this great list together. Personally, I like Jack Astor’s at Yonge and Dundas.

Here’s a roundup of 10 of the best patios in Toronto’s Financial District.

Bymark
At the south end of the TD Bank Tower overlooking Wellington (and across from Tory’s), one of Bay Street’s swankiest restaurants emerges from the PATH with a heated patio that’s partly covered with plenty of shade. An outdoor bar provides easy access to libations to wash down indulgent eats like the foie gras BLT or $35 burger.

Duke of Devon
Just east of Bymark near the corner of Bay and Wellington, the Duke of Devon offers a more casual, pub-like setting with a still Bay Street-ish menu featuring mini burgers, lobster caesar salad and watermelon mojitos. It’s the closest patio to the Design Exchange but something tells me that’s not really the draw.

Jump
Just as the name suggests, this bar and restaurant is really jumping come the late afternoon and early evening. The west facing patio in the courtyard of Commerce Court is large, attractive and comes complete with an outdoor bar and plenty of seating options. It’s more casual than Bymark but still sophisticated enough to inebriate clients with apple pie martinis and beer battered onion rings.

Ki
At the south-east corner of Wellington and Bay, this Brookfield Place destination serves up some of the freshest (if not priciest) sashimi in the city. The patio is perfect for couples or large groups and like most of the options in this part of town has an outdoor bar, heaters and comfy seating that’s a far cry from your typical plastic table and chairs setup.

Debut Cafe and Bar (121 King St. West)
What was that about plastic tables and chairs? For cheap suds in cheaper looking digs, the Debut Cafe and Bar is the place. Your’re much more likely to find temps here than traders but with a $3.99 all day breakfast and domestic bottled beer for under four bucks I don’t hear too many people complaining.

The Keg
One of Bay Street’s favourite hangouts, the Keg on York St. between Richmond and Adelaide has a small, covered street-side patio and a much larger one in the back. This is the patio to take large groups where fast and efficient service is made easy with a dedicated outside kitchen and bar area.

Reds Bistro & Wine Bar
At the north end of First Canadian Place where Adelaide meets Sheppard St., this high end wine bar draws an older crowd who come to its streamlined patio for housemade charcuterie, a 3,000 bottle wine cellar and a ridiculously large selection of cheese. With this large a wine list, it should be no surprise that Reds offers Toronto’s largest selection of by the glass wine options (currently 88).

Duke of Westminster
Located right next to Reds, this sister pub of the Duke of Devon (they have the same menu) has two small patio areas directly outside the north entrance of First Canadian Place. Green Moosehead umbrellas provide more than enough shade. Have a pint and then stop in and say hi to the friendly receptionists at the nearby Toronto Board of Trade.

Schezuan Schezuan
This Chinese restaurant makes for a good but greasy lunch-hour option on the second floor of the First Canadian Place. The south-facing patio overlooks King St. and is a nice alternative to the nearby food-court. Best during the noon-hour (read: don’t go after work).

Vertical
Also on the second floor of First Canadian Place, Vertical restaurant provides a stark contrast to its Chinese neighbour with white tablecloth service at its larger outdoor space where there’s slightly better views of the action on King St. below. The setting is much more elegant and attracts a well dressed executive-level crowd who rendezvous for mini meatball sandwiches and stiff margaritas.

Royal Bank Plaza – Leed Gold Marketing Piece

Oxford Properties has done a mailer outlining some of the great Leed Gold features of the Royal Bank building.  The only problem I have with it is it doesn’t motivate me to be there so what’s the point?

Impressions, thoughts on this market piece?

Lease Summary Services

One of the services I offer my clients is a lease summary.  As you gain more experience with Lease in the commercial real estate industry there are lots of little items you can pick off that may or may not be negotiable or key dates you need to keep track of within the Lease.  I have attached a lease summary I have recently completed for a client outlining some of the issues the tenant needs to be aware of prior to his renewal at the end of 2010 as an example.

LEASE SUMMARY
for
ABC INC.(“Tenant”)
and
BIG MEAN LANLDORD(“Landlord”)

Rentable Area of Premises 1,995 sf (section 1.1 (f) page 1)

Commencement Date January 1, 2006

Expiry Date: December 31, 2010  (section 1.1 (g) page 1)

Basic Rent Years 1-5                     $8.00 per rentable square foot (section 1.1 (i) page 1)

Rent Deposit $4,283.53 first month’s rent and GST  (section 1.1 (j) (i) page 1)

Security Deposit $4,461.42 without interest (section 1.1 (j) (ii) page 2)

Default Rate Prime plus five percent per annum (section 3.1 (n) page 3)

Relocation The Landlord shall have the right from time to time, on not less than 60 days’ Notice, to relocate the Premises to other premises within the Building having approximately the same area. The Landlord shall provide approximately the same quality of Leasehold Improvements. The Landlord shall cover the cost of moving, reprinting stationary and supplies and disconnection and connection of telephone, computer equipment and systems. (section 8.6 page 16 & 17)

Alterations by Tenant (section 9.2 page 17) The Tenant may from time to time at its own expense install Leasehold Improvements and alter existing Leasehold Improvements provided that:

1. a. All Alterations shall require the prior written approval of the Landlord;

1. b. The Tenant shall furnish the Landlord with two complete sets of professionally prepared working drawings. The Tenant shall pay to the Landlord, on demand, the costs of the examination of such drawings plus an administration fee of 15% for such costs.

Removal of Improvements and All Leasehold Improvements shall immediately

Fixtures become the Landlord’s property.  The Tenant shall at its cost, remove such Leasehold Improvements, wiring, cables and related devices and restore the Premise to the then current base building standard at the expiry of the Term. (section 9.3 page 18)

Permitted Use The Tenant shall continuously use the whole of the  Premises only as a business office and consulting office. (section 10.1 page 19)

Tenant’s Insurance Commercial general liability insurance not less than $5,000,000.00 in respect of each occurrence. (section 12.1)

Transfers The Tenant shall not enter into, consent to, or permit any Transfer without the prior written consent of the Landlord. The Tenant shall pay to the Landlord reasonable charges and all costs incurred in respect of the proposed Transfer. (section 12.1)

(e) The Landlord at the time has, or will have in the next three month period, other premises in the Building suitable for leasing to the proposed Transferee;

(f) The basic and additional rent payable by the Transferee is less than the Basic Rent and Additional Rent payable by the Tenant; and

(g)   The proposed Transfer is (i) an existing tenant of any building owned or managed by the Landlord or any of its affiliates within the same market area as determined by the Landlord; (ii) a consulate, embassy, trade commission or other representative of a foreign government; (iii) a government , quasi-government or public agency, service or office; or (iv) a call centre, school or telecommunications centre.

Tenant’s Notice, Landlord’s Right to Terminate (section 12.2 page 23, 24) The Landlord shall, within 15 days after having received such Transfer Notice and all requested information, notify the Tenant either that:

1. It consents or does not consent; or
2. It elects to terminate this Lease

Overholding The Tenant has no right to remain in possession ofthe Premises after the end of the Term. Should the Landlord provide consent to remain in the Premises after the end of the Term, the Tenant becomes a month-to-month tenant, at a monthly Basic Rent equal to 150% of the monthly amount of Basic Rent payable during the last month of the Term. (section 16.3 page 29)

Option to Renew Tenant gives the Landlord not more than twelve  (12) months (December 31, 2009) nor less than nine (9) months (March 31, 2010) notice prior to the expiry of the initial Term. Tenant will have the right to extend the Term for a further period of five (5) years. (Schedule “E” 2)

Parking Tenant has two (2) parking stalls in the Building at $150.00 per stall per month. Monthly rent is subject to change from time to time. (Schedule “E” 3)

Commercial Real Estate News Toronto – December 2009

Some of my thoughts and information on the Toronto Commercial Real Estate Office Leasing market.

- Yonge and Bloor NER’s are hovering around $19 – $20  for A class space
- Financial Core deals in the AAA towers are happening around $38 to $40 NER
- B Class Financial Core Office Space is leasing at $36 to $40 per square foot
- Downtown West market is extremely tough to find 1,000 to 2,000 sf quality office space but it’s no problem if you are over 5,000 sf
- Landlord’s are demanding 3 year transactions but Sublease are leasing quickly as short term alternatives
- 151 Front Street West could be leasing as high as $100 psf net by the end of 2010

For a custom survey of available office space contact me here! Don’t worry, this is free until you we find you new office space and even then my fees are paid for my your new Landlord.  Let me teach you the tricks of the trade!

NEWS

Moshe Safdie’s Toronto Great Gulf Homes

The regeneration of Toronto’s desolate industrial shoreline took another bold step forward last week, when Waterfront Toronto, the crown corporation overseeing the transformation, unveiled its first private-sector development in the 55-acre East Bayfront district. The $200-million project by Great Gulf Group of Companies will go up just south of the Gardiner Expressway.

Globe and Mail Mon Dec 14 2009

Beyond the Bricks: Alan Menkes Menkes

Twenty-five years ago, it took a leap of faith to believe that the sleepy bedroom community north of Highway 401 would become a major urban centre. But Alan Menkes and his associates at Menkes Development Ltd. were willing to take a chance on North York, based on its 1980’s designation as a “growth node” as Metropolitan Toronto expanded, coupled with the big plans.

Your Home Mon Dec 14 2009

BOMA CDM Program Incentives Doubled

BOMA Toronto’s Conservation and Demand Management Program has doubled incentives for all non-lighting projects. The new incentive rates are: $800 per kilowatt of on-peak demand savings or $0.10 per kilowatt-hour annual consumption savings for non-lighting projects; $400 per kilowatt of on-peak demand savings or $0.05 per kilowatt-hour annual consumption savings for lighting projects; $250 per cooling ton (for ground source cooling projects).

For more information visit BOMACDM.com.

Ontario leading the way with one of N.A. largest green retrofits

Ontario Realty Corporation is proud to announce that Ontario will be home to one of North America’s largest green building retrofit projects. Downtown Toronto’s iconic 222 Jarvis Street, the former Sears Canada head office, will transform into a green, state-of-the-art workplace for the Ontario Public Service.

Canada News Wire Tue Dec 15 2009

Alan Colquhoun new CEO of DTZ Barnicke DTZ Barnicke

DTZ Barnicke is pleased to announce the appointment of Alan Colquhoun as the new CEO of the company’s Canadian operations. Alan Colquhoun has been at DTZ for more than 16 years and comes to Canada after a 10-year assignment and consultancy instructions to contracts in Warsaw, Poland, from where he has managed the Polish and, since 2007, the Czech and Hungarian businesses of DTZ.

DTZ Barnicke News Release Fri Dec 18 2009

Morguard REIT acquires office tower in mid-town Toronto Morguard REIT – MRT.UN-T

Morguard REIT announced that the Trust, in partnership with a major Canadian pension fund, has acquired 77 Bloor Street West, a 21-storey Class ‘A’ office building located on the southwest corner of Bloor Street West at Bay Street. The building contains 370,000 square feet of leasable area and two levels of underground parking. The property is currently ninety-one per cent (91%) occupied.

Canada News Wire Thu Dec 17 2009

Office market shows signs of life, CB Richard Ellis says CBRE

The statistics may not show it yet but real estate company CB Richard Ellis says there are signs the leasing market may be improving. However, the company’s own data tells a different story. The overall vacancy rate shot up from 6.7% a year ago to 9.8% in the current quarter. The real estate company maintained that businesses have already began taking on new space.

Financial Post Fri Dec 18 2009 – Toronto Star – Ottawa Business Journal

Look before leaping on crown asset sales

Does it make fiscal sense? All these assets under review are money-makers for the government. The LCBO, hydro companies, and lotteries and casinos will turn over a combined $4.2 billion to the provincial treasury this year. Will this revenue stream be fully replaced by taxes and fees from the privatized operations? What should be done with the proceeds?

Toronto Star Fri Dec 18 2009

Toronto Mayor David Miller from Copenhagen

Toronto Mayor David Miller has had a busy week in Copenhagen. As chairman of the C40, a group of the world’s largest cities committed to tackling climate change, he played a central role in the Climate Summit for Mayors, a parallel conference to the UN climate summit. On behalf of Toronto, he joined 13 other mayors in committing to making their cities more electric vehicle-friendly.

Globe and Mail Thu Dec 17 2009

Canadian commercial real estate driving energy efficiency

The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) of Canada reports the all-important first step to reaching the aggressive energy consumption target by 2015 is well underway with establishing the common methodology for normalization of energy data with industry partners Real Property Association of Canada (REALpac) and the Canadian Green Building Council (CaGBC).

BOMA Canada News Release Sun Dec 20 2009

Whiterock REIT Closes $45 Million Acquisition of Property in Montreal and Toronto Whiterock REIT – WRK.UN-T

Whiterock REIT has completed the previously announced purchase of two high quality, primary market assets with long term leases to industry leaders Molson and Technicolor. In keeping with its accretive acquisition program, Whiterock has acquired an interest in a 225,000 square foot distribution centre in Montreal and an 87,105 square foot office building in downtown Toronto for $45.3 million.

Canada News Wire Wed Dec 23 2009

Stand by for a mega moving day in the GTA

The next two years promise to reshape the look and feel of the GTA in ways probably not felt since the building boom of the 1970s. Then, we went out. This time, we are going up. At the same time, the Toronto area is about to have its own exodus – inward not out. Quiet suburban neighbourhoods are about to vibrate with new life. Once-neglected industrial areas in the city core are about to be transformed into mini-villages.

Globe and Mail Wed Dec 23 2009

Canadas Economy Grew 0.2% in October on Real Estate

The Canadian economy grew 0.2 percent in October, less than economists expected, as gains in real estate services and utilities offset a drop in mining output. A jump in home sales led a 7.2 percent gain in the value of services from real estate agents and brokers, while unusually cold weather raised output at utilities by 2.4 percent, Statistics Canada said today in Ottawa.

Bloomberg Wed Dec 23 2009

Government investment sets stage for renewal of Toronto Regent Park

A new 68,000-square-foot arts and cultural centre will be built in Torontos Regent Park as a result of a joint Canada-Ontario investment. Designed by Diamond + Schmitt Architects, the centre is part of a multi-phased revitalization of the Regent Park neighbourhood. It will include office space as well as a multi-purpose arts space to accommodate a wide variety of performances, festivals, celebrations and events.

Daily Commercial News Wed Dec 23 2009

Fort Yorks future linked to past

Plans to make Fort York a well-connected part of the city, rather than an increasingly isolated plot of land flanked by road and rail, have moved another step forward. The city announced Friday that Vancouver’s Patkau Architects Inc., with Kearns Mancini Architects Inc. of Toronto, had won the competition to create a new visitor centre.

Toronto Star Wed Dec 23 2009

Sheppard LRT work begins

As a construction crew dug up chunks of asphalt by the Agincourt GO station yesterday, officials cheered the launch of a “critical” transit extension through the busy Scarborough corridor. The event served as a formal groundbreaking for the Sheppard East light rail project, a 14-kilometre line that will run along Sheppard Avenue between the Don Mills subway station and Meadowvale Road starting in 2013.

National Post Wed Dec 23 2009

Morguard Corporation to manage two major downtown Toronto properties Morguard

Morguard Corporation is bringing its real estate management expertise to two more major properties at Bay and Bloor Streets in downtown Toronto. Beginning in January, 2010, the two well-known properties, located at 60 Bloor Street West and 77 Bloor Street West, will be fully managed by Morguard Investments Limited.

PR_Canada.net Wed Dec 23 2009

Is it time for Toronto to finally get cable?

It might sound crazy, but one urban planner believes cable cars rather than streetcars are the answer to TTC hassles. And at least one politician believes planner-designer Steven Dale’s idea merits further exploration. The native Torontonian, who divides his time between Cabbagetown and Switzerland, thinks cable would be the better way on some TTC routes.

Toronto Star Wed Dec 30 2009

Views from the Shanghai World Financial Center

Eclipse Futuristic Office Partition Concept

by Mark Alexander on November 1, 2009

Original Post

Designed in response to the increasing need of adjustable private spaces within open offices, the “Eclipse Office Partition System” by Australian designer Marcus Ward Curran is a modular workplace that can evolve and adapt as the needs of privacy and interaction change during the course of the day. Revolving around current office trends of hot desks, just in time furniture and distributed possession, the modular system allows a flexible and pro-active work environment. The Eclipse Partition System consists of four main components; hot desk, pattern table, table partition and full size partition. Each component of the system, when used in conjunction, allows space to be divided into a meeting area, a private space or a breakout zone. Yet these components are movable and flexible, allowing freedom of layout when privacy requirements change.

Encompassing eco-sense principles of respect for the environment and sustainability, the Eclipse Partition System features components to that work together to make more efficient use of space with eco-friendly materials to allow design for disintegration and recycling. Incorporated technology of e-ink allows users to personalize space using immersion of visual stimuli to become a more efficient and productive working environment.

Ecovert – Company Profile

Ecovert is a full service environmental real estate consulting firm. We provide our clients with practical, sustainable solutions that best match their business needs. Incorporating a holistic approach to the design and construction process, we aim to take full advantage of innovative green technologies and processes, while incorporating the most economical methods.

I had the pleasure of meeting Adolfo Silva for a coffee to discuss the process of “Greening” an office building.  Adolfo has a background in construction and it was obvious he understands the concerns of most landlords these days – capitol improvements.

We also spoke briefly about moving forward with a “Green” plan, something I have been recommending to the landlords I work with.  The concept is to take baby steps forward now so that the expense of going green in the future becomes a more reasonable endeavor.  For example, as suites become vacant the landlord should replace the lights with new LED systems, move to environmentally friendly carpet and use low VOC paint.  I believe most tenants will be searching out green office space exclusively in the future; you might as well start greening your building now and be ahead of the curve.

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Freshbooks – Office Profile

The Freshbooks head office is at 2770 Dufferin Street – a little unassuming building about 10 minutes walk from the Glencairn TTC station.   I wasn’t expecting much when I first saw the property but once you get inside they have some really cool space.  A few breakout meeting rooms, polished concrete floors, some great movie posters, big windows with lots of natural light and even a foozeball table!  What more could you ask for as a tech company?  There weren’t many restaurants next door but a short walk either North or South and you can find some great lunch spots.

Rayanne Langdon (Queen of Hearts – @rlangdon) and Grace Antonio greeted me promptly upon arrival.  Freshbooks is still at a size where every employee feels part of the team and the energy in the office felt awesome.  The staff were given an opportunity to provide input on the design of the offices  and I think they did a great job setting it up.  A few months ago Freshbooks posted some advice on their blog about  how to save a few bucks designing your office space.  The post can be found here.

There isn’t much to say about plus / minus of the ownership of the building as Freshbooks keeps to themselves.  The building is far enough away from the financial core and the Spadina node that they don’t get a lot of drop in traffic without appointments, which can be a good or bad thing.

To learn more about Freshbooks and their services check out their website at Freshbooks.com – here’s a little more on this great company and their services.

FreshBooks is an online invoicing and time tracking service that helps entrepreneurs, freelancers and small businesses in more than 100 countries save time, get paid faster, look professional and focus on what they love to do — their work. Since 2004, FreshBooks has touched over 1,000,000 lives and according to its 2007 customer survey, 99% of FreshBooks users recommend FreshBooks to others seeking an easy, effective billing service. FreshBooks, a service of 2ndSite, Inc., has its headquarters and development center in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Freshbooks Contact Info

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Commercial Real Estate News – Toronto – September 2009

Sobeys grocery chain gaining ground on Loblaw – loblaw.com – L-T – Loblaw is kicking off another round of grocery-store price wars, as rival Sobeys announces quarterly results showing it’s making gains on the market leader. Starting today, Loblaw said its Big Brands event moves into the Ontario market, as well as Atlantic and western Canada. The event is already running in Quebec. For three weeks, consumers will be able to stock up on popular national brands. Toronto Star, Sep 14, 2009

Strike stalled Toronto building permits – A wet July, a civic workers’ strike and the emergence of some kind of summer in August all set the stage for a mixed collection of housing numbers in Toronto. Housing starts for Toronto rose 19.7% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 23,700 units in August compared with July, according to this week’s numbers released by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. National Post, Sep 14, 2009

Canada’s first complete map-based real estate & rental listing platform – streetseed.com – Streetseed.com launches Canada’s first map-based real estate search site offering home and apartment listings from real estate representatives, property managers, and individuals. The real estate market is heating up; renters and homebuyers now have an easy and innovative way to view search results through a traditional list and a dynamic map-based view. Canada News Wire, Sep 14, 2009

First new Toronto office tower in a decade opens today – When dignitaries cut the ribbon at the Bay Adelaide Centre today, it will mark the opening of the first major office tower in the downtown core in nearly two decades — and two more are set to follow on its heels. The 43-storey RBC Centre, completed this summer, will officially open on Oct. 1, while the 30-storey Telus Tower is slated for completion in November. Each building offers about one million square feet of leasable office space. National Post, Sep 16, 2009

Allied Properties REIT acquires Toronto offfice property for $192-million – alliedpropertiesreit.com – AP.UN-T – Allied Properties REIT has entered into an agreement to purchase 151 Front St.W., Toronto, a Class I office property with 325,772 square feet of gross leasable area, 56 surface parking spaces and 750,000 square feet of approved intensification potential. The Toronto component of Allied’s portfolio will represent 56% of the total GLA, the Montreal component 35%, the Winnipeg component 7%, Quebec City component 3%. Daily Commercial News, Sep 16, 2009

Invest Toronto begins search for new CEO – investtoronto.ca – Toronto Mayor David Miller confirmed that the search for a new Chief Executive Officer for Invest Toronto will be undertaken by the Governance Committee of the Invest Toronto Board of Directors. The search for a new CEO follows the unfortunate resignation of Invest Toronto’s first CEO, Michael Bryant. The Governance Committee will be assisted in their recruitment by Knightsbridge Executive Search. Canada News Wire, Sep 15, 2009 Globe and Mail, Sep 15, 2009

Jones Lang LaSalle Starts Online Commercial Property Auction Service – auction.com – Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., the second-biggest publicly traded commercial property broker, is joining with Real Estate Disposition Corp. to start an online auction service to sell commercial property and loans. Real Estate Disposition runs a Web site focusing on residential property sales. The site has sold more than $5 billion in assets since 2007. Bloomberg, Sep 16, 2009 Reuters, Sep 16, 2009

Toronto lands $200 million stimulus – Ottawa’s $200 million contribution in infrastructure stimulus funding for Toronto will help get work started on over 500 citywide construction projects valued at nearly $600 million. The funding is expected to preserve or create close to 7,000 jobs in the city and the federal portion is drawn from Ottawa’s $4 billion infrastructure stimulus fund. Daily Commercial News, Sep 16, 2009

Financial stability of tenants a big concern: Colliers – Commercial landlords say their biggest concern during the recession is the financial stability of tenants as tough economic times are resulting in higher vacancy rates and rent defaults. In a survey of Canadian commercial investors released by Colliers yesterday at a forum in Toronto for real estate executives, 92 per cent of respondents said “tenant financial credit rating” was at the top of their list. Toronto Star, Sep 18, 2009 Calgary Herald, Sep 18, 2009

Bay Adelaide Centre doors open – brookfieldproperties.com – BPO-T – Ric Clark is looking for a few good tenants. The CEO of Brookfield Properties Corp. officially opened Toronto’s newest office skyscraper yesterday. The Bay Adelaide Centre is the first significant development in the financial district in 17 years. Work on the site ground to a halt in 1991 after the economy slowed and now it opens during another challenging era. Toronto Star, Sep 17, 2009 Globe and Mail, Sep 17, 2009

Loblaw, Ryerson discuss Maple Leaf Gardens revamp – loblaw.com – L-T – Canada’s largest supermarket chain confirmed Wednesday it is in talks with Ryerson University about the future development of Maple Leaf Gardens. Inge van den Berg, senior vice-president of corporate affairs for Loblaw Companies Limited, said in an email to local media outlets the company was speaking with the university about the “possible future joint use” of the historic Toronto building. CBC, Sep 17, 2009

Canadian office vacancy rate climbs in Q3: CBRE – cbre.ca – Vacancy rates in Canada’s commercial real estate market rose in the third quarter and a recovery in the sector is still months away as the country pulls out of the recession. The overall year-over-year vacancy rate for both downtown and suburban office markets climbed to 9.4% from 6.3%, CBRE said in its third-quarter report on national office and industrial trends. Financial Post, Sep 21, 2009 Calgary Herald, Sep 21, 2009 Globe Investor, Sep 21, 2009

CN Tower remains world’s tallest tower, Guinness says – Toronto’s glorious CN Tower may have lost some of its international allure when an upstart Abu Dubai office tower took its title as world’s tallest structure, but it will not have its name stricken entirely from the Guinness Book of World Records. Guinness record keepers announced today the CN Tower, at 553.3 metres, is still considered the world’s tallest tower. Burj Dubai measuring in at 818 metres. National Post, Sep 21, 2009

Glut of office space looms large in Toronto and Calgary – A glut of vacant office space will hit the Toronto and Calgary markets over the next two years, likely driving down rental rates for some time. Three large office towers are slated to open in downtown Toronto before the end of this year alone, making up a large chunk of the 4.7 million square feet of commercial space that is expected to become available in 2009-2010. Wall St. Journal, Sep 23, 2009 Globe and Mail, Sep 23, 2009 Toronto Star, Sep 23, 2009

NAI Global enhances coverage of Toronto market with Ashlar Urban Realty – ashlarurban.com – NAI Global, the world’s premier managed network of commercial real estate firms and one of the largest real estate services providers worldwide, announced today it is enhancing its coverage in Canada with the signing of Ashlar Urban Realty in Toronto. Ashlar Urban is a privately owned Canadian real estate brokerage specializing in office and retail leasing, investment sales, and advisory services. Canada News Wire, Sep 23, 2009

Onex eyes U.S. commercial real estate – onex.com – Onex Corp., the Canadian private equity firm, sees potential for acquisitions in U.S. commercial real estate, but does not plan to use much of its $4-billion war chest to invest in it. Onex Managing Director Andrew Sheiner told investors on Thursday that the company, whose investments range from cosmetics to gaming, hoped to take advantage of a looming crisis in the business of leasing U.S. office space. Globe and Mail, Sep 25, 2009 National Post, Sep 25, 2009

Canada’s tallest office tower gets a $100-million facelift – Carrera marble is so 1975. The Italian white marble that clads Canada’s tallest office tower, First Canadian Place, is coming down next year, all 45,000 slabs of it, the owners announced today. In its place, workers will install 7,800 panels of white glass. All of which is good news; two years ago a slab of marble, roughly a metre square, fell off the building after a spring rainstorm. National Post, Sep 24, 2009

Pricey Bloor Street nation’s top retail spot – Wayne Kingsland is looking to expand his Bloor St. boutique. But despite a recession that has hit the luxury goods market globally, he’s had a tough time finding the perfect spot on Toronto’s most exclusive retail strip. “Bloor St. is where we want to remain because we want to be in proximity to the carriage trade and other international brands,” says Kingsland, owner of the Montblanc boutique on Bloor. Toronto Star, Sep 24, 2009

Ashlar Urban Brokers User-Sale of Character Office Building in Toronto – ashlarurban.com – Northern Lights Direct Response Television Inc., a leading brand-based agency offering production services in the United States and Canada has purchased a 20,000 square feet of gross Class B office in Toronto, Ontario. Ashlar Urban brokered the sale of 15 Duncan Street, between King and Adelaide Streets in the Financial Core. Canada News Wire, Sep 30, 2009

Greening the Toronto Financial District – Toronto’s biggest capitalists got together today to discuss ways of reducing the city’s collective carbon footprint. The meeting, organized by the Toronto City Summit Alliance, was the first time bank tenants and high profile landlords sat down together to discuss ways to improve energy efficiency. National Post, Sep 30, 2009 Canada News Wire, Sep 30, 2009

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