Kelowna Construction

[giallo]

Originally Posted by Metro-One

So this would be 2 new major hotels in Kelowna? Very nice. I really hope they get off the ground along with Monaco. 4 new towers of that size would really help solidify Kelowna's downtown and skyline. (along with all the other mid rise proposals).

What happened to the 8 story office tower in downtown Kelowna? Is that still going forward?

Absolutely. It would help establish the northern part of downtown more.

We'll see what happens this summer. Kelowna could really use a new hotel with views. The tallest hotel in the city is still The Grand.

[giallo]

Bernard Ave. reopens after undergoing a $14,000,000 facelift.


• Video Link


I used to be so embarrassed with Bernard Ave. when I was a teenager. I go there now, and it's like night and day. I really, really like 'The Strip' now.

[Metro-One]

Yeah, again Kelowna has changed a lot in 10 years, and in a good way.

I worry about these towers though, while Kelowna did complete the new office tower (landmark 6?) many of its other tower proposals don't seem to get to far.

It looks as if things may be turning a corner though and I have a feeling at least one of them will be built. 2 or the 4 would not surprise me, but I will be super happy if all 4 get going.

[Ogopogo Fan]

Concept plan for the IHA building is up - developed by Bentall Kennedy:

http://www.kelowna.ca/CityPage/DevAp...ept%20Plan.pdf

[vitc]

The design is nice - could be a little better but nonetheless it will be an amazing intersection! Thanks for sharing.

[Ogopogo Fan]

Originally Posted by vitc

Ok, this is VERY interesting:

"CD zone proposal and Development Permit for a 26 storey hotel with office space and ancillary uses. 1000 Manhattan Dr."

http://www.kelowna.ca/iDevelopment_A...m?da_num=17785

Development application is up - looks pretty sharp:

http://www.kelowna.ca/CityPage/DevAp...27-05-2014.pdf



source: me.

[vitc]

Would love to see a real render. But looks very promising! Thanks.

[Chadillaccc]

How tall is the hotel at the Willow Inn? I thought someone posted the height but can't find it. 110 meters?

[Emtee]

Originally Posted by Chadillaccc

How tall is the hotel at the Willow Inn? I thought someone posted the height but can't find it. 110 meters?

83.995m according to the report to Council.

[Phil McAvity]

Originally Posted by Emtee

83.995m according to the report to Council.

I'd like to know exactly how tall it's going to be though.

[Emtee]

The Monaco will be built in Kelowna this fall

by Jennifer Smith - Kelowna Capital News
posted Aug 5, 2014 at 11:00 AM



The Monaco will be under construction this fall according to the developer.— Image Credit: Contributed

The Monaco will be under construction as of this fall, says Tyler Dueck, public relations for Premier Pacific Group.

The twin tower urban condo and hotel project will be the first highrise project built in Kelowna's downtown core in half a decade due to the 2008 economic crash.

Last week, the City of Kelowna's planning department indicated the final paperwork needed for the developer to obtain the necessary building permit to start construction had yet to be filed, and the deadline is this week to meet their anticipated September build timeline; however, the developer insists the project is still going up.

"I don't know if we'll be there for September, but certainly we'll be on track for this fall," said Dueck. "We're not talking about months and months down the road, (but) maybe weeks behind."

The company needs to finalize a landscape plan and secure some commitments for the in-house daycare, file the paperwork and wait for the municipality's approval before proceeding.

The Monaco will include a 22-storey tower and a 30-storey tower, and will be built directly in front of The Daily Courier's offices and behind The Madison on St. Paul Street.

The buildings include 161 residential suites, a 128-room hotel in one tower, 3,000 square metres of street-side commercial space and a daycare centre.

The developer has also promised to install thousands of dollars worth of public art, include a bike-share program and facilities for charging electric cars.

http://www.kelownacapnews.com/news/270023381.html

[giallo]

Great news. I hope it sells well.

[Emtee]

Phantom highrises dot Kelowna's skyline

22 + 30 + 21 + 24 + 11 = 108
Kelowna's skyline would look a lot different today if all the high-rise projects previously approved by the city had been built as planned.

Five buildings with a total of 108 storeys have all received endorsement from city council in the past few years. But none of them are finished, and work may not ever begin on some of them.

So council's approval this week of a 24 storey downtown hotel does not, in and of itself, mean the project will certainly go ahead.

Edmonton-based Westcorp Inc. says construction will begin sometime next year, but other developers have said similarly confident things after receiving all the necessary city approvals.

The projects have foundered for a variety of reasons, including changing real estate conditions, financing problems, and the lingering effects of the recession in 2008.

Here's a look at some of the already-approved, high-profile highrises that, for various reasons, continue to exist only in the imagination:

Lucaya - Plans for a 21-storey, luxury-oriented highrise on Sunset Drive were abandoned when the recession began in 2008. A partially-completed, often-graffitied underground garage gives bleak testament to the failed dream.
The site was bought by Richmond-based Jingon International Development in 2012 for $3.8 million in a court-ordered sale. Last Friday, the company sent its architect and engineer up to Kelowna to meet with city staff about ways to revive the project.

The company is still interested in a tower of about that height, city planner Ryan Smith says, but the suites would be smaller. The company will engage in market research to test potential demand.

24 – The Aquilini family of Vancouver received permission in 2009 to build a 26-storey tower on Bernard Avenue. The company's website describes it as an “upcoming” project, but the approvals lapsed at the end of 2013.
The company still owns the site, however, and may eventually revive the project in a revised form, Smith says.

Monaco – Two towers, of 22 and 30 storeys, were approved for the north-west corner of Doyle Avenue and St. Paul Street in early 2013. However, the company has still not posted a landscaping bond or provided a required payment for parking considerations. These are normally routine matters.
Last year, company officials said construction could start in the fall. This year, they've said the same thing.

Planners are likely to keep the file open until April 2015, Smith said.

Sopa Square – probably the most well-chronicled failed local development is what was supposed to have been an 11-storey project in the South Pandosy district.
The project fell into receivership and no one has yet been found who is willing to take it over.

On the other side of the development ledger, Argus Properties is currently talking to city planning staff about a 26-storey hotel at the corner of Manhattan Drive and Sunset Drive.

A rezoning of the site would be required, but the project conforms to the Official Community Plan. The matter may reach a city council agenda in late September or early October.

http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/ne...a4bcf6878.html

^^ First news on the Lucaya site in a long time.

[vitc]

^ What is the source?

Edit: thanks

[Metro-One]

Yeah Kelowna seems to have suffered the worst in BC from the 2008 financial crisis.

Pretty much everything that stalled in metro-Vancouver has now gone ahead (or has already been completed!). Victoria has a couple projects still in limbo but at least since 2008 it has also had many new significant projects built (and currently u/c).
i really, really want Kelowna to get at least one of these tower projects off the ground and completed without problems. I feel that is what it really needs, it just needs one to be a success, and then other will likely follow.

[Chadillaccc]

Even if just Monaco and the Westcorp Hotel went ahead I would be super happy.

[vitc]

With IHA building going up across the street I would guess that the Monaco is a sure bet.

[kiwi4life]

oh man that's too bad.. well I hope things pick up in Kelowna, be sure nice to get some taller buildings and the economy back on track.

[Emtee]

What's Happening At Sopa Square?



In August 2013 Epic Real Estate Solutions Inc. was awarded the opportunity to manage the marketing & sales of the planned residential Tower and Townhomes at Sopa Square which is located in Kelowna’s vibrant South Pandosy neighborhood. In December 2013 Sopa Square was placed in Receivership by one of the projects lenders. From August to December 2013, our team got to know the project and many of the buyers and potential buyers of the project. Since then we have received many requests for information with the most common question being “what’s happening at Sopa Square?” Epic is not currently contracted to manage the marketing and sales for the project, however the following is a summary of public information available at the Ernst & Young website.

During the course of the spring and summer, Ernst & Young acting as the Receiver completed the Phase One commercial components of the project and completed commercial lease agreements with three businesses. In the Spring an affiliated company of the Aquilini Investment Group, an established Vancouver based real estate developer expressed interest in the community and has spent the ensuing months working through a process to acquire the property with court approval. They have established a “floor price” that they would be interested in purchasing the project for however to maximize the potential return to the creditor who petitioned the Receivership, a process involving Colliers International marketing the project en bloc to other potential buyers is proposed. The process could complete with a buyer for the project in the late fall of 2014. The proceeding is subject to BC Supreme Court approval in September 2014. If approved a new developer would likely be announced in late fall 2014.

http://epicres.com/epic-real-estate-fall-news-updates/

[Emtee]

Saw this development sign while I was downtown today with the first real render of the new Argus 26 storey tower proposal on Manhattan: