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  #921  
Old Posted Apr 5, 2018, 5:27 PM
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Costco developer pitches downtown grocery store for Saskatoon
Plans also call for 'experiential retail lifestyle centre' and living space

Guy Quenneville · CBC News · Posted: Apr 05, 2018 11:19 AM CT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

Quote:
The same company that brought a second Costco to Saskatoon wants to build a "missing and much-needed" grocery store near the downtown core.

Vancouver-based Arbutus Properties has told city councillors it wants to start negotiating with the city to buy the "City Yards" property next door to Saskatoon Police Service headquarters.

The plan also includes "an experiential retail lifestyle centre, combined with urban residential and live/workspaces."

The area Arbutus has in mind is the "City Yards" land highlighted in blue in this map from the City of Saskatoon. (City of Saskatoon )

But it's the idea of a full-sized grocery store that gets the most ink in Arbutus' letter to councillors.

"[It's] vital to anchoring the north downtown and enhancing Saskatoon's core," the company wrote.

6-month timeline

Arbutus is the same company that developed the 350-acre Meadows residential development three kilometres from Boychuk Drive.

That development included Saskatoon's much-ballyhooed second Costco.

Arbutus says it wants six months to refine its plan for the 22-acre city yards, including potentially reusing certain "character buildings" on the site.

"It's a strategic reuse of a brownfield site with no tax base to its highest and best use," the company wrote.

'A case of when, not if'

Alex Fallon, the CEO of the Saskatoon Regional Economic Development Authority (SREDA), says the authority had been aware of interest in the property.

"[We] have always maintained its a case of when, not if, there is a grocery store to serve downtown," he said.

But a report released by SREDA last summer said not enough people live downtown to make a grocery store there economically feasible.

Several strikes against the downtown were cited: rent and real estate costs, "safety concerns," difficulty finding an appropriate site and a feared perception that a downtown location — due to its relatively smaller size — would not be seen as a "real" or "acceptable."

A new Save-on-Foods is set to open on Eighth Street this weekend. The busy strip is already home to several grocery stores.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskat...tore-1.4606308

This is potentially huge. Arbutus Properties, one of the developers in Rosewood, is making a pitch to City Council to buy the City Yards outright and develop the North Downtown themselves.
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  #922  
Old Posted Apr 5, 2018, 5:48 PM
WoodlandCritter WoodlandCritter is offline
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Originally Posted by Echoes View Post

This is potentially huge. Arbutus Properties, one of the developers in Rosewood, is making a pitch to City Council to buy the City Yards outright and develop the North Downtown themselves.
Someone working for Arbutus Properties was in our Vancouver office a few weeks ago and I overheard them mention this project. They sounded pretty excited about it, didn't hear any details though. It also looks like they are moving into the Vancouver market now. Is there an architecture firm associated with the original preliminary north downtown master plans?
Tried taking a look through the pdfs but didn't see a name, might have missed it.

Last edited by WoodlandCritter; Apr 5, 2018 at 6:25 PM.
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  #923  
Old Posted Apr 5, 2018, 6:08 PM
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Perkins + Will was leading the original master plan.
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  #924  
Old Posted Apr 5, 2018, 6:24 PM
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^^^ Thanks
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  #925  
Old Posted Apr 5, 2018, 9:43 PM
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Wow that is good news if they can get it going. So we have to wait 6 months for details?

Here some news on new IMAX for Saskatoon

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/saskat...reen-1.4606414
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  #926  
Old Posted Apr 6, 2018, 1:45 AM
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Developer wants to buy city yards, transform industrial area

A Vancouver developer wants to buy the city yards north of downtown and breathe new life into the area.

PHIL TANK, SASKATOON STARPHOENIX
Published on: April 5, 2018 | Last Updated: April 5, 2018 6:36 PM CST



Quote:
A Vancouver developer wants to buy the city yards north of downtown Saskatoon and breathe new life into the area.

Jeff Drexel, president of Arbutus Properties, said the company has approached the City of Saskatoon with a request to purchase about 22 acres in the Central Industrial area.

Drexel said Arbutus wants to redevelop the area with a mix of destination retail shopping, office space and residential that would include a grocery store.

The move would help the city achieve its goals for infill development and to convince more people to live downtown, Drexel said in an interview on Thursday.

“We believe that a grocery store is desperately needed,” he said, adding that the company’s plans align with the city’s goals to encourage more people to live in or near downtown.

Saskatoon residents may be familiar with Arbutus from its Meadows community in the southeast neighbourhood of Rosewood. The Meadows Market includes a Costco wholesale store that opened in November 2016, and continues to attract new retailers like a Co-op liquor store, a PetSmart and a Marshalls.

Drexel acknowledged redevelopment of the city yards would represent a new type of venture for Arbutus. He added he does not have an estimate for how much he thinks the property would cost.

“It’s a big step,” Drexel said. “We’re not going to solve the problem (of more people living downtown), but we think we can help facilitate solving the problem with this project.”

The city is pursuing federal funding for a $200-million project to relocate the city yards at satellite locations throughout Saskatoon. A $92-million plan to move the yards to the civic operations centre has been shelved.

In September, the city yards property was not identified in a city report as city-owned land with the potential to be developed in the next five years. That has not diminished speculation.

This rendering from a 2014 City of Saskatoon draft master plan shows a bridge park crossing over the Canadian Pacific rail lines in the city’s Central Industrial area. (City of Saskatoon) SASWP
A group aiming to bring a professional soccer franchise to Saskatoon identified the city yards as the location for a potential stadium.

A city vision from 2014 suggested building an innovative park bridge over the Canadian Pacific rail line that slices through the Central Industrial area. The park bridge, a green space that would only accommodate pedestrians or cyclists, was intended to provide a sense of connectivity to the area north of the downtown sandwiched between Caswell Hill and City Park.

“I think it’s a great idea that’s very difficult to make happen,” Drexel said of the park bridge.

The 2014 vision suggested redeveloping 84 acres would cost $130 million and could increase the population in the area from 210 to 7,650.

The proposal by Arbutus will be considered by city council’s planning, development and community services committee on Monday. Arbutus wants six months to develop a detailed plan.

ptank@postmedia.com

twitter.com/thinktankSK
http://thestarphoenix.com/news/local...ndustrial-area
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  #927  
Old Posted Apr 6, 2018, 4:01 PM
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Originally Posted by Echoes View Post
Developer wants to buy city yards, transform industrial area

A Vancouver developer wants to buy the city yards north of downtown and breathe new life into the area.

PHIL TANK, SASKATOON STARPHOENIX
Published on: April 5, 2018 | Last Updated: April 5, 2018 6:36 PM CST





http://thestarphoenix.com/news/local...ndustrial-area
This story STINKS! Murray Totland essentially went right from the city to Arbutus and is now using his former power as city manager to skirt the rules. There is NO WAY the city should use a suburban developer with no track record for infill as the sole source provider. Anyone and their dog can write a letter with poorly drawn renderings and say they want to build a grocery store. From a direct source I'm told city employees are growing tired of Murray's calls attempting to put pressure on former underlings trying to circumvent the same rules he spent years enforcing.
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  #928  
Old Posted Apr 6, 2018, 4:29 PM
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Originally Posted by roryn1 View Post
Fun fact Friday: Mid Scale Solar can actually fully repay itself off after 7-8 years here based on what Saskpower is willing to currently pay for power and is privately building out right now with their goal of becoming 50% renewable by 2030. The panels are typically fully warrantied for 25 years and the actual lifespan is closer to 50 years.

What will SaskPower pay for a KWH now? Does this factor in their other charges such as demand charge, distribution, standby, etc. What about financing costs? I am a big solar proponent, but I remain skeptical about some of these pay back calculations. Does anyone have any actual results that are not projections provided by people selling solar systems?

Edit: This seems pretty good, maybe I need to accelerate my plans.
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  #929  
Old Posted Apr 7, 2018, 6:17 PM
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Saskatoon makes an uncredited appearance on HBO last night. On Real Time with Bill Maher, during a bit where he was admonishing the (alleged) douchy parking practices of UPS drivers, a stock photo used was from 22nd St.

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  #930  
Old Posted Apr 8, 2018, 7:13 AM
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Originally Posted by Stormer View Post
What will SaskPower pay for a KWH now? Does this factor in their other charges such as demand charge, distribution, standby, etc. What about financing costs? I am a big solar proponent, but I remain skeptical about some of these pay back calculations. Does anyone have any actual results that are not projections provided by people selling solar systems?

Edit: This seems pretty good, maybe I need to accelerate my plans.
PAYMENT RATES
We credit your excess power at the same rate that you purchase power. Your electricity billing is based on kilowatt-hours (kWh). As an example, if you are purchasing power at $0.14228/kWh (2018),
then your excess power will be credited at that amount.
Banks have been financing these projects close to prime if not prime rate. Once Tesla’s solar roof takes off in the next couple years you’ll see a drastically diminished cost. I wouldn’t install until their product hits the Canadian market as I assume competitors will join in to continually lower those prices. SaskPower’s goal is to go 50% renewable by 2030, but the way battery and solar prices are going I could easily see that closer to 100% by 2030. This is based on figures from Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
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  #931  
Old Posted Apr 9, 2018, 10:18 PM
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Tees & Persse Warehouse - Stewart Properties

The exterior is being kept "as is" however the inside is in desperate need of repair, as well needs an elevator added for accessibility. There are two prominent non-profit tenants looking at taking up space in the building and have been offered "renovate to suit" renovations. Tyler Stewart of Stewart Properties is apparently the new owner. There are apparently no plans to demolish the building, but rather to maintain and improve it.

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Painted Black: Artists lose studios with sale of landmark building
“It’s just been a terrific space for artists. Has great light. The rent is very reasonable,” says artist Betsy Rosenwald.


Cam Fuller, Saskatoon StarPhoenix Cam Fuller, Saskatoon StarPhoenix
Published on: April 5, 2018 | Last Updated: April 5, 2018 9:22 AM CST



http://thestarphoenix.com/entertainm...dmark-building

I suspect that this is a precursor of news to come on the new owner's intentions for the Tees & Persse warehouse on 1st Ave. I sincerely hope it involves retaining the building.
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  #932  
Old Posted Apr 11, 2018, 3:35 PM
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Developer bullish on downtown Saskatoon grocery store
The Vancouver-based developer that wants to buy and transform the city yards is convinced a grocery store can work in downtown Saskatoon.


Phil Tank, Saskatoon StarPhoenix
Published on: April 11, 2018 | Last Updated: April 11, 2018 5:00 AM CST



Quote:
The Vancouver-based developer that wants to buy and transform the city yards is convinced a grocery store can work in downtown Saskatoon.

Jeff Drexel, the president of Arbutus Properties, appeared before a city council committee Monday to explain his vision for the city yards.

Drexel said he planned to establish a grocery store along 25th Street as part of the Arbutus plan to purchase and redevelop the city yards in the Central Industrial area north of downtown.

“We’ve done our homework and we feel there is the population,” Drexel told council’s planning, development and community services committee Monday.

Arbutus wants to redevelop the city yards with a mix of residential, office and retail. The city has long-term plans to move the city yards out of the Central Industrial area, but shelved a $92-million plan to move the yards to the civic operations centre in the city’s southwest.

The city is now seeking federal funding for a $200-million project to establish satellite yards throughout the city.

Drexel said the redevelopment would proceed in phases depending on the city’s timetable for relocating the yards. Arbutus will try to adapt existing buildings, he added.

“We see quite a few people living here,” Drexel said. “We don’t have numbers yet.”

But Drexel said the first phase of the development would begin in the south end and include a grocery store. He did not mention a specific grocery chain, but said the store could serve surrounding neighbourhoods like Caswell Hill and City Park.

According to City of Saskatoon numbers, 3,334 people lived downtown in 2017, while 4,677 lived in City Park and 3,732 lived in Caswell Hill.

Drexel said the first developments would be rental housing, but eventually there would be a mix of rentals and ownership.

Resident Peggy Sargeant pointed out to the committee residents had participated in consultation in the north downtown master plan in 2014. That vision featured an eye-catching park bridge over the Canadian Pacific railway tracks in the Central Industrial area.

[....]
http://thestarphoenix.com/news/local...-grocery-store
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  #933  
Old Posted Apr 12, 2018, 6:12 PM
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Originally Posted by TheCricket View Post
The exterior is being kept "as is" however the inside is in desperate need of repair, as well needs an elevator added for accessibility. There are two prominent non-profit tenants looking at taking up space in the building and have been offered "renovate to suit" renovations. Tyler Stewart of Stewart Properties is apparently the new owner. There are apparently no plans to demolish the building, but rather to maintain and improve it.
I'm of the personal opinion that the painting over of the south exterior wall was the opposite of improvement. Those ghost signs were very unique for the city, province, and even the country. There were several decades of Saskatoon's commercial history on display. Truly unfortunate.
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  #934  
Old Posted Apr 13, 2018, 3:37 PM
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Continued support for downtown arena.

http://thestarphoenix.com/news/local...askatoon-arena

I understand that many feel there is no urgency to this, but the reality is the process to make a decision will take time as will a construction schedule. So, i feel there is some urgency to move this forward as quickly as possible....we are probably still looking at minimum 5 to seven years out to construction.
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  #935  
Old Posted Apr 18, 2018, 4:26 PM
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Saskatoon Firefighters Beat Back Fire at Under-construction Hotel

Flames and smoke shot from the roof of an under-construction hotel building on Lorne Avenue and Circle Drive Wednesday morning.

Mark Kincade said he was on his way to work when he saw the smoke and called 911.

He said at first, it was just smoke. But soon he saw flames.

Full Story


Photo Credit CBC News
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  #936  
Old Posted Apr 18, 2018, 6:37 PM
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The construction of that hotel has always struck me (and others) as very odd. Concrete bearing walls and slabs but wood framed envelope walls. Why not go with steel studs between the slabs for the front and back walls? It seems odd to introduce so much combustible material into a building with a non-combustible structure. The top floor of the tower portion may have also been wood-framed.

It is (was) a very curious structure. Typically, insurance for a wood-framed building is very expensive and requires a full-time watchman during the course of construction. This one may not have technically been classified as wood-framed, given the concrete structure, but I still would have thought it would likely fall under that insurance classification.

Given the size of the building there was very little known about it in the local construction industry. I'd heard that it was a BC-based General Contractor and mostly out-of-province trades on the project as well. I'll be curious to hear more in the coming days.
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  #937  
Old Posted Apr 20, 2018, 1:29 AM
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There's a Strata sign on the old Egadz building on 24th Street, and some construction fencing behind. Something's afoot.
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  #938  
Old Posted Apr 21, 2018, 4:16 PM
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There's a Strata sign on the old Egadz building on 24th Street, and some construction fencing behind. Something's afoot.
That’s exciting! I vote this is the ugliest building downtown at the moment:
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  #939  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2018, 5:40 PM
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Crews are beginning to rip the façade off the old police building on 4th Ave.
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  #940  
Old Posted Apr 25, 2018, 6:24 PM
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Crews are beginning to rip the façade off the old police building on 4th Ave.
That's amazing news. Would love to see them go ahead with the adjacent tower in the near future but that seems quite unlikely at this point. That being said, there does seem to be a shortage of Class A space available...
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